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Peter Higgs, physicist who proposed the existence of the ‘God particle,’ dies at 94

LONDON —  Nobel prize-winning physicist Peter Higgs, who proposed the existence of the so-called “God particle” that helped explain how matter formed after the Big Bang, has died at age 94, the University of Edinburgh said Tuesday. The university, where…

Cameroonian school teaches manufacture of plant-based meat

A government-run school in Cameroon’s capital is teaching students how to manufacture plant-based meat, an innovation which the school’s director hopes will contribute to the fight against climate change. Anne Nzouankeu has more from Yaoundé in this report narrated by…

Kim Wall grantee to report on climate change, marginalized groups

WASHINGTON —  Audrey Gray was at a national task force in New Orleans when a colorful zine caught the climate journalist’s eye. Produced by Imagine Water Works, the zine — A Queer/Trans Guide to Storms — took the form of…

Global temperatures hit record high in March for 10th consecutive month

WASHINGTON —  The European Union’s climate monitoring agency says global temperatures reached a new high for the 10th consecutive month in March. The Copernicus Climate Change Service said Tuesday that global temperatures averaged just over 14 degrees Celsius last month,…

Massive crowds watch total solar eclipse over US

Millions of people in the United States from Texas to Maine looked to the sky to witness a rare total solar eclipse. VOA’s Kane Farabaugh attended a viewing event hosted by NASA and Purdue University at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway…

Anti-polio gains threatened by returning migrants, 200,000 unvaccinated children in Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD —  The World Health Organization said Monday that the recent return of about 600,000 undocumented migrants from Pakistan to Afghanistan and an estimated 200,000 unvaccinated children in southern Afghan regions are a threat to regional gains against polio. In…

Huge crowds await total solar eclipse in North America

MESQUITE, Texas —  Millions of spectators along a narrow corridor stretching from Mexico to the U.S. to Canada eagerly awaited Monday’s celestial sensation — a total eclipse of the sun — even as forecasters called for clouds. The best weather…

Mass bleaching detected on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

SYDNEY —  Vast areas of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the world’s biggest coral system, have been affected by mass coral bleaching caused by a marine heatwave. Surveys have shown major bleaching is occurring along the 2,300-kilometer ecosystem. Bleaching on the…

Despite Google Earth, people still buy globes. What’s the appeal?

London —  Find a globe in your local library or classroom and try this: Close the eyes, spin it and drop a finger randomly on its curved, glossy surface. You’re likely to pinpoint a spot in the water, which covers…

In much of Africa, abortion is legal but not advertised

ACCRA, Ghana —  When Efua, a 25-year-old fashion designer and single mother in Ghana, became pregnant last year, she sought an abortion at a health clinic but worried the procedure might be illegal. Health workers assured her abortions were lawful…