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☆ Valentine's Day chocolate prices highest in years amid cocoa shortage
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | In Ying-Shan-Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

But lovers may experience sticker shock this year due to higher cocoa and sugar prices. "Chocolate prices are the highest we've seen in years," said a representative of NielsenIQ. He noted that in spite of higher prices, the chocolate market is robust in mature markets like Europe and North America. Now, chocolate and Valentine's Day are synonymous, even if critics say the affiliation is perpetuated by marketing gimmicks. That being said, chocolates are not the only Valentines' Day treats that will dent the wallet this year.

Persons: Scott Olson, Sergey Chetvertakov, David Branch, there's, Kim, Mintec, It's, Andrew Francis Wallace Organizations: Valentine's, Getty, P, El Nino, Food Institute, Branch, CNBC, Bloomberg, National Confectioners Association, Toronto Star Locations: Chicago , Illinois, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Wells, Asia, India, Africa, Azaguie, Europe, North America, Western Europe, Singapore, Toronto

☆ Trump’s incendiary NATO remarks send very real shudders through Europe
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

NATO gives it a global bedrock of legitimacy, support for the dollar, and the post-Soviet hegemony it thrives upon. Saturday’s misunderstanding considered, Trump’s comments come at a devastatingly bad time for Europe. The more the US bemoans its allies and their miserly neglect of NATO, and withdraw from it, the less powerful it is. Is NATO willing to go to war with Moscow over Russian-speaking parts of the Baltic state of Estonia? He is not simply saying the US won’t help NATO allies who haven’t paid.

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, doesn’t, –, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Tucker Carlson, Russia’s, ’, Charles Michel, Trump’s, haven’t Organizations: London CNN, Trump, NATO, Republican, GOP, Putin, Fox News, Kremlin, Senior, Britons, European Locations: Russia, Europe, Ukraine, Kyiv, America, Moscow, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Romania, France, Baltic, Estonia, Svalbard, Russian, Finland, Sweden, Western Europe

☆ Human bones unearthed from a German cave have altered the timeline of ancient human history
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( Ellyn Lapointe | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

This led them to Ilsenhöhle cave in Ranis, Germany, one of several sites across Northwestern Europe where LRJ artifacts have been found. AdvertisementMining ancient DNAWhen they excavated the cave, the researchers uncovered more than just LRJ artifacts — they came upon tiny bone fragments, too. AdvertisementTo that end, they extracted DNA, which confirmed the bones belong to Homo sapiens, providing strong evidence that they were responsible for the LRJ artifacts. According to their data, Homo sapiens were present in Ranis 47,500 years ago — thousands of years earlier than previously thought. Geoff M. SmithQuestions remain about how warm-weather-adapted Homo sapiens survived such a dramatic transition.

Persons: —, Josephine Schubert, sapiens, ”, Jean, Jacques Hublin, Hublin, Tim Schüler, Max Planck, ” Hublin, Dorothea Mylopotamitaki, Homo sapiens, Marcel Weiss, “ It’s, sapien, Geoff M, Smith, Geoff Smith, “ Organizations: Service, Business, Burg, College of France, Max, Max Planck Institute, University of Kent Locations: Ranis, Europe, Germany, Northwestern Europe, Western Europe, Africa, Scandinavia, Siberia

It is the first time Moody’s has lowered Israel’s credit rating, which is used by investors to measure the riskiness of investing in a global entity or government. Moody’s downgraded Israel from A1 to A2 and said the outlook for the country’s economy was “negative.” The A2 rating nonetheless continues to carry relatively low risk, according to Moody's. Photos You Should See View All 21 ImagesStill, Israeli officials fear that the Moody’s downgrade could lead other major agencies also to downgrade Israel’s outlook. Israel’s economy bounced back after previous wars with Hamas, but the current war is much longer than any of those. Concerns about Israel’s governance, rising inflation and a worldwide slowdown in tech investments last year also weighed on the economy.

