Articles

Could oral antiviral pills be a game-changer for COVID-19? An infectious disease physician explains why these options are badly needed
If these drugs get authorized in the coming weeks, they could be an important new treatment option for people with COVID-19, especially for those at high risk in the early stages of infection.

Are you kidding, India? Your last-minute Glasgow intervention won’t relieve pressure to ditch coal
India should not consider itself off the hook. Rather than slow the decline in coal use, India has ensured it and other coal-intensive nations, including Australia, will be under even greater global pressure to ditch coal.

Tense decision-making as CDC joins FDA in recommending Pfizer booster shot for 65 & up, people at high risk and those with occupational exposure to COVID-19
The FDA’s Sept. 22, 2021, decision to not extend boosters to the general population – at least not yet – was a direct rebuke to the Biden administration’s announcement in August that booster shots would be rolled out to all eligible Americans beginning in late September.

Nobel Peace Prize for journalists serves as reminder that freedom of the press is under threat from strongmen and social media
“Freedom of expression is full of paradoxes,” the Nobel Committee’s Reiss-Andersen observed, in an interview after awarding the Peace Prize.

China is financing infrastructure projects around the world – many could harm nature and Indigenous communities
This mammoth effort could generate broad economic growth for the countries involved and the global economy. The World Bank estimates that recipient countries’ gross domestic product could rise by up to 3.4% thanks to Belt and Road financing.

Covax misses its 2021 delivery target – what’s gone wrong in the fight against vaccine nationalism?
Covax misses its 2021 delivery target – what’s gone wrong in the fight against vaccine nationalism?

Global inequality may be falling, but the gap between haves and have-nots is growing
In one of the most unequal countries in the world, South Africa, the poorest 40% have annual incomes of less than US$1,000 (£727) per person.

Pandemic has teens feeling worried, unmotivated and disconnected from school
The academic worries were elevated among older students who were further along in secondary school, for whom graduation and college planning are more imminent.

Afghanistan has vast mineral wealth but faces steep challenges to tap it
Afghanistan possesses a wealth of nonfuel minerals whose value has been estimated at more than US$1 trillion.

Taliban’s religious ideology – Deobandi Islam – has roots in colonial India
Researches have studied the origins of the Taliban’s religious beliefs that the roots of this ideology – Deobandi Islam – can be traced to 19th century colonial India.

Afghanistan only the latest US war to be driven by deceit and delusion
What happens in Afghanistan?

Farmers markets are growing their role as essential sources of healthy food for rich and poor
While numerous farmers markets shut down at the start of the pandemic, many soon reopened under state or local guidelines that mandated masks, social distancing and other precautions.