[Interactive] Number of Americans who identify as Christian further declines: poll

The percentage of Americans who identify as Christian dropped 15 percentage points over the past 14 years, while those who consider themselves religiously unaffiliated increased by 14 percentage points, a Pew study released indicates.Pew's National Public Opinion Reference Survey found that the majority of Americans - 63 percent - consider themselves Christian, down from 78 percent in 2007. Meanwhile, 29 percent of adults list their religion as “none,” meaning they consider themsel

Jan. 28, 2022

[Interactive] Foreign student enrollment in US colleges drops 15%

Enrollment of foreign students in US colleges and universities plunged 15 percent in the 2020-21 school year even though American institutions remain in high esteem, research showed. Fewer than 1 million foreign students enrolled for either online or in-person classes at US universities in the 2020-21 school year, marking a 15 percent year-over-year decrease from the previous school year, according to data from the Institute of International Education analyzed by the Pew Research Center. It als

Jan. 28, 2022

[Interactive] Pandemic stress weighs heavily on Gen Z: poll

Isolation. Anxiety. Uncertainty. The stresses of the coronavirus pandemic have taken a toll on Americans of all ages, but a new poll finds that teens and young adults have faced some of the heaviest struggles as they come of age during a time of extreme turmoil. Overall, more than a third of Americans ages 13 to 56 cite the pandemic as a major source of stress, and many say it has made certain parts of their lives harder. But when it comes to education, friendships and dating, the disruption ha

Jan. 12, 2022

[Interactive] Paul Rudd is People’s ‘Sexiest Man Alive’

Paul Rudd, 52, the affable actor best known for playing “Ant-Man,” was named People magazine’s sexiest man alive, joining the likes of Idris Elba, George Clooney and Bradley Cooper. Rudd played the kind boyfriend of Lisa Kudrow’s wacky Phoebe on TV comedy “Friends” and later took larger roles in comedies like “Knocked Up” before playing Ant-Man in the Marvel superhero movie, followed by a sequel and appearances as the character in “Captain A

Jan. 12, 2022

[Interactive] More than half of Afghans face ‘acute’ food crisis

More than 22 million Afghans will suffer “acute food insecurity” this winter, UN agencies said, warning the already unstable country faces one of the world‘s worst humanitarian crises. The crisis is already bigger in scale than that facing Yemen or Syria, and worse than any food insecurity emergency apart from the Democratic Republic of Congo, officials said. According to the statement issued by the World Food Program and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, one in two A

Dec. 28, 2021

Typhoon deaths in Philippines top 100, mayors plead for food

The governor of an island province in the central Philippines said Sunday at least 72 people died in the devastation wrought by Typhoon Rai in more than half of the towns that managed to contact him, bringing the death toll in the strongest typhoon to batter the country this year to at least 146. Gov. Arthur Yap of Bohol province said 10 others were missing and 13 injured, and suggested the fatalities may still considerably increase with only 33 out of 48 mayors able to report back to him due

Dec. 19, 2021

Germany tightens travel restrictions on UK

Germany is tightening travel restrictions for people coming from Britain in response to the rapid spread of the omicron variant there. The country's national disease control center, the Robert Koch Institute, added Britain to its list of “virus variant areas” late Saturday. This means anyone traveling from the U.K. to Germany must enter a mandatory quarantine for 14 days, regardless of vaccination status. The new restrictions, which will go into effect at midnight Sunday, come as

Dec. 19, 2021

[Photo News] Scholz ends the Merkel era

　Olaf Scholz became the ninth Chancellor of Germany on Wednesday, ending the era of Angela Merkel. Among the 707 lawmakers of the German parliament Bundestag who participated in the voting, Scholz earned 395 votes, indicating the first political transition of Germany in 16 years. 　Although Merkel was a center-right wing politician from the Christian Democratic Union while Scholz is a center-left wing politician of the Social Democrat Party, they have shown profound mutual respect. Scholz prais

Dec. 11, 2021

EU condemns ‘politically motivated’ Suu Kyi detention

　BRUSSELS -- The European Union on Monday condemned the Myanmar ruling junta‘s jailing of ousted leader Aug San Suu Kyi as “politically motivated” and a “blatant violation of human rights”. 　In a statement from EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on behalf of the 27 member states, the EU said Suu Kyi’s sentence “represents another step towards the dismantling of the rule of law." 　Suu Kyi, 76, has been detained since the generals staged a coup a

Dec. 6, 2021

A blessing in disguise? Some scientists say omicron not so ominous

A new COVID-19 variant called omicron has put the world on notice, prompting nations to close borders and reinstate restrictions. While fear seems to prevail, not all are pessimistic. Some scientists say this new mutation may be a blessing in disguise, our best chance to put an end to this devastating pandemic. The theory goes like this: The virus, with 32 mutations on the spike protein alone, twice as many as delta, may have been optimized to infect, but not to kill. In essence, more like

Dec. 2, 2021

[Photo News] Used Bourbon Barrels or Christmas Tree?

