Earth's early evolution: Fresh insights from rocks formed 3.5 billion years ago

by Jaganmoy Jodder, The Conversation

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Our Earth is around 4.5 billion years old. Way back in its earliest years, vast oceans dominated. There were frequent volcanic eruptions and, because there was no free oxygen in the atmosphere, there was no ozone layer. It was a dynamic and evolving planet.

Scientists know all of this—but, of course, there are still gaps in our knowledge. For instance, while we know what kind of rocks were being formed on different parts of the planet 3.5 billion years ago, we are still understanding which geological processes drove these formations.

Luckily the answers to such questions are available. Evidence is preserved in ancient volcanic and sedimentary rocks dating back to the Archaean age, between 4 billion and 2.5 billion years ago.

These rocks are found in the oldest parts of what are today the continents, called cratons. Cratons are pieces of ancient continents that formed billions of years ago. Studying them offers a window into how processes within and on the surface of Earth operated in the past. They host a variety of different groups of rocks, including greenstones and granites.

One example is the Singhbhum Craton, in the Daitari Greenstone Belt in the state of Odisha in eastern India. This ancient part of the Earth's crust has been found in previous research to date back to 3.5 billion years ago. The craton's oldest rock assemblages are largely volcanic and sedimentary rocks also known as greenstone successions. Greenstones are rock assemblages made up mostly of sub-marine volcanic rocks with minor sedimentary rocks.

My research team and I recently published a study in which we compared the Singhbhum Craton to cratons in South Africa and Australia. We chose these sites because they preserve the same kinds of rocks, in the same condition (not intensely deformed or metamorphosed), from the same time period—about 3.5 billion years ago. They are the best archives to study early Earth surface processes.

Our key findings were that explosive-style volcanic eruptions were common in what are today India, South Africa and Australia around 3.5 billion years ago. These eruptions mostly occurred under oceans, though sometimes above them.

Understanding these early Earth processes is vital for piecing together the planet's evolutionary history and the conditions that may have sustained life during different geological epochs. This kind of research is also a reminder of the ancient geological wonders that surround us—and that there is much more to discover to understand the story of our planet.

The research

We sampled some rocks from the Singhbhum Craton so we could study them in our laboratory. Existing data from the same site, as well as sites in South Africa and India, were used for comparison purposes.

Our detailed field-based studies were complemented by uranium-lead (U-Pb) radiometric-age dating. This common and well-established method provides information as to when a magma crystallized; in other words, it tells us when a rock formed. In this way we were able to establish key geological timelines to illustrate what processes were underway and when.

We also found that the geology of this area shares stark similarities with the greenstone belts documented in South Africa's Barberton and Nondweni areas and the Pilbara Craton in western Australia.

Most particularly, all these areas experienced widespread submarine mafic—meaning high in magnesium oxide—volcanic eruptions between 3.5 and 3.3 billion years ago, preserved as pillowed lava and komatiites.

This differs from silicic (elevated concentration of silicon dioxide) volcanism, which research has shown was prevalent around 3.5 billion years ago.

These findings enrich our understanding of ancient volcanic and sedimentary processes and their significance in the broader context of Earth's geological as well as biological evolution.

Our planet's formative years

Our discoveries are pivotal for several reasons. First, they offer a clearer picture of Earth's early tectonic activities during the Archaean times, contributing to our understanding of the planet's formative years.

Second, the Singhbhum Craton's unique geological features, including its greenstone belts, provide invaluable information about Earth's surface and atmospheric processes. This is crucial for hypothesizing early habitable conditions and the emergence of life on Earth.

Additionally, comparing the Singhbhum Craton with similar cratons in South Africa and Australia allows us to construct a more comprehensive model related to geological processes that operated during the Archaean. This can help to shed light on ancient geodynamic processes that were prevalent across different parts of the young Earth.

This research emphasizes the need for further exploration into the geological history of ancient cratons worldwide. Understanding these early Earth processes is vital for piecing together the planet's evolutionary history and the conditions that may have sustained life.

Provided by The Conversation 

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Study shows South Africa, India and Australia shared similar volcanic activity 3.5 billion years ago

COMPANY SEEKING APPROVAL TO SELL MEAT FROM GENE-HACKED PIGS

CRISPR-EDITED PIGS, COMING TO A PLATE NEAR YOU.

Pork Chopped

In the future, the roasted pork shoulder or the slices of seasoned country ham you eat may well come from gene-hacked pigs.

