In 2019, the global population without access to electricity dipped below 1 billion for the first time. This progress has however been uneven, both across and within different regions. A new International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) study shows that to ensure universal access to affordable, reliable, and modern electricity services by 2030 in...
World
Neolithic Genomes from Modern-Day Switzerland Indicate Parallel Ancient Societies
Genetic research throughout Europe shows evidence of drastic population changes near the end of the Neolithic period, as shown by the arrival of ancestry related to pastoralists from the Pontic-Caspian steppe. But the timing of this change and the arrival and mixture process of these peoples, particularly in Central Europe, is little understood. In a...
The Global Supply Chain Is Breaking Under the COVID-19 Pandemic
From medical equipment shortages to panic-buying, the links in supply chains are breaking but will serve as valuable learning lessons for the future, said Ednilson Bernardes, professor and program coordinator of the Global Supply Chain Management program, West Virginia University John Chambers College of Business and Economics. A Brazilian Air Force veteran, Bernardes worked for the world’s third largest aircraft...
Aboriginal Scars from Frontier Wars
Hundreds of Aboriginal men who became native mounted police in colonial Australia carried a significant burden of responsibility for law and order for white settlers in Queensland and other settlements. A long-running ARC-funded archaeology project has turned the lens on the recruitment to the Queensland Native Mounted Police and their part in the violent ‘frontier...
Migrants at US-Mexico Border Must Get Past Cartels Before Their Long Journey Ends
Every train car in “La Bestia” – The Beast – is a world unto itself, with all the good and evil that entails. Ariel saw the worst of this world when he witnessed, helplessly, as eight people raped one of his fellow train passengers, a young girl, in July 2019. Ariel – not his real...
How Chinese People Came Together When Separated by Quarantine, Creating Hope, Humor and Art
Fear and blame appear to be fast becoming Americans’ defining emotions around COVID-19. Headlines seem to offer either worst-case estimates or government leaders’ mutual accusations. Amid the bewildering figures and contradictory political narratives, it is important to recall that numbers and governments are abstractions – whereas people actually live with and through disease. By fixating...
Indian Citizenship Has Now Been Reduced to ‘Us’ Versus ‘Them’
The fallout from two controversial changes to citizenship laws continues to rock India. At least 35 people have died in sectarian violence in New Delhi which began on February 23. Muslims homes and businesses have been attacked and mosques vandalised by mobs. All schools in the capital were shut as clashes intensified between those for...
Anonymous No More: Combining Genetics with Genealogy to Identify the Dead in Unmarked Graves
In Quebec, gravestones did not come into common use until the second half of the 19th century, so historical cemeteries contain many unmarked graves. Inspired by colleagues at Barcelona’s Pompeu Fabra University, a team of researchers in genetics, archaeology and demography from three Quebec universities (Université de Montréal, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi and Université...
A Study of Economic Compensation for Victims of Sexual Violence in Europe
In an article coming from the project, recently published in the Teoría y Derecho magazine, the efficiency of the Spanish system of economic compensation for victims of sexual violence is analysed through the two procedures aimed at this purpose: on one hand, the payment of compensations established in judgement of conviction and on the other hand, grants...
Study Charts Rising Trend of Image-Based Sexual Abuse
Image-based sexual abuse in Australia is increasing, according to new research. A survey of more than 2000 Australians found 1 in 3 had been victims of image-based abuse, compared with 1 in 5 in 2016. The survey also found the perpetration of image-based abuse had increased, with 1 in 6 people surveyed reporting they had...