The US state of Kentucky is well reputed for its bourbon. However, during the holidays, something quite unexpected but still related to bourbon is what entertains the people of Kentucky. Instead of the liquor itself, a gigantic Christmas tree made of bourbon barrels is on display in Smiths Grove, a small town of not much over 700 people nearby Mammoth Cave National Park. This interesting tradition began in 2020 when Cody Vincent and his family made a tree out of bourbon barrels they sold t

Nov. 27, 2021

[Interactive] Ronaldo leapfrogs Messi in Forbes list of top-earning players

Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo has reclaimed the top spot in the list of the world’s highest-paid soccer players from Lionel Messi, according to Forbes. Forbes said Ronaldo, among the world’s most popular athletes with over 500 million followers across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, is set to make $125 million before taxes in the 2021-22 season, with $70 million coming from salary and bonuses at United. The rest will come from endorsements and partnerships with brand

Nov. 22, 2021

[Graphic News] More than half of Afghans face ‘acute’ food crisis

　More than 22 million Afghans will suffer “acute food insecurity” this winter, UN agencies said, warning the already unstable country faces one of the world‘s worst humanitarian crises. 　The crisis is already bigger in scale than that facing Yemen or Syria, and worse than any food insecurity emergency apart from the Democratic Republic of Congo, officials said. 　According to the statement issued by the World Food Program and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, one in t

Nov. 5, 2021

World leaders to talk climate, economy, vaccines at G20

ROME -- Climate change and the relaunch of the global economy will top the G20 agenda as leaders of the world's most advanced nations meet Saturday, the first in-person gathering since the pandemic. Looming over the two-day talks in Rome is pressure to make headway on tackling global warming, ahead of the key COP26 summit kicking off in Glasgow Monday. The stakes are high, with United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres warning G20 leaders Friday to show "more ambition and more ac

Oct. 30, 2021

African effort to replicate mRNA vaccine targets disparities

CAPE TOWN (AP) -- In a pair of Cape Town warehouses converted into a maze of airlocked sterile rooms, young scientists are assembling and calibrating the equipment needed to reverse engineer a coronavirus vaccine that has yet to reach South Africa and most of the world's poorest people. The energy in the gleaming labs matches the urgency of their mission to narrow vaccine disparities. By working to replicate Moderna's COVID-19 shot, the scientists are effectively making an end run around an ind

Oct. 24, 2021

Pope urges intervention on Libyan migrant crisis

VATICAN (AFP) -- Pope Francis on Sunday called on the global community to resolve the Libyan migrant crisis, even as EU leaders disagree on how to best manage flows of migrants crossing to Europe. "I express my closeness to the thousands of migrants, refugees and also others in need of protection in Libya. I don't forget you ever. I hear your cry and pray for you," Francis said following his traditional Sunday Angelus prayer on Saint Peter's Square in the Vatican. "So many of t

Oct. 24, 2021

Germany says border protection is 'legitimate'

BERLIN (AFP) -- Germany's interior minister said Sunday it was "legitimate" to protect borders, after several EU states asked Brussels to pay for barriers to prevent illegal migrants from entering the bloc. The call came earlier this month, as Poland proposed building a 350 million-euro ($410 million) wall on its border with Belarus to keep migrants out. The EU accuses the Belarusian authorities of flying migrants from the Middle East and Africa to Minsk and then sending them into

Oct. 24, 2021

Japan's PM interrupts campaign as N.K. test fires missile

Japan's new prime minister interrupted his first day of election campaigning on Tuesday, as he returned to the capital of Tokyo to deal with rising regional tensions following North Korea's test-firing of a missile earlier in the day. Fumio Kishida's campaign was already off to a rocky start, with media polls showing his support rating sliding. Tuesday was the first official day of campaigning for nationwide legislative elections scheduled for Oct. 31. “I will drastically strengthen ou

Oct. 19, 2021

Fears of ‘chaos’ as Italy adopts tough Covid pass regime

ROME (AFP) - Italy will require all workers to show a coronavirus health pass from Friday, one of the world‘s toughest anti-Covid regimes that has already sparked riots and which many fear will cause “chaos”. 　More than 85 percent of Italians over the age of 12 have received at least one shot of a Covid-19 vaccine, making them eligible for the so-called Green Pass certificate. 　But according to various estimates, about 2.5 million of the country’s 23 million workers

Oct. 13, 2021