Persons: “, ” Moody’s, Moody’s, Bezalel Smotrich, ”, Benjamin Netanyahu, Michel Strawczynski, it’s, Amir Yaron, Israel –, Western Europe —, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Moody's Organizations: —, Sunday, Finance, Hebrew University, Bank of Israel, Bank of Israel Gov Locations: TEL AVIV, Israel, Gaza, Jerusalem, Western Europe

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo sparred at the United Nations over the latter's ban of the use of the Serbian currency in areas where minority Serbs live, the latest crisis between the two governments. The dinar was widely used in ethnic Serbian-dominated areas, especially in Kosovo's north, to pay pensions and salaries to staff in Serbian parallel institutions, including schools and hospitals. In 1999, a 78-day NATO bombing campaign ended a war between Serbian government forces and ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo. Serbian forces were pushed out but Belgrade never recognized Kosovo’s independence and still considers it a Serbian province. The European Union and the United States expressed concern that Kosovo’s ban of the dinar could raise tensions in an already volatile region and called for consultations and a delay in the ban.

Persons: Aleksandar Vucic, ”, Albin Kurti, ” Kurti, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Dmitry Polyansky, Kurti Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, Kosovo sparred, United Nations, . Security, NATO, Albanian, European Union, Center for Peace Locations: Serbia, Kosovo, Serbian, Kosovo's, Belgrade, Western Europe, United States, Pristina

Photos You Should See View All 21 Images“It also depends on the rate of climate change we are inducing as humanity,” van Westen said. The Dutch team simulated 2,200 years of its flow, adding in what human-caused climate change does to it. They found after 1,750 years “an abrupt AMOC collapse,” but so far are unable to translate that simulated timeline to Earth's real future. "This value is getting more negative under climate change,” van Westen said. The world should pay attention to potential AMOC collapse, said Joel Hirschi, division leader at the United Kingdom's National Oceanography Centre.

Persons: ”, Rene van Westen, “, ” van Westen, it's, van Westen, Stefan Rahmstorf, ” Rahmstorf, Tim Lenton, ” Lenton, Wei Cheng, Joel Hirschi, ” Hirschi, ” ___ Read, Seth Borenstein Organizations: Southern, Utrecht University, United Nations, Earth Systems, Potsdam Institute, Climate Research, ” University of Exeter, National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, NASA, Pacific, U.S ., United, National Oceanography, Associated Press Locations: Europe, Netherlands, Germany, Greenland, Americas, Africa, Florida, U.S, U.S . East Coast, AP.org

☆ Atlantic Ocean currents may be on the verge of collapse, which could plunge Europe into a deep freeze, a new study shows
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Seth Borenstein | Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

“It also depends on the rate of climate change we are inducing as humanity,” van Westen said. AdvertisementThe Dutch team simulated 2,200 years of its flow, adding in what human-caused climate change does to it. They found after 1,750 years “an abrupt AMOC collapse,” but so far are unable to translate that simulated timeline to Earth's real future. "This value is getting more negative under climate change,” van Westen said. The world should pay attention to potential AMOC collapse, said Joel Hirschi, division leader at the United Kingdom's National Oceanography Centre.

Persons: ”, Rene van Westen, “, Bob Edme, ” van Westen, it's, van Westen, Stefan Rahmstorf, ” Rahmstorf, Tim Lenton, Thwaites, ” Lenton, Wei Cheng, Joel Hirschi, ” Hirschi, ” ___ Read Organizations: Service, Southern, Utrecht University, AP, United Nations, Earth Systems, Potsdam Institute, Climate Research, University, Exeter, NASA, National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, Pacific, U.S ., United, National Oceanography Locations: Europe, Northwestern, Netherlands, Germany, Greenland, Americas, Africa, Florida, U.S, U.S . East Coast

The bodies have all been retrieved from the river since 2017 and buried in local cemeteries in three border towns of eastern Bosnia. Dr. Vidak Simic examined more than 40 corpses of migrants and refugees so far retrieved from the river. Under local laws, bone samples are taken from unidentified bodies before they are buried in paupers' graves. However, Simic has been keeping the unnamed migrants’ bone samples long past the time required by the law. At the cemetery in Bijeljina, where nearly half of all the unidentified migrants pulled out of Drina so far are buried, 41 trees were planted and a memorial for the drowned was erected.

