December 18, 2008 24/7 News Coverage TerraDaily Advertising Kit
EU parliament approves climate change package
Strasbourg (AFP) Dec 17, 2008
The European Parliament on Wednesday approved the EU's climate change package, aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020, lifting the last hurdle to the ambitious plan. Six texts on the package, already agreed by the 27 European Union member states, were passed by a large majority of the MEPs present. "We have sealed the climate package," said European Parliament ... read more

Obama names agriculture, interior picks
Chicago (AFP) Dec 16, 2008
President-elect Barack Obama Wednesday filled out his incoming cabinet with nominees to take over the agriculture and interior departments, two hot-button jobs where controversy is never far. The Democrat nominated former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack as his secretary of agriculture, putting the fervent advocate of corn-based ethanol in charge of the nation's much-criticized 300-billion-dollar ... more

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Greenhouse gas emissions study released
Boulder, Colo. (UPI) Dec 17, 2008
U.S. scientists say contrary to earlier projections, few developing countries will be able to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions for several decades. The study by researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the University of Colorado warns continuing economic and technological disparities will make it more difficult than anticipated for developing countries to red ... more

Crackdown hampers earthquake relief in Pakistan
Ziarat, Pakistan (AFP) Dec 17, 2008
The closure of a Pakistan charity listed as a terrorist group has brought relief operations in some of the areas worst hit by October's devastating earthquake to a halt, local people say. The government this week moved to shut down Jamaat-ud-Dawa, freezing its assets and placing its leader under house arrest, after the United Nations said it was a front for the group accused of orchestrating ... more

Chinese sailors fend off Somali pirates amid fresh attacks
Mogadishu (AFP) Dec 17, 2008
Chinese sailors fought off Somali pirates trying to hijack their ship in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday in a new wave of attacks that saw three other vessels captured. The high-seas drama heightened after the UN authorised land operations against the sea bandits who are currently demanding ransoms for a Saudi super-tanker, an arms-laden Ukrainian freighter and other ships. China said it ... more

Simple Soybean Anything But - Genetically
West Lafayette IN (SPX) Dec 18, 2008
Think humans are complex creatures? Consider the lowly soybean, said a Purdue University researcher. When it comes to genetics, the soybean plant is far more intricate than that of a human, said Scott Jackson, a plant genomics and cytogenetics researcher in Purdue's Department of Agronomy. Jackson was among a team of researchers that mapped and sequenced the soybean genome for a project ... more

 

  • Research The Key To Long-Term Gains For A Smarter Economy


  • Real Christmas trees 'greener' than fakes


  • Purdue Study Suggests Warmer Temperatures Could Lead To A Boom In Corn Pests


  • Stanford Researchers Predict Heat Waves And Crop Losses In California
  •  

    TECH SPACE
    Launching the idea of data centers in space
    San Francisco, United States (AFP) Feb 3, 2026
    Tech firms are floating the idea of building data centers in space and tapping into the sun's energy to meet out-of-this-world power demands in a fierce artificial intelligence race. ... more
    Anthropic unveils new AI model as OpenAI rivalry heats up
    San Francisco, United States (AFP) Feb 5, 2026
    Anthropic on Thursday released its latest high-performing artificial intelligence model, escalating its challenge to OpenAI in the intensifying AI race. ... more
    Musk merges xAI into SpaceX in bid to build space data centers
    San Francisco, United States (AFP) Feb 3, 2026
    Elon Musk has announced that his rocket company SpaceX will take over his artificial intelligence outfit xAI, as he seeks to raise billions of dollars for his science fiction-worthy outer space projects. ... more

    ROBO SPACE
    Reprogrammable metal bricks give robots muscle-like adaptability
    Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 04, 2026
    Mechanical engineers at Duke University have demonstrated a proof-of-concept material system that allows solid Lego-like building blocks to be programmed with different mechanical properties and the ... more
    OpenClaw's AI agent does everything, even social media
    Washington, United States (AFP) Feb 2, 2026
    Meet OpenClaw: the AI assistant that promised to be your dream intern, terrified cybersecurity experts, and now thrives on chatbot-only social media - all in just a few weeks. ... more
    Human taught tactile control lets robots grasp diverse objects
    Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 19, 2026
    When humans pick up everyday items such as fragile eggs or slippery metal cups, they instinctively adjust their grip using tactile feedback to avoid breaking or dropping them. In contrast, enabling ... more

     
    Three human traffickers sentenced to death in China: state press
    Beijing (AFP) Dec 17, 2008
    A court in southwest China has sentenced three leading members of a trafficking ring to death for kidnapping and selling 88 women and a child, state press said Wednesday. The 29-member ring kidnapped the women with the lure of jobs on a tea plantation, before selling them as brides to impoverished areas in the provinces of Shanxi, Fujian and Zhejiang, the Xinhua news agency said. ... more

    Salt Water Irrigation: Study Shows It Works
    Provo UT (SPX) Dec 18, 2008
    Take an arid field riddled with salty soil. Irrigate it with salty water. Plant a salt-tolerant grass along with a salt-sucking companion plant and what do you get? If you're a Brigham Young University research team, you raise a crop that successfully replaces corn as cattle feed. Their research highlights the promise of using salty water to turn the salty soil in the world's arid regions ... more

    HIV/AIDS "hidden but growing" problem in the Philippines
    Manila (AFP) Dec 17, 2008
    "I came out to show people we are normal," says AIDS worker Roberto Ruiz, who is fighting the social stigma that HIV/AIDS still carries in the Philippines. While the government puts the number of HIV/AIDS cases at 8,600, Ruiz believes the number is much higher. "The true number is probably fast approaching 10,000," said Ruiz, who sits on the board of trustees of Positive Action ... more

