Features
Indonesian capital becomes world's most polluted major city: monitor
Indonesian capital Jakarta has become the world's most polluted major city, according to air quality monitoring firm IQAir, topping global charts for days as authorities fail to grapple with a spike in toxic smog. Air pollution is estimated to contribute to seven million premature deaths every year and is considered… Read
AI could halve time reading breast cancer scans, study suggests
Artificial intelligence could help almost halve the workload of radiologists when it comes to searching routine scans for signs of breast cancer, a large Swedish study suggests. The interim results of the trial were hailed as promising, but the authors cautioned that more research was needed before AI can be… Read
As summer breezes fade, sweltering Europeans give air conditioning a skeptical embrace
During Europe's heat wave last month, Floriana Peroni’s vintage clothing store had to close for a week. A truck of rented generators blocked her door as they fed power to the central Roman neighborhood hit by a blackout as temperatures surged. The main culprit: air conditioning. The period — in… Read
Amazon rainforest gold mining poisoning scores of threatened species
In a camping tent in the Peruvian jungle, four scientists crowded around a tiny patient: An Amazonian rodent that could fit in the palm of a human hand. The researchers placed the small-eared pygmy rice rat into a plastic chamber and piped in anesthetic gas until it rolled over, asleep.… Read
5 lakes to visit in Japan in summer (or at any time)
A beautiful lake can be enjoyed all year round, of course. But having grown up on the Great Lakes, I know how fun going to the lake is in summer. The near unbearable (for someone from a colder climate, at least) heat and humidity of Japanese summers will only get worse, so spending… Read
Japanese convenience store creates a frappe from a popular candy
Recently, Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart has become known for its frappes, which are sold in the freezer section and blended by customers at a machine on the counter. Every now and then, the chain adds a limited-edition frappe to its freezer section, and its newest release has everyone excited, not only because… Read
Civics lesson or reality TV? Calls grow to broadcast Trump trial
Calls are growing for Donald Trump's criminal trials to be broadcast live, as the United States grapples with the prospect of seeing a former -- and possibly future -- president in the dock. Lawyers and politicians are lining up to urge that cameras be allowed inside the courtroom, particularly when… Read
Dare to dream deeply with the support of these two new giant Pokemon Huggers
Yogibo, an American maker of super-comfy bean bag chairs and other home relaxation goods, has teamed up with the Pokemon Center in Japan to release two new unbelievably cute and practical home goods. First, Yogibo Hugger Ditto was inspired by Ditto’s ability to transform itself into any shape. You, too, can stretch the Hugger… Read
One person in 100 suffers from hidden mental illness, says magazine
“I’d come home from school to find mother sobbing," says an eight-year-old. Those were good days. Bad days were “father struggling to keep mother from running naked and screaming into the street.” Schizophrenia can do that to you. Are you schizophrenic? The question seems impertinent. But you never know. It creeps up… Read
This 'Texas Pile' set lured us into a fried chicken shop for the first time, and we have no regrets
Our reporter Masanuki Sunakoma happened to be driving by Karayama, a karaage fried chicken specialty restaurant, when a sign for “Garlic Texas Karayama” caught his eye. This was unfortunate (or possibly fortunate?) timing, because Masanuki happened to be hungry at the time, and the words “garlic” and “Texas” drew him like a moth to flame. He… Read