Persons: ”, Nihad Suljic, Suljic, Vidak Simic, Simic, Simic —, ” Simic, Radul Radovanovic Organizations: Migrants, European Union, Western, Police, Associated Press Locations: BIJELJINA, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Serbia, Western Europe, Bosnian, East, Africa, South Asia, Europe, Balkan, Tuzla, Balkans, Montenegro, Croatia, Drina, Zvornik, Bijeljina, paupers, Municipal, Vienna

☆ Sweden Closes Investigation Into Nord Stream Pipeline Blasts
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Rebecca R. Ruiz | More About Rebecca R. Ruiz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Swedish authorities on Wednesday closed a more than yearlong investigation into the undersea attack on the Nord Stream pipelines, citing a lack of authority to further pursue those responsible for sabotaging the critical piece of energy infrastructure intended to supply Western Europe with Russian gas. “Sweden does not have the jurisdiction to investigate this matter further,” the Swedish Security Service said in a statement on Wednesday. The series of underwater explosions ripped holes in three of the four strands of Nord Stream pipelines and led officials to conclude that they were most likely caused by a state actor. Some saw the attacks, which came close to damaging a cable supplying electricity from Sweden to Poland, as a warning that raised concern about what other infrastructure could be vulnerable. The blasts occurred in international waters but in the economic zones of Sweden and Denmark, which gave those nations a hook to investigate.

Persons: Ukraine — Organizations: Swedish Security Service Locations: Europe, Sweden, Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Denmark

☆ ‘Like going to the moon’: The world’s most terrifying ocean crossing
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Julia Buckley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +19 min

And it’s not just the winds making the waters rough – the Drake is basically one big surge of water. We’re not gambling.”Even with that extra safety margin, though, he admits that crossing the Drake can be a hairy experience. A dangerous thrillAurora Expeditions' Greg Mortimer ship has a patented bow to make a Drake crossing more stable. “The only thing that works for me is going to the ship’s medic for a scopolamine patch,” he says. “If you were going to the moon, you’d expect the journey to be uncomfortable but it’d be worth it,” she says.

Persons: CNN —, ” Alfred Lansing, Ernest Shackleton’s, Drake, ”, it’s, Mike Hill, Adam ”, Alexander Brearley, –, ” “, Storm Isha, Brearley, That’s, It’s, Clelia, Fiona Stewart, Garett McIntosh, Horn, “, Stanislas Devorsine, Sue Flood, Le Commandant Charcot, ” Devorsine, Devorsine, “ We’re, Jamie Lafferty, “ Drake, Greg Mortimer, Tyson Mayr, He’s, Mundy, Edwina Lonsdale, ” Lonsdale, Sylvia Earle, Lonsdale, DreamPictures, acupressure, ” Jamie Lafferty, I’ve, ” Warren Cairns, There’s Organizations: CNN, British Antarctic Survey, Atlantic, “, AP, South America –, Aurora Expeditions, Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council of Locations: Antarctica, isn’t, South America, Ireland, Panama, Europe, South, California, New York, Cape Horn, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, –, France, Cape, National Research Council of Italy, it’s, Lonsdale

☆ Poland Extends Border Controls With Slovakia to Stem Illegal Migration
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland has extended border controls with Slovakia until March 2 to try to stop illegal migrants entering from Slovak territory, the interior ministry said on Friday. "Due to the continuing threat of illegal migration... the Minister of Interior and Administration extended the temporary reintroduction of border control on the section of the state border with the Slovak Republic for the period from February 2 to March 2, 2024," it said. Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria all tightened their borders with Slovakia on Oct. 4. The Czech Republic said this week it would end temporary controls on its border with Slovakia. Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Austria are all part of Europe's open-border Schengen zone.

Persons: Anna Wlodarczak, Nick Macfie Organizations: of Interior, Administration, European Union Locations: WARSAW, Poland, Slovakia, Slovak Republic, East, Afghanistan, Europe, Germany, Hungary, Serbia, EU, Czech Republic, Austria, Israel, Gaza

☆ What old bones reveal about the earliest Europeans
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Modern humans, or homo sapiens, weren’t previously known to have lived as far north as the region where the tools were made. “The Ranis cave site provides evidence for the first dispersal of Homo sapiens across the higher latitudes of Europe. It also shows that Homo sapiens, our species, crossed the Alps into the cold climes of northern and central Europe earlier than thought. Using the same technique, the team also managed to identify human remains among bones excavated during the 1930s. However, the protein analysis was only able to identify the bones as belonging to hominins — a category that includes Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis, or Neanderthals.

