Why China's population is shrinking

 For the first time in six decades, China’s population is shrinking, and it’s predicted it could create a demographic crisis. That’s because China isn’t just shrinking, it’s also aging. And the majority of Chinese couples are not considering having more than one child. Because of this, China is predicted to lose nearly 50 percent of its population by 2100.

How these buildings made Turkey-Syria’s earthquake so deadly

 

On the morning of February 6, a pair of powerful earthquakes, 7.8 and 7.6, hit Turkey and Syria. On top of that, the region was hit with strong aftershocks, which made the destruction even worse. The death toll is already in the tens of thousands with many victims still lying beneath the rubble.

How the “lost cities” of the Amazon were finally found

The Amazon has always been one of the most mysterious places on earth. When European colonizers arrived in the 16th century, they were captivated by rumors of a golden city, hidden somewhere in the rainforest. Their search for “El Dorado” lasted more than a century, but only resulted in disaster, death, and further conquest of the indigenous people there.

The AI that creates any picture you want, explained

Beginning in January 2021, advances in AI research have produced a plethora of deep-learning models capable of generating original images from simple text prompts, effectively extending the human imagination. Researchers at OpenAI, Google, Facebook, and others have developed text-to-image tools that they have not yet released to the public, and similar models have proliferated online in the open-source arena and at smaller companies like Midjourney.

The banned weapon Russia (and the US) won’t give up

 

In Ukraine, human rights investigators like Amnesty International and Bellingcat have been tracking Russian attacks to aid in a potential war crimes investigation. One thing they’re paying special attention to is cluster bombs. Cluster bombs were first used in World War II; they scatter numerous smaller bombs over a wide area — often killing civilians. It’s this indiscriminate nature that often makes their use a war crime.

How “Z” became Putin’s new propaganda meme

 

Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak caused controversy in March 2022 when he accepted a bronze medal at a World Cup event, all while sporting a taped-on letter “Z” on his uniform. The Z symbol had already been appearing all over Russia, as a sign of support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine and loyalty to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The letter popped up on merchandise, in highly organized flash mobs that often involved children, at pro-war rallies, and in internet memes.

How Ukrainians are saving art during the war

Despite the fact that it’s a war crime to target cultural heritage, cultural sites are often treated as a second front: looted, damaged, or destroyed as a way for an aggressor to assert power, demoralize an enemy, and control — or even erase — a cultural narrative.

How China uses fruit to punish Taiwan

 In September 2021, China banned the import of sugar apples, or atemoya, from Taiwan, claiming they were bringing in pests. Critics say pests are an excuse, and China is weaponizing trade with Taiwan. And this isn’t the first time. In February of 2021, China banned the import of Taiwanese pineapples, causing a backlog and threatening farmers' livelihoods across the country.

How Stalin starved Ukraine

 

In Ukraine, it’s become known as “the Holodomor,” meaning “death by starvation.” It was a genocide carried out by a dictator who wanted to keep Ukraine under his control and who would do anything to keep it covered up for decades. In the 1930s, Soviet leaders under Joseph Stalin engineered a famine that killed millions as they sought to consolidate agricultural power. In Ukraine, they used additional force as they sought to clamp down on a burgeoning Ukrainian national identity.

How decades of stopping forest fires made them worse

 

Decades of stopping forest fires have made them worse. Can we undo the damage?

How America's hottest city is trying to cool down

 

How video game rocks get made

 

How do you make video game rocks look real? Sometimes, it involves a trip out to the desert.

Why video game doors are so hard to get right

 

Why people think this photo of JFK's killer is fake

 

Lee Harvey Oswald was murdered two days after he was arrested for assassinating US President John F. Kennedy. But before Oswald died, he claimed that a damning piece of evidence against him — a photo showing Oswald holding the rifle that killed the president — was fake. In fact, he said his face was superimposed onto another person’s body to set him up.

How the US created a disaster in Afghanistan

 

How the US failed to rebuild Afghanistan

 

"Where the road ends in Afghanistan, the Taliban begin."

How the US made affordable homes illegal

 

The rules that keep American housing expensive.

How Does Design Affect Decision Making?

 

While the way we interact with others changed drastically, the way that we process those interactions is as old as time. For evolutionary purposes, humans have had to detect information as quickly as possible.

How Olympic divers make the perfect tiny splash

 

Why the US Army tried to exterminate the bison

In 1894, a notorious poacher, Ed Howell, was caught in Yellowstone National Park slaughtering bison, which were on the brink of extinction. US Army soldiers patrolling the park brought him into custody, and the story led to the first US federal law protecting wildlife. The soldiers were thought of as heroes for stopping the killer. But it was the US Army who had been responsible for driving bison to near-extinction in the first place.