Category: News
Australia emphatically beats Canada to reach Women’s World Cup last 16, eliminating reigning Olympic champion
Australia is through to the round of 16 of the Women’s World Cup thanks to an emphatic 4-0 win over Canada, eliminating the reigning Olympic champion in the process. Nigeria’s goalless draw with the Republic of Ireland in Group B’s other match ensured the Super Falcons progressed in second place, a point ahead of Canada,…
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Just one drink a day can raise blood pressure, study says
As little as one alcoholic drink a day increased systolic blood pressure — the top number in a blood pressure reading — even in men and women with no existing hypertension, a new study found. “We found no beneficial effects in adults who drank a low level of alcohol compared to those who did not…
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Antarctica is missing an Argentina-sized amount of sea ice – and scientists are scrambling to figure out why
As the Northern Hemisphere swelters under a record-breaking summer heat wave, much further south, in the depths of winter, another terrifying climate record is being broken. Antarctic sea ice has fallen to unprecedented lows for this time of year. Every year, Antarctic sea ice shrinks to its lowest levels towards the end of February, during the continent’s summer. The sea…
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Extraordinary close-up images show insects as you’ve never seen them before
The petrol-blue wings of a swallowtail butterfly, soft fur of a giant Patagonian bumblebee, and oil-painted smudges of a ladybug are some of the details captured by British photographer Levon Biss in a new book that documents insect decline. Released on 22 November, “Extinct & Endangered: Insects in Peril” is a collaboration between Biss and…
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Christine Sinclair: the making of soccer’s most lethal striker
Diana Matheson is driving but can’t help checking her phone. She knows she shouldn’t, but the temptation is too much. She pulls over to devote her full attention to her phone. Matheson is being distracted by events in Edinburg, Texas, where a crowd of 820 people are watching history being made. Christine Sinclair has just tapped home…
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Lost for centuries, Emperor Nero’s theater is unearthed in Rome
Ruins of a private theater belonging to the 1st century Roman Emperor Nero have been unearthed in the Italian capital just meters from the Vatican, in what experts are calling an “exceptional” find. The discovery, revealed by Rome’s special superintendent Daniela Porro on Thursday, unveils the venue where Nero rehearsed poetry and music, and lies near to where…
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Bursting the Beanie Baby bubble
If you were a child – or even an adult — in the nineties, it’s probable you had a collection of Beanie Babies. In fact, it’s possible you still do. Perhaps you’re hoping (like me) one of them will turn out to be worth a fortune one day. Invented by toy impresario (and subsequent convicted…
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Portuguese street artist rolls out ‘banknote’ carpet to protest pope’s visit
Portugal’s famed street artist, Bordalo II, has broken into a Lisbon venue where Pope Francis will celebrate a mass next week and rolled out a huge carpet of oversized banknotes to criticize how much the state has spent on the event. Francis will travel to Lisbon from Aug. 2 to Aug. 6 to attend the World Youth…
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Webb telescope spots water in a nearby planetary system
Astronomers have detected water vapor swirling close to a nearby star — indicating that the planets forming around it might someday be able to support life. The young planetary system, known as PDS 70, is 370 light-years away. The star at its center is about 5.4 million years old and cooler than our sun. Circling it are…
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IMF, Argentina reach staff deal on loan reviews to unlock $7.5 billion
The International Monetary Fund said on Friday that it has reached a staff-level agreement with Argentina to unlock about $7.5 billion and complete the fifth and sixth reviews of the struggling country’s $44 billion loan program. The agreement, which still needs IMF Executive Board approval, eases some program requirements because a devastating drought has created…
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