WORLD
What’s really happening beneath the White House East Wing
As US President Donald Trump pushes ahead with a grand new ballroom above ground, a far more secretive project is unfolding below it, involving the dismantling and rebuilding of one of the most sensitive security facilities in the United States.
WORLD
The sun just unleashed its strongest radiation storm in 20 years. Here’s what it means for you
A powerful burst of solar energy from the sun is racing toward Earth, and while it’s setting off alerts among scientists and satellite operators, for most people the biggest impact may simply be a rare chance to see the northern lights far from home.
WORLD
Why Trump’s oil-first worldview is colliding with China’s battery-powered future
As Washington doubles down on fossil fuels, Beijing is quietly locking up the technologies that will decide who builds the machines, vehicles and industries of the electric age.
WORLD
“Create an image of how you treat me”: The ChatGPT trend turning AI into a mirror
A viral prompt asking ChatGPT to visualise how users treat it is sparking jokes, self-reflection, and a wider conversation about how people relate to artificial intelligence.
WORLD
A strange iron streak inside the Ring Nebula has scientists asking new questions
A vast band of iron cutting across the Ring Nebula may be the remains of something far more dramatic than gas and dust, possibly even a destroyed planet.
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Hot coffee in plastic cups may expose drinkers to lakhs of microplastics each year: Study
New research suggests hot drinks in plastic-lined cups can release microplastics into what we drink, raising uncomfortable questions about a habit most of us barely notice.
WORLD
China builds its own “microscopic scalpel” in push to cut reliance on foreign chip tools
A newly developed hydrogen-ion implanter highlights how Beijing is trying to plug one of the quiet but critical gaps in semiconductor manufacturing.
WORLD
China’s Buddha carvers are quietly running out of time
In eastern China, artisans who have spent decades shaping wooden Buddhas fear that when they stop working, the craft may stop with them.
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China ramps up Belt and Road spending to record levels in 2025
New research shows Beijing committed more than $200 billion to overseas energy, infrastructure and resource projects last year as it moved to secure supply chains and expand its global economic reach.
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Why authorities are re-examining the death of Hunter S. Thompson
Two decades after the gonzo journalist’s death was ruled a suicide, his widow’s concerns have led authorities to take another look, reopening old family rifts and unresolved questions.
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Why China’s population keeps shrinking despite policy push
Births fell again last year as economic pressure, social change and ageing offset government efforts to encourage families.
WORLD
Why Greenland is becoming more important as Arctic ice melts
Retreating sea ice is opening routes and exposing resources in the far north, increasing Greenland’s strategic importance.
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China’s housing slump continues to drag on economic growth
Falling home prices and weak consumer spending are offset by strong exports, keeping growth near official targets.
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Trump to remain chairman of Gaza Board of Peace under new charter
The founding document of the US-backed body gives Donald Trump a continuing leadership role even after he leaves the White House, prompting questions about oversight and governance.
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Italy opens probe into Microsoft’s game sales tactics for Call of Duty and Diablo
The country’s competition authority is examining whether sales prompts in Call of Duty: Mobile and Diablo Immortal comply with consumer protection rules.
WORLD
Video shows Machado leaving Venezuela by boat ahead of Nobel ceremony
Footage released this week documents opposition leader María Corina Machado’s departure from Venezuela in December after months spent in hiding.
WORLD
Why tiny zooplankton matter more than we think for rivers and lakes
Often overlooked and barely visible, zooplankton play a quiet but crucial role in helping freshwater ecosystems survive droughts, floods and seasonal stress.
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Why the world’s most valuable currency still isn’t the US dollar
A currency can be expensive to buy yet matter very little globally, while another with a lower exchange rate can quietly run the world’s financial system.
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Why Trump’s media investments are raising ethics concerns
Fresh disclosures showing the US president buying Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery bonds shortly before a major merger announcement have renewed scrutiny of his financial entanglements.
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Why the Trump-Fed clash is opening space for China’s yuan
Questions over the US Federal Reserve’s independence are rattling confidence in the dollar just as Beijing accelerates efforts to expand the global use of its currency.
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How White House threat to CBS signals a harder line against the media
An off-camera remark about lawsuits underscores how legal pressure has become part of the Trump White House’s approach to news coverage.
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Why investors are pulling money from Wall Street’s private credit funds
Redemption requests rise across major private credit managers after high-profile corporate failures unsettle investors.
WORLD
Iran after the protests: What options remain for a shaken regime
With demonstrations crushed for now, Iran’s leadership faces hard choices between repression, diplomacy and the risk of renewed unrest.
WORLD
A strange streak of iron in the Ring Nebula hints at how Earth may one day end
A newly spotted feature inside a dying star’s remains is unsettling scientists, not because it is dramatic, but because it feels familiar.