Persons: weren’t, ”, Jean, Jacques Hublin, Max Planck, Marcel Weiss, Friedrich, “, hominins, neanderthalensis, Elena Zavala, ” Zavala, denning, Dorothea Mylopotamitaki “, Sarah Pederzani, William E, Banks, ” Banks, wasn’t Organizations: CNN, Max, Max Planck Institute, Alexander University Erlangen, Evolutionary Anthropology, University of California, University of La, University of Bordeaux Locations: Europe, Ranis, Germany, France, Paris, Leipzig, Moravia, Poland, British, Nürnberg, Berkeley, Siberia, Eurasia, University of La Laguna, Spain, “

☆ The global cities with the best quality of life show how dire the affordability crisis is
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AdvertisementLiving in a global city with a high quality of life is increasingly reserved for the wealthiest. The world's most liveable cities — for the wealthyThe rising cost of housing, food, and other household goods is helping worsen the affordability crisis in these cities. Vienna, for example, has kept housing costs remarkably low through its generous social housing system. The average studio apartment in Zurich costs $1.1 million and the average home across the country costs $1.4 million, the Times reported. Like in many American cities, a severe housing shortage in cities like Zurich and Geneva is also contributing to rising home costs.

Persons: —, EIU Organizations: Service, Economist's Intelligence, The New York Times, Times, Swiss Locations: Zurich, Copenhagen, Vienna, Austria Copenhagen, Denmark Melbourne, Australia Sydney, Australia Vancouver, Canada Zurich, Switzerland Geneva, Switzerland, Calgary, Canada, —, Geneva, Singapore, New York, Hong Kong Los Angeles Paris, France Copenhagen, Tel Aviv, Israel, Vancouver, Sydney, Paris

Here's why European farmers are taking their anger to the streets:THE HISTORYPolitical Cartoons View All 253 ImagesWorld War II had spread hunger on a bountiful continent. When the war ended, Western European leaders knew that the way to people's hearts was through their stomachs. The vision of EU farming from early on was economy of scale — bigger farms, bigger holdings, setting standard rules across borders. “European farmers have found themselves under increasing pressure from many sides,” European Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič said. On Wednesday, the European Commission made two key proposals — one to shield EU farmers from cheap Ukrainian imports and one to sidestep an environmental measure.

Persons: Ursula, Ursula von der Leyen, —, von der, “ Ursula, ”, Jean, Francois Deflandre, Paolo Pepponi, It’s, it’s, Pepponi, Benoit Laqueue, Nicolas Abbeloos, “, Maroš Šefčovič, Šefčovič, Emmanuel Macron Organizations: HALLE, European, Agriculture, EU, European Commission, South Locations: Belgium, Paris, Brussels, EU, Ukraine, Kyiv, Halle, Lithuania, France, Spain, Italy, Rome, Europe, Sedan, New Zealand, Chile

BERLIN (AP) — Efforts to fight public sector corruption are faltering around the world, in part because a “global decline in justice and the rule of law since 2016," according to a corruption index released Tuesday. Transparency International, which compiles the annual Corruption Perceptions Index, found 23 countries at their worst level since the global ranking began almost three decades ago, including both high-ranking democracies and authoritarian states. The global average was unchanged at 43 for the 12th consecutive year, and more than two-thirds of countries scored below 50. Arab countries’ average score on the index hit an all-time low of 34, and sub-Saharan Africa remained stagnant at 33. Transparency International said that the government's “pervasive control of public institutions facilitates the widespread abuse of power without accountability" while judicial independence is eroding.

Persons: ”, François Valérian, party's Organizations: BERLIN, Transparency, World Bank, Economic, European Union Locations: Iceland, Netherlands, Sweden, Britain, Iran, Russia, Venezuela, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg, United States, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Equatorial Guinea, Haiti, North Korea, Nicaragua, Asia, Pacific, Latin America, Caribbean, Saharan Africa, Europe, Poland, Hungary, Ukraine