At least that's what the scientists at animal genetics outfit Genus hope will come to fruition, New Scientist reports, as they work on perfecting CRISPR-edited pigs designed to withstand the disease porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), which has caused billions in losses for pig farmers.

"I think by and large the farmers are quite excited to have it, because this is a fairly devastating disease," Genus' Global Director of Regulatory and External Affairs Clint Nesbitt told the magazine.

Welfare Check

Genus is now awaiting for approval from the Food and Drug Administration, per New Scientist. If given the green light, the pigs would enter the history books as the first ever gene-edited domestic animal for mass meat consumption.

Once approved, Genus would be selling sperm from the gene-edited pigs that carry the modified genes. Subsequent breeding, it says, will yield porkers that will be totally immune to PRRS.

PRRS is a viral disease that harms the reproduction process and pigs' respiratory system. It first emerged in late 1980s and has impacted pigs all over the world except for Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland.

Farmers have tried to keep the disease in check with antibiotics, vaccines, isolating pigs, and cleaning and disinfecting pig breeding facilities. But industrial pig farms are often crowded and unhappy places that smell heavily of acrid feces, and hence they are breeding grounds for all sorts of diseases.

In the face of all that, genetics modification is a tempting solution. But animal welfare advocates say gene-edited farm animals will only cement the stranglehold that industrial farms have on the public and may even make the conditions worse for the animals.

"Keeping animals crowded together, and in stressful conditions, provides an ideal environment for pathogens to spread and evolve," anti-factory farm group Compassion in World Farming's research manager Catherine Jadav told New Scientist. "If PRRS-resistant pigs are used to perpetuate the current highly intensive model of pig farming, then other diseases will continue to develop – bringing disease after disease that ‘requires’ new gene-edited animals."

More on gene-edited pigs: Gene-hacked Pig Liver Successfully Filters Blood of Human Patient

 

China Details Human Lunar Landing Plans: Dream Vessel and Embracing the Moon

 By Leonard David
 February 25th, 2024

Image credit: China National Space Administration (CNSA)/China Central Television (CCTV)/SciNews.ro/Inside Outer Space screengrab

China has officially named the vehicles that will support that country’s human exploration of the Moon.

A three seater spacecraft is called “Mengzhou” (Dream Vessel) and the lunar lander is named “Lanyue” (Embracing the Moon), in English translation.

Lanyue first appeared in a poem written by the late Chairman Mao Zedong in 1965, noted the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) in announced the names, underscoring aspiration and confidence in exploration of the universe and the Moon.

Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

Cultural connotations

The names of the new vehicles were solicited from the public in an event launched last August. The two names selected came from nearly 2,000 submissions.

“The names Mengzhou and Lanyue of the two new space vehicles carry distinct characteristics of China and the times, and have rich cultural connotations,” said Ji Qiming, director assistant of the China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).

These spacecraft, along with development of the Long March-10 carrier rocket, “will carry forward Chinese people’s dream of exploring the vast universe and reaching the moon,” Ji told China Central Television (CCTV).

Successive launches

Previously, China space officials have sketched out preliminary plans to land a crew on the Moon by 2030.

As released by China Manned Space Agency that plan makes use of two successive Long March-10 carrier rocket launches, hurling the Lanyue lander and Mengzhou spacecraft separately from the Earth to a trans-lunar injection orbit.

“The two spacecrafts conduct rendezvous and docking in lunar orbit. Then astronauts will enter the lander and the lander will send them to the lunar surface where they’ll carry out scientific investigation and sample collection according to plan,” Ji said.

Image credit: CMSA

Back to Earth

After completing the set tasks on the lunar surface, the moonwalkers would then take the Lanyue lander back into to lunar orbit, with the two spacecraft joined again.

“Astronauts are going to transfer the lunar samples they’ve collected to the Mengzhou spacecraft, and the spacecraft will return to the Earth via trans-lunar injection orbit,” said Ji.

“For now, the development of primary spacecrafts such as the carrier rocket Long March-10, Mengzhou manned spacecraft, Lanyue lander and spacesuits are finished,” added Ji.

The overall technical proposal for launching site and landing site is also completed, Ji told CCTV.

The lunar science payload, a human-controlled lunar rover, and lunar activity support system have been under formulation, Ji said. “The setting up of various newly-built facilities and equipment for test launch in Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site will start later.”

China’s plans for human crews on the Moon are being shaped.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

Step-by-step

Ji indicated that China’s humans on the Moon endeavor will be implemented “step-by-step,” including uncrewed flight test to piloted lunar flight.

