Stories about Science from June, 2014
These 5 Experts Explain Why Alexander Sodiqov's Arrest in Tajikistan Is So Troubling
Civic activists and journalists fear the arrest of Global Voices' Alexander Sodiqov could have worrying consequences on research in Central Asia.
Could Snowden Be Russia's Alfred Kinsey?
If Kinsey’s Big Data could show the reality of human sexual behavior, what might the total disintegration of online privacy reveal about all kinds of political behavior?
French Startup Companies Want to Make Your Home Smarter
Want a smart thermostat to control your home's heating? Or one that is hooked up to the Internet and measures your home's concentration of CO2? French start-ups are on it.
Mapping the 567 Ebola Cases in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone
On June 16, 49 new Ebola cases, 12 of them deadly, were reported by the WHO. Bart Janssens, director of operations of The international NGO Doctors without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF)) released a statement saying that: The epidemic is out of control, with the appearance of new sites in...
Alexander Sodiqov Is Not the First Person to Be Arrested in Tajikistan for Doing His Job
The Tajik government's arrest of Alexander Sodiqov for conducting academic research in Tajikistan's troubled GBAO region echoes the arrest of a BBC journalist in the same country three years ago.
Meet Valentin Agon, Pioneer of Local Cures Against Infectious Diseases in Benin
Valentin Agon is the creator of the Api-Palu pill, a locally produced remedy based on endemic plants. He was just awarded [fr] the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Award for his new product against malaria. Pascal Hounkpatin reports for La Presse du Jour: De la cueillette des feuilles au produit fini (gélules...
Kazakhstan Has an Antelope That Can Predict the World Cup Winner (or Does It?)
Kazakhstan's most mischievous satirical blog, Kazaxia, is up to its old tricks again, reporting on the saiga antelope that has potentially ruined bookmakers worldwide by predicting the winner of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil with its timeless steppe wisdom. As Kazaxia writes: A shaman contacted kazaxia about the psychic saiga – it...
Jamaica: Girls In Science
Cucumber Juice explains why it's important for her to raise money to upgrade her old high school's science lab – because it's the place where she learned to be confident, because real learning is interconnected, and because “girls need to know that we can be scientists too.”