Universal harvester book

Composite showing Chiang Mai city as seen from Doi Suthep on March 5 and March 10 2021, when the PM2.5 level was 70.9 and 114.4 respectively. (Photo: Gary Boyle) Chiang Mai spent several days this month as the most polluted city on the planet, with PM2.5 levels reaching 226 microgrammes per cubic meter (μg/m³) there. The predictability of the annual surge in pollution and the lack of effective preventative action have angered city residents and concerned civil society groups. heating up: A satellite imagery shows hotspots in and around northern Thailand on March 19. Pollution levels peak in northern Thailand during the burning season -- normally in March and April -- when crop waste burning and forest fires fill the air with particles, creating a haze so dense that Doi Suthep mountain, on the western edge of the city, is obscured. The issue is complex, involving large-scale contract farming, deforestation and encroachment, and a multitude of socioeconomic factors. But as … [Read more...] about Holding those behind the haze to account

The shock formation of football's European Super League highlights a shift by the world's richest clubs away from sporting merit and towards a "closed shop" that gives them more financial security, analysts say. The continent's best-known teams are seeking to capitalise on their long-running success with the creation of the Super League, under plans denounced as greedy by Europe's football governing body UEFA. Six Premier League teams -- Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur -- have joined forces with Spanish giants Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid and Italian trio Juventus, Inter Milan and AC Milan. That has however also sparked condemnation from politicians and fans, particularly at lower league clubs who may face lower revenues from television deals. "What it means with the shift from the fundamentals of European football -- and also European sport in general -- it moves from sporting merit being the primary driver to … [Read more...] about Super League football shows shift to ‘closed shop’

U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee lead 37 colleagues in calling on President Joe Biden to officially recognize the Armenian genocide. Following this call, I believe Biden's statement of recognition would be stronger and meaningful if it were to follow a few practical steps that align with the 2019 congressional bill, but also mirror decisions taken in 1978 by former President Jimmy Carter regarding the legacy of U.S. Holocaust remembrance. Specifically, the 2019 Congress bill that recognized the Armenian genocide stated, "it is the policy of the United States—to commemorate the Armenian Genocide through official recognition and remembrance." Along these lines, President Biden could commission a group of experts to recommend holding official commemoration days, build a federal memorial or museum and set up educational programs. Practically speaking, building a U.S. Armenian genocide museum or a federal memorial will take advantage of an … [Read more...] about Carter’s Holocaust Commission Should Inspire Biden on Armenian Genocide | Opinion

CAPE TOWN (BLOOMBERG) - A wildfire that broke out on the slopes of Cape Town's landmark Table Mountain on April 18 and caused extensive damage to a university campus and several historical buildings has been contained. Howling winds that hampered fire-fighting efforts on Monday (April 19) abated on Tuesday and helicopters were able to resume dropping water on parts of the mountain where the fire continued to burn. Six firefighters were injured while trying to douse the flames and nine city residents received treatment for smoke inhalation, the Western Cape province, which includes Cape Town, said in a statement. Six buildings on the University of Cape Town's campus including the Jagger Library, which lost some valuable book collections, were damaged or destroyed, as well as two houses and the country's oldest working windmill. There remains a danger that the fire will flare up again and priority will be given to fully extinguishing the blaze, said Mr Anton Bredell, the … [Read more...] about Inferno on Cape Town’s Table Mountain brought under control

In pursuing a bold agenda to tackle the pandemic, build new infrastructure and halt climate change, there is a futuristic feeling to the Biden administration's early policy blitz. But its immigration bill, is retro. It's not retrograde. It's just retrospective. In 1986, former President Ronald Reagan signed the last major overhaul of U.S. immigration law, the Immigration Reform and Control Act. IRCA, as it is known, increased border security, established penalties for employers that hired undocumented immigrants and legalized the status of about 3 million undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. prior to 1982. "Future generations of Americans will be thankful for our efforts to humanely regain control of our borders and thereby preserve the value of one of the most sacred possessions of our people: American citizenship," Reagan said upon signing the legislation. Similarly, the Biden administration's bill grants legal status to millions of farmworkers, Dreamers who … [Read more...] about The World Changed a Lot Since 1986. The Politics of Immigration Hasn’t | Opinion