Collective – shocking exposé of needless deaths in Romania

The cynicism and indifference to suffering is truly horrible, and a kind of insidious evil rises from the screen like carbon monoxide, and also a terrible sadness. There is a moment ... when Tolontan and his colleagues are shown a secretly filmed video of maggots wriggling in a patient’s incompetently dressed wound. If that was in a fictional film, the metaphor would be dismissed as too obvious. Finally, Tolontan and his team are shown discussing sinister communications they have had from the intelligence services, telling them to be careful, for their families’ sake.

The real-life plan to use novels to predict the next war

One German official says the AI prediction system had already given Angela Merkel’s government a few months’ warning of the rebel insurgency in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province, where security forces are battling with militants trying to set up an Islamic state. But the early warning system is still in development: the aim is to eventually be able to predict conflicts 12-18 months in advance.

Millions of tons of plastic are trashed every year. But what if we used it to pave our roads?

“Road material is relatively inert, a solid block of asphalt,” noted Troutman. “In fact, the largest source of microplastics on the planet is abrasion of tires.”

There aren’t enough trees in the world to offset society’s carbon emissions – and there never will be

viewing natural ecosystems as “climate solutions” gives the misleading impression that forests can function like an infinitely absorbent mop to clean up the ever increasing flood of human caused CO₂ emissions.

EU, US launch initiative against ransomware

Cybercriminals shut down the largest gasoline pipeline system in the U.S, run by a company called Colonial, and the U.S. operations of meat processing company JBS in May. In Ireland, a ransomware attack crippled the country's health care system the same month. Security experts have pointed to cybercriminal groups based in Russia for the attacks.

Bitcoin is a Giant Ponzi Scheme

This isn’t an article about whether or not Bitcoin will continue to grow or crash and burn. That will depend on the public’s irrational exuberance versus the iron will of hundreds of governments who want to continue to oppress and control their citizens with a monopolistic currency stranglehold. It will be one of the most violent battles of our time.

Rumours swirl that China’s top spycatcher has defected to the US

Any defection would be embarrassing for the Chinese Communist Party ahead of its centenary on July 1. Propaganda has been ramping up and large boards with a red-emblazoned "100" have been hung above shops and along busy streets.The Chinese Communist Party has more than 91 million members.

The acceleration of the Delta variant around the world is raising questions about its origin, transmissibility, hotspots, and potential for vaccine resistance

However, the emergence of variants of concern, where mutations have resulted in altered virus characteristics (increased transmission and disease severity, reduced vaccine effectiveness, detection failure) have had deleterious health consequences.

Why artist Eileen Agar’s 'womb magic' speaks to our times

As subsequent events were soon to confirm, it was rather optimistic of the artist Eileen Agar to declare in 1931 that the “feminine type of imagination” she identified as “womb magic” was a force capable of countering the “rampant and hysterical militarism” rising across Europe.

Toward Deep Decarbonization

Batteries and hydrogen have emerged as two promising technologies for enabling this next level of economy-wide deep decarbonization, as they both allow low-cost renewable electricity to be stored and used to reduce or eliminate emissions in applications ranging from cars and trucks to steel and cement production

10 June 2021 Annular Solar Eclipse

The New Moon will cover the Sun's center, leaving its outer edges to form the characteristic annulus or “ring of fire” during this annular solar eclipse. Weather permitting, people in parts of Canada, Greenland, and Russia will be treated to the annular phase of the only annular solar eclipse of 2021.

Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data

Fossil fuel use is the primary source of CO2. CO2 can also be emitted from direct human-induced impacts on forestry and other land use, such as through deforestation, land clearing for agriculture, and degradation of soils. Likewise, land can also remove CO2 from the atmosphere through reforestation, improvement of soils, and other activities.

Maerten van Heemskerck’s right altar wing with female donor (around 1540)

 

Definition of Violence against women

The violence against women indicator presents you with data on:

• Attitudes toward violence: The percentage of women who agree that a husband/partner is justified in beating his wife/partner under certain circumstances

• Prevalence of violence in the lifetime: The percentage of women who have experienced physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner at some time in their life

• Laws on domestic violence: Whether the legal framework offers women legal protection from domestic violence

Microsoft removed 'Tank Man' images on Tiananmen Square's anniversary

Microsoft blocked images and videos around the world of "Tank Man," the unidentified protester during China's brutal crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing's Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989.

June 4 marked the 32nd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre

June 4 marked the 32nd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The Chinese government's attacks on freedom of expression have continued in the years since, with Tibet recently ranked the least free country in the world. But the fight for freedom will never cease.

Can Elites Start the Climate Revolution?

We need to get smarter in the way we use power, not find new “green” ways to do the same dumb things. Nevertheless, with its brutish appeal, the new F-150 might just transform the electric-vehicle market in the United States.

Magazines Are Swapping Out Celebrity Covers for Artworks by Famous Artists in a Bid to Stay Relevant

Last summer, after weeks of protests precipitated by the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, two of the country’s most recognizable magazines used their covers to make a statement. And they each turned to artists—not photographers—to do it. 

How the world’s richest defend their wealth, with help from a dedicated industry

The book, subtitled “How billionaires pay millions to hide trillions,” offers insiders’ accounts of what’s described as the “wealth defense industry” — made up of a coalition of professionals from advisors to lawyers and accountants — and how it deploys anonymous shell companies, family offices, offshore accounts and trusts to help the world’s richest people shield their wealth from tax collectors.

Pope says Brazil has no salvation

the religious of the diocese of Campina Grande (PB) met Pope Francis and asked the Brazilians for a blessing. In a relaxed manner, the pontiff smiled and fired: “You have no salvation. You drink a lot of cachaça and pray little”.