The unrest in France is also likely tied to how some French people feel about the country’s political atmosphere more broadly. The National Rally also garnered the highest percentage support among France’s political parties in a mid-December poll. In 2022, nearly half of France’s immigrant population had been born in Africa, with the top source countries being Algeria and Morocco, according to INSEE. The French president said in December that the immigration law is “what the French wanted.” And at least one recent poll appears to echo this. And nearly three-quarters (73%) thought the law was inspired by the ideas of the National Rally party.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Pen, –, Élisabeth Borne, Le Pen’s, Macron –, “, Macron Organizations: Republicans, National, Constitutional, Ministry, People, AP, Le, National Institute of Statistics, Economic Studies, National Rally Locations: France, Europe, Germany, Western Europe, Africa, Algeria, Morocco, North Africa

☆ Passengers wake up in the ‘wrong’ country as Storm Isha plays havoc with flight plans
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Julia Buckley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Thousands of airline passengers across Europe woke up this morning at the wrong destination – and even in the wrong country – after Storm Isha caused havoc with flights, with dozens of cancelations, diversions and go-arounds in western Europe. Quintupling flight timesThis flight from Shannon to Edinburgh ended up in Cologne. There were over 100 go-arounds at UK airports, according to NATS, the UK’s air traffic control operator. “We did see some diverted flights leaving Manchester and some diverted to Manchester because of conditions at other airports, particularly Dublin,” they said. London’s Gatwick airport saw 22 diversions, but was able to take five flights diverted from other airports, according to a spokesperson for the airport.

Persons: Storm Isha, Kevin Cullinane, FlightRadar, “ Isha, Steve Fox, “, ”, –, Jerry Dyer, – Dyer, Isha, Jerry, Big Organizations: CNN, Ryanair, Dublin Airport, FlightRadar, Paris Beauvais, Belfast, Dublin, Lufthansa, Cork, NATS, Gatwick, Stansted, Big Jet, Heathrow, Birmingham Airport, London Locations: Europe, Ireland, Dublin, daa, ’, Lanzarote, Canary, Bordeaux, France, Shannon, Edinburgh, Cologne, Manchester, Paris, What’s, Glasgow, Liverpool –, Belfast, Liverpool, Scotland, Germany, Munich, England, Deauville, Stansted, London, Antalya, Turkey, Lyon, Budapest, Cork, Mexico City

☆ BYD: Why Hungary and Mexico could be key to the Chinese carmaker’s global domination
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Michelle Toh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The cars come from BYD, the Chinese carmaker that is backed by Warren Buffett and has surpassed Tesla as the world’s biggest seller of electric vehicles (EVs). 1," a shipping carrier vessel intended to export BYD vehicles, at Yantai port in eastern China's Shandong province in January. BYD Mexico did not respond to a request for comment. “The US government is not going to like that Mexico is creating a back door.”A BYD electric vehicle, operated by Vemo taxi, in Mexico City in November. But as it continues to grow overseas, BYD will have to take a more localized approach, analysts say.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Tesla, BYD, Viktor Orbán’s, Yucatán, what’s, Elon Musk, Tu Le, carmaker, Hungary —, Matthias Schmidt, ”, “, Schmidt, Bill Russo, it’s, Le, Mariceu Ethrall, It’s, “ It’s, ‘ We’re, ’ ”, Stella Li, México, ” Li, Wang Chuanfu, BYD “, Russo, they’ve, ” Russo Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Xinhua, Getty, CNN, Tesla, BMW, Audi, European Union, Schmidt Automotive Research, EV, European Commission, Bloomberg, BYD, El Locations: Hong Kong, China, Europe, BYD, Shenzhen, Germany, Netherlands, Hungary, Mexico, North America, China's Shandong, Szeged, Komárom, France, Shanghai, Hungarian, United States, Canada, Mexico City, Mexican, Dutch, Rotterdam, California, Brazil, Indonesia, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Macao, Taiwan, Japan, what’s

☆ Drax project for controversial ‘carbon negative’ power plant gets UK government green light
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The UK government approved a £2 billion (around $2.5 billion) project on Tuesday to create a “carbon negative” wood-burning power plant. Energy secretary Claire Coutinho’s decision greenlights a plan to bolt carbon capture units onto two generators at a power station in Yorkshire, northern England, run by Drax. Once the most polluting power station in western Europe, Drax switched from burning coal to burning biomass — mostly wood pellets — in 2019. The power station in Yorkshire, which produces around 4% of the UK’s power, mostly burns wood imported from North America. Some scientists have cast doubt on the climate credentials of burning biomass.

