مقالات أخبار العالم

Housing ranks high among the numerous challenges that still need to be overcome before humans can colonize Mars. The brave pioneers that make the six-month voyage to the Red Planet will need a place to reside as soon as they land. While the optimal solution would be to have the structures ready before they get there, it has thus far been a challenge given that most automated construction robots have never made it out of the laboratory. Now, there may be a glimmer of hope thanks to Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) newly unveiled Digital Construction Platform (DCP)....

Thailand’s free-roaming monkeys are a huge tourist draw. The primates, mostly macaques, are known to boldly visit with tourists who lure them with food. One of these monkeys, in particular, has recently become a worldwide sensation for both its gargantuan size and unique social status among his peers....

Though plastic shopping bags are incredibly cheap and useful, their disposal causes widespread pollution. That's because the non-biodegradable polyethylene takes centuries to decompose and is also detrimental to wildlife who often mistake the colorful debris for food. Now, we may have an unlikely ally to help clean up our trash – a small wax worm bred primarily for use as premium fish bait....

Japan’s newly unveiled Train Suite Shiki-shima that travels at a leisurely pace of 110 kph (68 mph) is a bit of an anomaly in a country known for magnetic levitation bullet trains that can traverse at speeds of up to 603 kph (375 mph). However, the purpose of the luxury sleeper train, which accommodates just 34 guests, is not to get passengers to their destination rapidly but to allow them to the enjoy the country’s beautiful landscapes while being thoroughly spoiled....

With technology permeating almost every aspect of our lives, the demand for computer programmers can only increase. To train the workforce of the future, companies around the world are frantically developing computing languages to introduce children as young as seven to the mysterious world of programming both in and out of school....

In our increasingly fast-paced, technology-driven world, most adults do not get the recommended 8-10 hours of sleep every night. Things are even worse for those with young children. A recent study revealed that 86% of parents in the United Kingdom complain of fatigue and about 26% get less than 5 hours of sleep every night. To provide exhausted patrons a little relief from their hectic schedules, David Lloyd Clubs, a chain of gyms and fitness centers in Europe, has introduced a napercise class!...

The Earth’s natural power plant — the sun — bathes the planet with more than enough green energy to fulfill all our power needs. However, while we have managed to harness some of it through solar panels, most of its potential remains untapped. Finding new ways to capture more of this unlimited sustainable energy has proven tricky given that the sun doesn’t work at night, often hides behind clouds, and in some areas of the world, disappears altogether for months at a time. Now, scientists and engineers at the German Space Center (DLR) in Jülich have built a more reliable and controllable substitute to enable researchers to discover new ways to capture the sun’s energy....

On May 7, 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron became France’s youngest leader since 35-year-old Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned emperor in 1804. The former economy minister is also the first president in modern French history who does not belong to the country’s two mainstream political parties — the conservative Republicans and the left-wing Socialists. Macron, who quit the government in 2016 to form Centrist party “En Marche!” (“On the Move”), identifies himself as a radical outsider and promises to overhaul the country’s “failing” political system and revive the shrinking economy....

Ever since Malaysian ecologist-architect Ken Yeang introduced the concept in the 1990’s, living walls and rooftops have become an increasingly common sight in both residential and commercial buildings. In addition to looking good, planted exteriors also help cut energy costs, and in the case of rooftop farms provide urban dwellers with homegrown produce. Now, Stefano Boeri wants to take green architecture to the next level with “Forest Cities” to combat China’s air pollution woes....

On April 29, officials at the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOSF) received a tip from the local police chief that some villagers in Indonesia’s West Kalimantan province were holding a Bornean orangutan captive. When the rescue team arrived at the Tanggirang village they discovered that instead of the signature orange-reddish brown hair, the great ape had white hair, a paler skin color, and blue eyes. The mammal was also very sensitive to light....

While smartphones continue to get increasingly sophisticated and resilient, the same cannot be said about the display screen. The Gorilla Glass cover used for most high-end cell phones tends to shatter easily, leaving owners with little choice but to pay for an expensive replacement screen or buy a new device altogether. However, this issue may soon be a thing of the past thanks to a new self-healing, Wolverine-inspired material which automatically repairs itself within 24 hours....

