Asia

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In Asia and Oceania, Challenges Await Pope

20K-mile trip begins Monday, with relations with China in the background

(Newser) - If any evidence were needed to underscore that Pope Francis' upcoming trip to Asia and Oceania is the longest, farthest, and most challenging of his pontificate, it's that he's bringing along his secretaries to help him navigate the four-country program while keeping up with work back home. Francis...

Thailand Overwhelmingly OKs Same-Sex Marriage

Bill sailed through both houses in a first for Southeast Asia

(Newser) - Thailand's Senate voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to approve a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage, clearing the last legislative hurdle for the country to become the first in Southeast Asia to enact such a law. Thailand has a reputation for acceptance and inclusivity but has struggled for decades to...

Deadly Cold Rushes Over Asia
Freezing Temps
Wreak Havoc in Asia
Jan 25, 2023 8:54 AM CST

Freezing Temps Wreak Havoc in Asia

Parts of Japan could see coldest weather in a decade; more than 100 are dead in Afghanistan

(Newser) - Snow, wind, and freezing temperatures are wreaking havoc across Asia, and in some places it's turned deadly. Earlier this week, more than 120 people died in Afghanistan from the cold, while in China's northernmost city of Mohe, known as "China's North Pole," record lows of...

World Population Just Hit a Milestone

It's estimated to top 8B for the first time on Tuesday

(Newser) - You are now one of 8 billion people on the planet, according to UN estimates. The organization calculates the world population will cross the 8 billion mark on Nov. 15, though it admits it could be off as counting every single person on the planet is nearly impossible. Regardless, the...

Scientists May Have Solved a Mystery of the Plague
Black Death May
Have Started Here
NEW STUDY
Jun 16, 2022 12:24 PM CDT

Black Death May Have Started Here

Researchers believe 700-year-old teeth point to what is now Kyrgyzstan

(Newser) - Researchers say they've discovered "when and where the single most notorious and infamous killer of humans began." They're referring to the Black Death, or bubonic plague, which is thought to have wiped out tens of millions of people in Europe, Asia, and North Africa during...

Lost Continent Explains a 34M-Year-Old Extinction
Lost Continent Explains
a 34M-Year-Old Extinction
NEW STUDY
Mar 7, 2022 2:55 PM CST

Lost Continent Explains a 34M-Year-Old Extinction

Researchers discover Balkanatolia, an ancient island turned land bridge

(Newser) - About 34 million years ago, native fauna disappeared from Western Europe, as mammals from Asia took over. The extinction, known as the Grande Coupure or "great break," might as well have been called the great puzzle. For decades, researchers have been unable to explain how animals from eastern...

3-Year-Old Girl Goes Airborne at Kite Festival

The Taiwanese crowd is shocked as girl twists in the air

(Newser) - A 3-year-old girl in Taiwan was reported safe after becoming caught in the strings of a kite and lifted several meters into the air, the AP reports. The unidentified girl was taking part in a kite festival Sunday in the seaside town of Nanlioao when she was caught up by...

Here's What the 'Ring of Fire' Looked Like
The 'Ring of Fire'
Eclipse Looked
Like This
photos
Jun 21, 2020 3:00 PM CDT

The 'Ring of Fire' Eclipse Looked Like This

People in the eastern hemisphere saw the sun 85% covered by the moon

(Newser) - Stargazers in Africa, Asia, and parts of the Middle East looked to the skies this weekend to witness a partial solar eclipse, the AP reports. It was known as a "ring of fire" because the moon covered most, but not all, of the sun. It started at at 11:...

This Man Is About to Get Even Poorer
This Man Is About
to Get Even Poorer
new study
Jun 11, 2020 7:25 PM CDT

This Man Is About to Get Even Poorer

King's College London warns the world of coming crisis

(Newser) - Global poverty is set to rise above 1 billion people once again as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, which is reducing the income of the world's poorest by $500 million a day, according to new research published Friday. The research by King's College London and the Australian...

The Kim Jong Un Rumor Mill Is Churning
Experts Watch
Kim Jong Un's
'Personal Train'
the rundown
Apr 26, 2020 12:55 PM CDT

Experts Watch Kim Jong Un's 'Personal Train'

Is the North Korean leader dead? Has his younger sister already seized power?