Persons: Claire Coutinho’s, Drax, “, ”, Tomos Harrison, Ofgem, ” Drax, Laith Whitwham, Ember, BECCS “, ” Will Gardiner, Gardiner Organizations: CNN, Energy, European Academies Science Advisory, Drax Group Locations: Yorkshire, England, Europe, North America, Canada

☆ Americans are canceling trips that are thousands of miles from Gaza. Here's why
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | Jonathan Delise | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Israel-Hamas war is affecting travel across the Middle East and beyond. Canceling plans a continent awayYet, the war's effect on travelers extends far beyond the Middle East, according to a survey from Morning Consult. Respondents said these plans included visits to the Middle East (12%) and North Africa (7%), as well as Western Europe (14%), according to the survey. Cancelations were high for domestic trips because most Americans travel within the 50 states, thus "there are simply more trips on the table to disrupt," the report stated. Some 52% of respondents with knowledge of the war said they viewed traveling to the Middle East as "very unsafe," compared to 29% of those who had not heard about it.

Persons: Saudi Arabia —, —, Olivier Ponti, Cancelations, Ponti Organizations: Middle East, United, United Arab Emirates, U.S . State Department, U.S, Department of State, Travel, Consular Affairs Locations: Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab, Morocco, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, North Africa, Western Europe, United States, Cyprus, Lebanon, Kuwait, Malaysia, Colombia, Oman, South Africa, United Kingdom, Poland, Denmark

☆ Considering a move abroad in 2024? These are the best countries for expats
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Blane Bachelor | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +26 min

The survey, which has been running for a decade, reflects input from nearly 12,000 expats representing 177 nationalities in 181 countries or territories. John Coletti/The Image Bank Unreleased/Getty ImagesA longtime retirement destination for Americans, Mexico also has attracted more families and the digital nomad set over the past few years. Pros: Mexico ranked first in InterNations’ 2023 Expat Insider survey and has ranked among the top five countries since 2014. Cons: As is the case in Mexico and other countries with large expat communities, there’s growing backlash against the influx of foreigners, especially Americans, and especially in Lisbon. That popularity among auslanders has contributed to a housing pinch in major cities, especially Berlin, where finding accommodation is one of the most stressful aspects of a move.

Persons: It’s, Megan Frye, Frye, ”, “, We’ve, John Coletti, San Miguel de Allende, margarita, Sean Pavone, expats, Alex Ingrim, Chase, Ingrim, it’s, pollsters, they’re, it’s MVV, Arielle Tucker, that’s, auslanders, Andriy Kravchenko, “ Costa, ” David Lesperance, Costa Rica’s, “ Tico, Sebastien Lecocq, Lesperance, he’s, what’s, Emily, ” Tucker, Roth, Tucker, Carte Organizations: CNN, Invest Overseas, Braga, InterNations, Mexico, National Institute of Statistics, Human Rights Watch, Visa, USA, CNN Travel, ”, Spain, International, Travel Association, pollsters Gallup, Michelin, Changi, Cons, United, Costa Rica Costa, Central, Costa, Lesperance, Associates, Panama Panama, Miami of, Panama City, Panama Qualified Investment, Panama Golden Visa, France France Locations: Valencia, Spain, Portugal, Mazatlán, Mexico, United States, Mexico City, Michigan, Mexico Mexico, Plaza Carso, Polanco, North America, —, Oaxaca, San Miguel, Playa, Carmen, InterNations, Portugal Portugal, Porto, Douro, Europe, Lisbon, Western Europe, Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Bilbao, Catalonia, Catalan, Netherlands, Amsterdam, Statista, Haarlem, Delft, Leiden, Maastricht, Washington, Miami , New York, San Francisco, Germany Germany, Munich, Germany, Berlin, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Switzerland, Singapore Singapore, Singapore, Asia, Entre, Costa Rica, “, “ Costa Rica, Costa Rican, Panama City, Miami, Miami of Central America, Panama, North, South America, Italy, Venice, Italian, Paris, France, Lyon, Strasbourg

☆ Ancient DNA reveals genetic roots of multiple sclerosis and other diseases
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-11 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

These genetic variants may have subsequently proved beneficial to European populations in making the shift from hunting and gathering to farming. “DNA from hunter-gatherers is present at higher levels in Northeastern Europe, which means the region has an elevated genetic risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease,” Barrie said. Similarly, the ancient genetic information shed light on the evolutionary history of traits such as height and lactose tolerance. And for most traits, MS included, the genetic effects are the result of multiple genetic variants,” he said. “Ultimately, we can’t say that MS came from Bronze Age populations, but these populations’ movements and environments contribute to differences in MS risk today.”

