It’s easy to lose track of all the other news that is slipping past. We took a look at some important stories you may have missed this past week.
1. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin may become a life-long ruler
Russia’s Constitutional Court approved a package of amendments that could allow Vladimir Putin to rule into 2036, practically making him a president for life. His reform bill faced fierce criticism from opposition figures. A public vote on the bill is scheduled for 22 April, but the bill is expected to pass.
2. Meditation may be associated with slowed biological aging
Researchers were awed to discover that a monk’s 41-year-old brain actually resembled that of a 33-year-old. The results were published in a case study this week. The monk has spent an “extraordinary number of hours” meditating since the age of 9. The researchers noted that there may be a possibility that the brain’s age is influenced by the alititude of where the individual lives, the person’s diet, and environment’s pollution.
3. Canadian band performs record-breaking concert below sea level
The Shaft Bottom Boys (Canada) have officially taken the title for the deepest concert underground after playing a concert at 1,893.8 m below sea level at Vale’s Creighton Mine in the city of Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Guinness World Records confirmed on their website. Funds of $95,000 raised are going to two charity groups.
4. Amazon has banned the sale of Hitler’s autobiography “Mein Kampf”
Holocaust charities spent decades since the 1990s campaigning to implement the ban. The world’s largest online-retailer informed sellers earlier this week they were no long permitted to sell Hitler’s work as it breaks the website’s code of conduct with its antisemitism and hate speech. The book has been an unlikely besteller in India.
5. The world’s largest “car-free district” is being built in Utrecht, The Netherlands
The Dutch city of Utrecht is constructing the Netherlands’ first high-density, car-free residential district for more than 12,000 people. The new site is a business park for now but Utrecht hopes to secure the reputation as cycling capital of Europe. “It should be easier to get a bike than it should be to get a car,” the project’s architect Marco Broekman said to The Guardian.
6. Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 23 years in prison
The movie mogul was sent to jail last Wednesday for sexual assault and rape, two years after horrific stories of the disgraced producer’s sexual misconduct began to surface. It came after a seven-week trial in which jurors heard emotional, lurid testimony from women who accused him of everything from violent rape and abuse to humiliation and sabotaging their careers.
7. Ice caps are melting six times faster than in the 90s
Yes, it’s not the first time we hear a breaking headline of this sort, but it is much more worrying now than we previously thought. Ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are melting much fast than expected, say scientists. Two papers published in Nature conclude that global sea levels rose by 17.8 milimetres due to the globe’s heating.
8. Quarantined Italians sing from balconies amidst Coronavirus crisis
Alright, then, here’s one corona-related news story that we couldn’t keep out. People around the world are urged to stay at home, bars and restaurants as well as shops have been closed, with only pharmacies and grocery stores to remain open for the time being. However, despite the devastating circumstances, Italians are trying to remain positive as videos of people singing from their balconies are going viral. What an energy and feeling of community!
9. Australian teen turns shrimp shells into biodegradable plastic wrap
17 year-old Angelina Arora has managed to create bioplastic made from prawn shells that completely degrades within a month. They material is durable, flexible and can be put towards a variety of uses.
“I’m still finalising the legal aspects like patenting for example, however I am at the stage where I have produced a final prototype and would be ready to manufacture the plastic to distribute it commercially,” she said to news.com.au