(Newser) - Kim Jong Un is in a "vegetative state" or flat-out dead after a failed heart surgery. Or he's got COVID-19. Or just a sprained ankle. The rumor mill is turning after reports emerged that a Chinese medical team had been dispatched to help North Korea's leader in...

One Country Nailed It With the Virus— Until Now

Singapore's numbers were low until recently

(Newser) - Singapore's much-lauded plan to beat the coronavirus has run into a hitch—and critics are pouncing, the Wall Street Journal reports. To be fair, the Asian city-state did lower infections with a mix of testing, quarantining, and impressive contact tracing. But its blind spot seems to be migrant workers....

Outbreak Affects Worship Across Asia

Many churches close, others advise faithful to avoid contact with others

(Newser) - In a popular Catholic church in the Philippines, nearly half of the pews were empty for Sunday Mass. The few hundred worshipers who showed up, the AP reports, were asked to refrain from shaking others' hands or holding them during prayers to prevent the spread of the virus that started...

After 150 Years, Japan Reverts to Old-School Tradition

Surnames will now come before first names, at least in government documents

(Newser) - For about 150 years, the Japanese have been following the first name, then surname method of being referenced when using the Roman alphabet in written materials. On Friday, however, a big change was announced: The country's government is switching the order of the names and reverting to the former...

Hong Kong, Peaceful No More
Hong Kong Erupts
All Over Again
Aug 24, 2019 1:10 PM CDT

Hong Kong Erupts All Over Again

Democracy protesters clash with police the day after forming a long human chain

(Newser) - Hong Kong protesters threw bricks and gasoline bombs at police, who responded with tear gas, as chaotic scenes returned to the summer-long anti-government protests on Saturday for the first time in nearly two weeks, the AP reports. Hundreds of black-clad protesters armed with bamboo poles and baseball bats fought with...

When You Sprinkle Salt, You're Getting More Than Salt

Microplastics infiltrate 90% of it, especially the stuff from Asia, say researchers

(Newser) - Just like with bottled water , over 90% of the world's table salt contains microplastics—enough that the average human ingests 2,000 pieces each year from salt alone, according to new research. It's been known for years that microplastics are present in salt, per Quartz , but the surprise...

Mother Nature Is About to Put Longest Sea Bridge to the Test

Super Typhoon Mangkhut will show what the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge can withstand

(Newser) - At 34 miles, it's the world's longest bridge to cross a sea—an impressive $20 billion effort that will soon undergo its first major challenge from Mother Nature. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is right in the sights of Super Typhoon Mangkhut, a powerful storm system that's headed...

Crazy Rich Asians Author Gets Himself in Hot Water
Crazy Rich Asians Author
Could Face Prison Term
in case you missed it
Aug 25, 2018 1:33 PM CDT

Crazy Rich Asians Author Could Face Prison Term

Seems Kevin Kwan didn't perform his national service in Singapore

(Newser) - As Kevin Kwan is learning, film-biz fame has its downside. The author whose book inspired the hit movie Crazy Rich Asians could face fines and/or imprisonment for not completing his national service obligations in Singapore, the New York Times reports. Kwan, 44—who moved to Houston as an 11-year-old and...

Scientists 'Astounded' by Mysterious Rise in Banned Chemical

Source of CFC-11 is somewhere in East Asia

(Newser) - More than 30 years ago, world governments dealt with an alarming hole in the ozone layer with the Montreal Protocol, which banned damaging chemicals including the chlorofluorocarbon CFC-11. But it looks like somebody failed to get the memo. Scientists say they've detected a mysterious rise in emissions of the...

Officials: Mega-Sea Bridge Meant to Look Like It's Falling Apart

Erosion-preventing concrete blocks for China-Hong Kong-Macau bridge appear to be floating away

(Newser) - The construction of the world's longest sea bridge, a nearly decade-old project already bogged down by lawsuits, money problems, and other holdups, now has another complication to contend with: Some say parts of the bridge are "floating away," per the Guardian . The new issue for the 34-mile...

Trump: 'It's Been a Really Great 12 Days'

He says Asia trip was 'tremendously succesful'

(Newser) - President Trump headed for home Tuesday following an extensive tour of Asia that he said had been "tremendously successful" and had put the world on notice that the "rules have changed" for countries that want to trade with the US. Trump also teased a "major statement" on...

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