Persons: “, ”, Rasmus Nielsen, It’s, William Barrie, Astrid Iversen, ” Iversen, ε4, ” Barrie, Samira, Asgari, Tony Capra, Capra, wasn’t Organizations: CNN —, University of California, Danish National, University of Cambridge’s, University of Oxford, Icahn School of Medicine, Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute Locations: Western Europe, Central Asia, Europe, Berkeley, Kazakhstan, Northeastern Europe, Mount Sinai, New York, Bakar, San Francisco

☆ New ads business will launch on Philips Smart TVs to take on Samsung and LG in the $33 billion connected-TV ad market
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-09 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewA new connected-TV ads business is set to launch on Philips Smart TVs in the coming weeks to rival competing solutions from LG, Vizio, and Samsung, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The new offering is from TP Vision, a consumer electronics company that operates the Philips Smart TV brand in Europe and other countries outside the US. TitanOS will operate as a standalone business unit from TP Vision, a separate person familiar with the matter said. AdvertisementIn the highly competitive connected-TV ads market, scale will be crucial to the success of Titan Ads. AdvertisementAs one TV ad buyer put it, "The last thing we need is more hardware fragmentation initiatives.

Persons: —, Janko Roettegers, TPV, Ampere, Richard Broughton Organizations: Service, Philips Smart, LG, Samsung, Business, TP, Philips Smart TV, Philips TV, TitanOS, TP Vision, Philips, Pocket Media, Titan, Ampere Analysis, Sony, Netflix, YouTube Locations: Europe, Americas

☆ 3 US cities made the list of the world's top 10 most expensive places to live, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-03 | by ( Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco all made it into the world's top 10 most expensive cities. AdvertisementThree US cities have made it into the top 10 most expensive cities in the world in the latest Worldwide Cost of Living report from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Although three US cities made the top 10, on average North American cities fell in the rankings compared to the previous year. The Russian capital finished up 105 places lower in 142nd, while St Petersburg dropped 74 places to 147th. The world's cheapest cities included Damascus, Syria; Tehran, Iran; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Chennai, India.

Persons: — Organizations: Economist Intelligence, Service, Economist Intelligence Unit, St Locations: New York, Los Angeles, Francisco, Western, . New York, Singapore, Zurich, Switzerland, San Francisco, Beijing, Moscow, St Petersburg, Damascus, Syria, Tehran, Iran, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Chennai, India

Finally Souza, an innkeeper and community leader in Bela Vista do Jaraqui, said he rallied two dozen neighbors to drill a 60-meter well in the heart of the world's largest freshwater basin. With rivers forming the backbone of transportation across the Amazon region, the drought has disrupted access to food and medicine in dozens of cities. The Amazon, the world's largest rainforest, is regarded by scientists as a bulwark against climate change because its dense vegetation absorbs carbon and emits oxygen. The five researchers predicting a 2026 recovery said the effects of the drought could endure even longer if El Nino is prolonged. That would release huge amounts of carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change and wiping out a wealth of plant and animal species found only in the Amazon.

Persons: Bruno Kelly, Raimundo Leite de Souza, Souza, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Michael Coe, we're, El Nino, Coe, El, Philip Fearnside, Henrique Barbosa, Eduardo Taveira, Taveira, Paulo Brando, Brando, Barbosa, Brad Haynes, Jake Spring, Ana Mano, Andre Romani, Suzanne Goldenberg Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Rio, cobras, United, Reuters, Research Center, National Institute of, Research, University of Maryland, Honda, LG, Positivo, GIANTS, Yale University, Sao Paulo, Thomson Locations: Tefe, Amazonas, Brazil, Rights MANAUS, caimans, Bela Vista, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Venezuela, Colombia, United Nations, U.S, South America, South, Pacific, North America, El Nino, University, Baltimore, Western Europe, Brazil's Amazonas, Manaus, Itacoatiara, Madeira Rivers, Sao Paulo, Sao

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