China wheelchair users dodge traffic on rough road to recognition

Shanghai (AFP) May 20, 2021 Cars, scooters and bicycles wait impatiently at traffic lights ready to zip across one of Shanghai’s main roads. In the thick of them sits an old man in an electric wheelchair. Nearby, another wheelchair user is pushed along in the street as traffic whizzes past just inches away. Busy, narrow or clogged pavements – haphazard rows of rentable bikes are … Continue reading China wheelchair users dodge traffic on rough road to recognition

FTC Reports Huge Jump in Cryptocurrency Scams

As the value of cryptocurrencies continue to soar, new investors are eager to get in on the action, and scammers are more than willing to accommodate them. According to the Federal Trade Commission, claims of losses from cryptocurrency fraud skyrocketed from October 2020 to March 2021. The median loss reported neared a 1,000 percent increase over the same period a year ago.http://dlvr.it/S05SP6 Continue reading FTC Reports Huge Jump in Cryptocurrency Scams

Russia asserts presence in Arctic with northern military base

Alexandra Land, Russie (AFP) May 19, 2021 “The enemy shall not pass,” exclaims commander Ivan Glushchenko, standing in the glistening white snow that surrounds an ultra-modern Russian military base in the heart of the Arctic, the site of Moscow’s stand-off with NATO. The growing accessibility of natural resources and navigation routes in this rapidly thawing region has attracted global competition, and Moscow’s interests clash withhttp://dlvr.it/S01NMK Continue reading Russia asserts presence in Arctic with northern military base

The Arctic: A test of US-Russian ties ahead of possible summit

Washington (AFP) May 16, 2021 US Secretary of State Antony Blinken left Sunday for a trip focused on the future of the Arctic, a source of growing tension with China and a test of the strained US relationship with Russia ahead of an expected Biden-Putin summit meeting. Blinken was traveling first to Copenhagen, where he will meet Monday with Danish leaders before going on to … Continue reading The Arctic: A test of US-Russian ties ahead of possible summit

Ancient Aboriginal memory technique outperforms famous Greek method

Washington DC (UPI) May 18, 2021 New research, detailed Tuesday in the journal PLOS One, suggests an ancient memorization technique used in Aboriginal culture is superior to the “memory palace” method, an ancient Greek strategy for memorizing bits of information. For the Aboriginal people of Australia, there was no survival handbook. For centuries, Aboriginal groups accumulated knowledge of their natural world,http://dlvr.it/S01NGX Continue reading Ancient Aboriginal memory technique outperforms famous Greek method

24 dead, dozens missing as cyclone batters Covid-stricken India

Mahuva, India (AFP) May 18, 2021 At least 24 people were dead and almost 100 missing on Tuesday after a monster cyclone slammed into western India, compounding the country’s woes as it battles a devastating coronavirus surge. Hundreds of thousands of people were left without power after Cyclone Tauktae hammered the Gujarat coast on Monday evening. Wind up to 130 kilometres (80 miles) per hour … Continue reading 24 dead, dozens missing as cyclone batters Covid-stricken India

Tropical cyclones in the Arabian Sea: Why are they increasing?

New Delhi (AFP) May 17, 2021 A powerful cyclonic system, Tauktae, is expected to make landfall in the Indian state of Gujarat late Monday after barrelling up the Arabian Sea in the Indian Ocean. It is the equivalent of a Category 3 hurricane in the Atlantic and East Pacific Ocean basins and reports say it could be the biggest to hit western India in three … Continue reading Tropical cyclones in the Arabian Sea: Why are they increasing?

Pope urges peace, unity in special mass for Myanmar

Rome (AFP) May 16, 2021 Pope Francis celebrated mass in honour of Myanmar on Sunday, repeating his calls for an end to violence in the country roiled by months of bloodshed following a military coup. The mass inside the Vatican’s Saint Peter’s Basilica came after several appeals for peace in recent months by Francis, who visited Myanmar in November 2017, the first papal visit to … Continue reading Pope urges peace, unity in special mass for Myanmar

Myanmar teen describes junta’s brutal treatment of detained women

Bangkok (AFP) May 14, 2021 Beaten, kicked in the groin and threatened with sexual violence – a young Myanmar teenager detained by the junta’s security forces has described the treatment suffered by some women and girls behind bars. Ma Chaw, 17, and her mother were arrested on April 14 in Yangon, Myanmar’s commercial capital, which has been blanketed with heavy security since the military seized … Continue reading Myanmar teen describes junta’s brutal treatment of detained women