    China dismisses EU concern over activist arrests: state media
    Beijing (AFP) Dec 17, 2008
    China Wednesday dismissed EU concerns over the recent arrest of rights campaigners including leading activist Liu Xiaobo, state media reported. "China is a country under the rule of law and handles relevant issues strictly in accordance with laws," foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency. "We oppose foreign countries interfering in China's ... more

     

  • Agriculture Out Of The CPRS But Not Out Of The Woods


  • Obama rounds out cabinet, games out global crises


  • Norway's central bank wants to delay vote on Buffet's bid for Constellation


  • France's EDF agrees 4.5-bln-dlr deal to buy US nuclear assets
  •  
    NUKEWARS
    China shuns calls to enter nuclear talks after US-Russia treaty lapses
    Beijing (AFP) Feb 5, 2026
    China rejected calls to enter talks on a new nuclear treaty after a US-Russian agreement expired on Thursday, ending decades of restrictions on how many warheads the two powers can deploy. ... more
    Trump urges new nuclear treaty after Russia agreement ends
    Washington, United States (AFP) Feb 6, 2026
    US President Donald Trump on Thursday called for a brand new nuclear treaty after the last agreement with Russia expired, prompting fears of a new global arms race. ... more
    Iran, US prepare for Oman talks after deadly protest crackdown
    Muscat, Oman (AFP) Feb 6, 2026
    Iran and the United States were preparing for talks on Friday in Oman, with Washington looking to see if there was any prospect of diplomatic progress on the Iranian nuclear programme and other issues while refusing to rule out military action. ... more

    SUPERPOWERS
    Why did Xi hold back-to-back calls with Putin, Trump?
    Beijing (AFP) Feb 5, 2026
    China's leader Xi Jinping held back-to-back calls with Russia's Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump this week, timing analysts said on Thursday was rare and significant as Beijing positions itself as a stable global power. ... more
    Russia, US agree to resume military contacts at Ukraine talks
    Abu Dhabi (AFP) Feb 5, 2026
    Russia and the United States agreed to resume high-level military contacts, in a major step of rapprochement between the world's top nuclear powers at Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. ... more
    China's Xi calls for 'orderly' world in talks with Uruguay leader
    Beijing (AFP) Feb 3, 2026
    China's leader Xi Jinping called Tuesday for an "equal and orderly multipolar world" in the face of "unilateral bullying", in an apparent jab at the United States. ... more

    IRAQ WARS
    Iraq starts investigations into IS detainees moved from Syria
    Baghdad (AFP) Feb 2, 2026
    Iraq's judiciary announced on Monday it has begun its investigations into more than 1,300 Islamic State group detainees who were transferred from Syria as part of a US operation. ... more
    Where does Iraq stand as US turns up heat on Iran?
    Baghdad (AFP) Jan 29, 2026
    Faced with political deadlock, open American meddling and the threat of war across its borders, is Iraq being dragged back to darker times after achieving hard-won stability? ... more
    Rubio warns Iraq on Iran ties as Maliki sets return
    Washington, United States (AFP) Jan 26, 2026
    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Iraq on Sunday against a pro-Iranian government as the expected return of Nouri al-Maliki as prime minister stirs Washington's concern. ... more

    THE STANS
    Pakistan seeks out perpetrators after deadly separatist attacks
    Quetta, Pakistan (AFP) Feb 1, 2026
    Pakistan forces hunted on Sunday for the separatists behind a string of coordinated attacks in restive Balochistan province, with the government vowing to retaliate after more than 190 people were killed in two days. ... more
    US judge grants asylum to Chinese man who filmed alleged Uyghur camps
    Washington, United States (AFP) Jan 29, 2026
    A US immigration judge on Wednesday granted asylum to a Chinese man who fled his country after documenting sites of alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs, his mother and lawyer told AFP. ... more
    Kurdish women braid their hair in show of solidarity with Syria Kurds
    Erbil, Iraq (AFP) Jan 23, 2026
    Women in Iraqi Kurdistan and beyond have taken to the streets and social media to braid their hair in a show of solidarity after a Syrian soldier bragged in a video about cutting off a Kurdish fighter's braid in Raqa. ... more
     

  • Walker's World: Could U.S. go bankrupt?
  • Steve Jobs leaving Macworld stage as Apple bows out
  • China lowers import taxes to help manufacturers: govt
  • Angola president signs agreements with China
  • Analysis: Brazil's new oil laws delayed
  • Biggest Breach Of Earth's Solar Storm Shield Discovered
  • U.S. natural hazard death map is produced
  • Protests heat up over Australia's climate plan

  • New method of killing bacteria is created
  • Heatwaves deadlier than storms, says 'death map' of US
  • China celebrates, and suffers, in 2008
  • Zimbabwe warns of 'terror' plot after air force chief shot
  • 'World is Flat' author calls for radical climate action from Obama
  • First U.S. face transplant performed
  • China still open to Tibet dialogue: govt
  • Sarkozy should not use 'European values' in Tibet row: China

  • Pentagon warns of "practical challenges" of combating pirates
  • China reports bird flu outbreak
  • China bans 17 harmful substances in food
  • Angola president arrives in China in search of investment
  • 2008 colder than previous years but world still warming: WMO
  • Key Challenges And Issues Facing The US Nuclear Energy Outlook
  • Livermore Lab And American Shale Oil Team To Study Carbon Sequestration
  • Philippines to see more investment after India attacks: consultant



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