Society
[Ireland] 'Gay cake' appeal: Christian bakers Ashers lose appeal bbc v
Reacting to the ruling, Daniel McArthur from Ashers said he was "extremely disappointed" adding that it undermined "democratic freedom, religious freedom and free speech".
ACLU chapter: High school's police event sends 'frightening message' foxnews v
A New Jersey high school has come under fire after holding a ceremony honoring law enforcement, military and first responders before a football game Friday night.
Dolliger ... told the Asbury Park Press that the event was meant to respond to pro athletes who have taken a knee during the National Anthem, following the actions of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
10 Transgender Soldiers Ask for Formal Recognition usnews v
The small number represents only those who have publicly said they are transgender, and doesn't include soldiers who may be considering or beginning gender transition or those who don't yet want to make an official paperwork change.
Antisemitism
NY, California universities among ‘hotspots’ of anti-Israel, anti-Semitic activity timesofisrael
The study, released this month, was conducted by researchers at the Maurice and Marilyn Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies brandeis.edu and was based on findings from a survey taken in the Spring of 2016 among Jewish undergraduate students at 50 US campuses. All the students selected for the study were US applicants to the Birthright-Israel program, whether they attended the free 10-day trip to Israel or not. Of the more than 19,000 surveys send out to the Birthright applicants, 4,010 were completed which provided the basis for the study.
One of the strongest predictors of a perceived hostile environment toward Jews and Israel on campus, according to the Brandeis study, “is the presence of an active Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) group.”
Israel
The unbelievable tales of smuggled Torah scrolls that survived incredible journeys jpost
At the heart of almost every Jewish community is a synagogue. At the heart of a synagogue – the holy ark. And deep inside the ark, draped in velvet and decorated in silver, lies a Torah scroll, one at the very least.
And while the birth of every new Torah scroll is marked by celebration, there are countless stories of scrolls that were smuggled, rescued, reborn, restored and rededicated – much like the story of the Jewish people. Here are just a dozen incredible tales of sifrei Torah that escaped destruction, survived crazy journeys and went on to amazing things.
Turkey
Turkey’s New Maps Are Reclaiming the Ottoman Empire foreignpolicy
In the past few weeks, a conflict between Ankara and Baghdad over Turkey’s role in the liberation of Mosul has precipitated an alarming burst of Turkish irredentism. On two separate occasions, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the Treaty of Lausanne britannica, which created the borders of modern Turkey, for leaving the country too small. He spoke of the country’s interest in the fate of Turkish minorities living beyond these borders, as well as its historic claims to the Iraqi city of Mosul, near which Turkey has a small military base. And, alongside news of Turkish jets bombing Kurdish forces in Syria and engaging in mock dogfights with Greek planes over the Aegean Sea, Turkey’s pro-government media have shown a newfound interest in a series of imprecise, even crudely drawn, maps of Turkey with new and improved borders.
North Korea
North Korea Lashes out at Threat of More Sanctions abcnews.go v
"The sanction resolutions of the U.N. Security Council un.org are illegal criminal documents," Pang Kwang Hyok, vice director of the department of international organizations at the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told the APTN crew in Pyongyang. The North's mission to the U.N. issued a similar statement that was distributed by North Korean state media on Monday.
Banking
Major banks mark first-ever international trade using blockchain tech reuters
Australian cotton trader Brighann Cotton Marketing bought the shipment bound for the port city Qingdao from U.S. division Brighann Cotton in Texas, the companies and their banks said in a joint statement. The blockchain trade, for 88 bales, totaled $35,000, Commonwealth Bank told Reuters.
Blockchain is a web-based transaction-processing and settlement system whose efficiency banks say could slash costs. It creates a "golden record" of any given set of data that is automatically replicated for all parties in a secure network, eliminating any need for third-party verification.
Global Economy
Bank of England's Shafik sees barriers to global regulatory cooperation reuters
Barriers to cooperation between different countries' financial regulators remain high, despite the shared nature of many risks they face, Bank of England deputy governor Minouche Shafik said on Monday.
AI
Artifically intelligent ‘judge’ developed which can predict court verdicts with 79 per cent accuracy telegraph.co.uk
Computer scientists at University College London ucl.ac.uk and the University of Sheffield sheffield.ac.uk developed an algorithm which can not only weigh up legal evidence, but also moral considerations.
Robots
Robots head China plan to leapfrog rivals sbs.au
Apart from the cool factor, China's sweeping plans to upgrade its factories and production lines depend on building and better using advanced robots. Automation is crucial for industries facing rising labour costs and slowing growth in the work force thanks to the "one-child" policy era and ageing of the population.
Tech
WaterSeer Collects Drinkable Water From Air Without External Power interestingengineering v
The magic of WaterSeer waterseer.org starts after installing the device around 6 feet under the ground. This allows the metal sides to be cool by surrounding soil. Wind turbines spin internal blades which push the air into a condensation chamber. The warm air cools, creating condensation which runs down the sides into the collection chamber.
Space
Astronomers Discover Bizarre ‘Binary-Binary’ System sci-news
The primary star in the system, HD 87646A, is bright G-type star with about 1.12 times the mass of the Sun. It is only 22 AU (astronomical units) away from the secondary star, HD 87646B, a fainter K-type star with about 0.9 times the mass of the Sun.
“For such large companion objects to be stable so close together defies our current popular theories on how solar systems form,” the researchers said.
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