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Last week Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Bahrain signed a historic peace deal that is being lauded by some and criticized by others, especially by Hamas in the Palestinian territory (Al Jazeera, September 13, 2020).
Tensions are growing between Turkey and Greece, fed in part by Turkey’s energy exploration in Greek territorial waters. In response to Turkey’s actions, Greece is looking to increase its military arsenal (Politico, September 14, 2020). “Despite the deep recession caused by the coronavirus crisis and a rising budget deficit, Athens has decided it’s time to act.
Massive forest fires are burning across the western United States. From California up to Washington and from the western coast inland to Wyoming and Colorado, multiple fires have burned millions of acres so far this year (The New York Times, September 11, 2020). As one official put it, “[It’s] becoming sad that every year we’re having this conversation. We say...
A new study of more than 600 children, conducted by a university in Belgium, found that the more exposure children have to “green spaces,” the higher their IQ (Euronews.com, August 24, 2020). Researchers discovered that “a three per cent increase in the greenness of a child’s neighbourhood raised their IQ score by 2.6 points on average.”
As the date for a “hard Brexit” approaches, divisions among the nations of Europe continue to grow, as does the desire of some of them to leave the European Union. In Italy, the new “Italexit” Party began in July—inspired by Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party in the UK, with the hope of a similar result.
Due to extreme weather in Britain during the last year, experts predict the wheat harvest could be down by 40 percent (BBC, August 26, 2020). As a result, some millers have already increased the price of wheat flour by 10 percent. And, assuming a “no-deal Brexit,” experts expect those prices to rise still further. The extreme variation between a very wet winter...
After serving as Japan’s prime minister for nearly eight years, Shinzo Abe announced last week that he would be stepping down due to health issues (New York Times, August 28, 2020). Mr. Abe has been the longest-serving prime minister in Japan, a country known for prime ministers who often serve very short terms. In recent months, he has drawn considerable...
Emerging research supports the current understanding that infant exposure to air pollution has long-lasting effects on their lungs. Not only does lung capacity decrease for teenagers who were exposed to air pollution as infants, but they are also at much greater risk of developing asthma (The Guardian, August 24, 2020).
The Times of Israel reports, “The impending peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates [UAE] is more than just a stunning diplomatic breakthrough. It represents a fundamental shift in the paradigm of peace-making” (August 14, 2020). In a region where Middle East peace has long been thought to hinge on the Israeli-Palestinian relationship, this...
As a result of COVID-19, the town of Somerville, Massachusetts, has recognized polyamory (NBCBoston.com, July 4, 2020). Not to be confused with polygamy—a heterosexual taking more than one spouse—polyamory is a situation where “any person of any gender can have multiple partners.” The town council legally recognized the practice, giving polyamorous people some...