Months after the death of Sudan, the world’s last male northern white rhino, scientists said Wednesday they have grown embryos containing DNA of his kind, hoping to save the subspecies from extinction. With only two northern white rhino (NWR) known to be alive today — both infertile females — the team hopes their breakthrough technique […]

Japan’s government on Tuesday pledged to modestly boost the amount of energy coming from renewable sources to around a quarter in a new plan that also keeps nuclear power central to the country’s policy. The plan aims to have 22-24 percent of Japan’s energy needs met by renewable sources including wind and solar by 2030, […]

Facebook and Google have manipulated users into sharing data using so-called “dark patterns,” such as misleading wording and confusing interfaces, according to a report the Norwegian Consumer Council released Wednesday. The practices nudged users toward accepting privacy options that favored the tech companies rather than themselves, the NCC found. Facebook and Google have no intention […]

Colombia’s massive Chiribiquete National Park has made UNESCO’s World Heritage List, the United Nations body announced Sunday. “Congratulations,” the UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization announced on Twitter. With an area of ​​2.7 million hectares (6.7 million acres) covering five Amazonian municipalities in the southern Guaviare and Caqueta regions, Colombia’s largest natural park has rich […]

The Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, at the heart of California’s Yosemite National Park, is home to 500 of the towering trees — many at least 2,000 years old, having sprouted around the time of Jesus Christ. One of the world’s 65 remaining natural sequoia groves, and the largest in Yosemite, Mariposa Grove reopened in […]

A great white shark was spotted in waters off Spain’s Balearic Islands this week in what is the first such sighting by scientists in at least 30 years, a marine conservation group said Saturday. The Alnitak group captured footage of the shark, which it said was five metres (16 feet) long, on Thursday in the […]

Air pollution caused one in seven new cases of diabetes in 2016, according to a US study, which found even low levels raised the chances of developing the chronic disease. Diabetes has primarily been associated with lifestyle factors like diet and a sedentary lifestyle, but research by the Washington University School of Medicine in St […]

Palm oil production has “decimated” animal and plant life in Malaysia and Indonesia and threatens pristine forests in central Africa and South America, a leading international conservation group warned Tuesday. Habitat loss due to expanding plantations has pushed some of the planet’s most iconic species — including orangutans, tigers and some gibbons — to the […]

Colombia will resume aerial spraying of coca plantations with the herbicide glyphosate to counter a record increase in production of the cocaine crop, President Juan Manuel Santos announced Tuesday. Santos, who will step down at the end of his term in August, said the health and environment ministry had approved pilot plans to resume spraying […]

A Japanese probe has reached an asteroid 300 million kilometres away to collect information about the birth of the solar system and the origin of life after a more than three-year voyage through deep space. The Hayabusa2 probe settled into an observation position 20 kilometres (12 miles) above the Ryugu asteroid, officials from the Japan […]