Flying cars have been in the works since 1946, when aeronautical engineer Ted Hall created two prototypes of the ConvAirCar. Unfortunately, a crash landing due to low fuel caused the hybrid vehicle’s manufacturer, Convair, to lose interest and shut down the venture within a year. While there have been numerous attempts since, none have gone beyond the experimental stage. That is about to change thanks to a slew of new and established companies that are determined to make this 70-year-old quest a reality....

Forty-seven years ago, on April 22, 1970, twenty million Americans took to the streets to voice their concern about the deteriorating environment and urge the government to take action before it was too late. The grassroots movement, which is now celebrated by over 2 billion people in 192 countries, led to the enactment of numerous environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act of 1970 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973....

New York City’s impressive skyline that includes iconic structures like the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building, may get even more interesting with the addition of the “Big Bend.” The tall and slender U-shaped residential tower is the brainchild of Oiio Studio, an architectural firm with offices in Manhattan and Athens....

What better way to spend an afternoon than having an old-fashioned pillow fight with total strangers? That, believe it or not, is what thousands of fun-loving adults and children across the world did on Saturday, April 1, which in addition to being Fools’ Day, also happened to be International Pillow Fight Day....

On June 23, 2016, the residents of the United Kingdom (UK) shocked the world by voting for the country’s exit from the European Union (EU), or “Brexit.” On March 29, almost nine months after the historic referendum, the country’s Prime Minister, Theresa May, began the official separation process with a letter to EU President Donald Tusk. It urged the remaining member states to allow the UK to leave “in a fair and orderly manner, and with as little disruption as possible on each side.”...

In Japan, the onset of spring is synonymous with the cherry blossom, or sakura, season. To attract some of the thousands of locals and tourists that flock to parks to see the beautiful, albeit brief, two-week bloom, many restaurants offer sakura inspired specialties....

While the fact that Julia is “Sesame Street’s” first new Muppet in a decade is certainly newsworthy, that is not the only thing that makes her special. The cheery, green-eyed 4-year-old who has autism is also here to expose young kids to children with autistic traits and teach them about acceptance....

American historian Laurel Ulrich once said, “Well-behaved women rarely make history.” In celebration of Women’s History Month, here are a few of the millions of brave women that have broken all conventional rules to make a difference in the world....

Researchers have long maintained that we sleep to accomplish a neural or physiological function that cannot be completed when awake. Why else would higher animals waste a third of their lives sleeping when they could be doing more important things like looking after their families, working, or hunting? Some scientists believe sleeping helps recharge the body, while others think it is important for consolidating newly-formed memories. Now, there is new evidence which suggests that the purpose of sleep may be to forget some of the millions of new things we learn each day....

As most people age, the crystalline lenses in their eyes start to stiffen and are unable to change shape as easily. As a result, objects in close range start to look blurry, forcing many middle-aged adults to carry reading glasses either around their necks or tucked away in a handbag. Those already suffering from nearsightedness, or myopia, a condition where distant objects appear blurry, have to depend on bifocals or, even worse, switch between two pairs of glasses. However, thanks to some Utah researchers there may finally be a solution — self-adjusting “smart” glasses....

On March 10, Professor Robert Kelly was doing what the expert on South Korea does regularly — discussing a political situation on live television with a BBC News reporter via Skype. In this case, the topic was South Korean President Park Geun-hye's unprecedented March 9th impeachment for committing “acts that violated the Constitution and laws.”...

Residents of the US East Coast still recovering from last week’s record snowstorms will be happy to know that today is not just the first day of spring, but also the International Day of Happiness. First celebrated in 2013, this fun holiday was established by the United Nations (UN) to remind us that "the pursuit of happiness is a fundamental human goal."...

If some geologists have their way, world maps will soon be altered to reflect an eighth continent. Dubbed “Zealandia,” the landmass that lies east of Australia covers 1.9 million mi2 (4.9 million km2), or an area larger than the Indian subcontinent. The only catch? Over 94 percent of it is submerged in the southwest Pacific Ocean, with just the islands of New Zealand and New Caledonia, visible above sea level....