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Explore the largest early map of the world
You're looking at one of the most extraordinary maps ever created. It’s a 10-by-10-foot digital image of a 60-sheet world map drawn by hand in 1587 by Italian cartographer Urbano Monte–the largest known early map of the Read More...
Crime levels in New York City fell to a record low in 2017
New York City sure has changed. In 1990, the city that never sleeps was home to 2,245 killings. As of Wednesday, there have been 286 in the year 2017—the lowest since reliable records have been kept. Crime in general also declined for the 27th year in a row, falling to levels that police Read More...
Why racism has lost its grip in Norway
Norway and its Scandinavian neighbors have been very open to immigration. Muslim women are pursuing in university studies, Afro-Norwegians are taking influential jobs, and one in five Norwegians is foreign-born. Yes, there have been backlashes from opportunist right wing forces. However, the Read More...
The case of Portugal: Why decriminalizing all drugs reduces addiction
In 2001, Portugal became the first country to decriminalize the possession and consumption of all illicit substances. Rather than being arrested, those caught with a personal supply might be given a warning, a small fine, or be appointed a doctor or social worker to help them with harm reduction. Read More...
Ghana’s president is calling for Africa to end its dependency on foreign aid
Few African leaders, regardless of their personal beliefs, ever publicly question the idea that international support is needed for development or, in the worst cases, day to day running of their countries.This is probably why young Africans on social media have been heaping praise on Ghana’s Read More...
The 11 biggest victories against Trump by the resistance
It has been a grueling year for people who care about human rights, climate change, and whatever remains of value in federal institutions from the judiciary to the diplomatic Read More...
‘All it would take to stop Brexit is a couple of dozen brave Tories’
Richard Thaler was awarded the Nobel prize for economics in October, for work that has “built a bridge between the economic and psychological analyses of individual decision-making”. While traditional economics assumes that people are rational Read More...
I’m an environmental journalist, but I never write about overpopulation
I did an event with environmental journalist (and personal hero) Elizabeth Kolbert late last week, in which we discussed various matters related to journalism and climate change. Subsequently, one of the attendees wrote and asked why I hadn’t Read More...
Ghana introduces a digital address system to help formalize more of its economy
Instead of using a church, tree or street stall to locate a home or business in Ghana, the country’s government has launched a digital system where every property across the nation has a unique code as its address. The app, GhanaPostGPS, was created and delivered by Accra-based Vokacom. Through Read More...
Migrant crisis triggers a wave of tech innovation
When, this July, French president Emmanuel Macron called for “no more people in the streets and in the woods”, he found an unexpected ally for his call to house homeless migrants: Airbnb, the San Francisco-based online accommodation company. Airbnb’s normal business is to help people let out Read More...