According to the China Manned Space Agency plan, the Lanyue lunar lander will consist of two parts: a lunar module and a propulsion module, with a weight of nearly 26 tons. It is capable of carrying two astronauts and a lunar rover weighing 440 pounds (200 kilograms) to the lunar surface.

China Global Television Network (CGTN) reports that there will be two Mengzhou models. One will be used to transport astronauts to the Moon and the other will replace the current Shenzhou spaceship now in use that transports crew members between Earth and China’s space station that has been orbiting around the Earth for nearly three years.

Image credit: China Manned Space Agency

Three-person crew

According to CGTN, the crewed Moon lander has a lightweight design to improve structural efficiency and has a power redundancy function.

The Mengzhou spacecraft will consist of two major components: a reentry module that will house astronauts and serve as the control center during spaceflight, and a service module containing power and propulsion systems.

According to the plan, the Mengzhou will be nearly 30 feet (9 meters) in length, 15 feet (4.5 meters) in diameter, weigh 22 metric tons, and would be capable of housing three astronauts.

Artist’s view of China’s International Lunar Research Station to be completed by 2035. Credit: CNSA

Moon booster

Currently, the research and development of the Mengzhou, the Lanyue, and the Long March-10 heavy-lift carrier rocket are reportedly progressing well.

The Long March-10 carrier rocket has two configuration designs: a standard combination of first, second, and third stage cores, escape tower, and fairing, with boosters or without boosters. The variant with boosters will be used to send the lunar lander and the spacecraft into trans-lunar orbit.

Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

Weighing 2,187 tons, the over 300 foot (92 meters)-tall rocket variant is more powerful, with 2,678 tons at liftoff, a significant increase compared to the country’s current most powerful carrier rocket, the Long March-5, with a liftoff thrust of over 1,000 tons.

For a video showcasing China’s humans to the Moon enterprise, go to:

https://youtu.be/DZrSyg_hUlY?si=lAKreOzCG2hLIhSk

 

When homes hit 40°C inside, it's better to draw on residents' local know-how than plan for climate change from above

by Abby Mellick Lopes, Cameron Tonkinwise and Stephen Healy, The Conversation

Credit: Sebastian Pfautsch/Western Sydney University

Weather extremes driven by climate change hit low-income communities harder. The reasons include poor housing and lack of access to safe and comfortable public spaces. This makes "climate readiness" a pressing issue for governments, city planners and emergency services in fast-growing areas such as Western Sydney.

We work with culturally diverse residents and social housing providers in Western Sydney to explore how they're adapting to increasing heat. Residents hosted heat data loggers inside and outside their homes.

Last summer was relatively mild, but we recorded temperatures as high as 40°C inside some homes. Recalling a heat wave in 2019, one resident said, "The clay had cracks in the grass that you could almost twist your ankles."

We correlated these data with what residents and social housing providers told us about managing the heat and what is needed to do this better. Different cultural groups used different strategies. Through the project, residents shared a wealth of collective knowledge about what they can do to adapt to the extremes of a changing climate.

Air conditioning has limitations

Official responses to climate extremes typically rely on a retreat indoors. These "last resort" shelters depend in most cases on a reliable electricity supply, which can be cut during heat waves.

There have been efforts, but not in Australia, to establish a "passive survivability" building code. The aim is to ensure homes remain tolerably cool during a heat wave (or warm during a cold snap) even if power is cut for a number of days.

We recognize air conditioning is vital for vulnerable populations, including older people and those with health conditions, but we do not want to give up on going outside!

‘My house is an oven’ – a look at the problem of hot housing in Western Sydney.

Outdoors, approaches such as pop-up cooling hubs for the homeless are compassionate. While important, such approaches don't get beyond "coping."

There's also a risk of perpetuating a deficit narrative that sees the city's poorest as lacking capacity to act on their circumstances. Our strengths-based action research approach looks for alternative solutions that draw on the collective knowledge and practices already found in communities.

How was the research done?

Our project, Living with Urban Heat: Becoming Climate Ready in Social Housing, is part of a broader research program, Cooling the Commons. Its focus is the role of shared spaces and knowledge in designing climate-resilient cities.

We use participatory design methods. Adaptation strategies are developed by working with people who are already attuned to their place and community.

In a first step, to get a better grasp on the micro-climates at each site, residents hosted data loggers in their homes. The data show that the location, degree of urban density and type of housing influence residents' experience of heat.

In Windsor, for example, the extremes are felt inside the home. Last summer, loggers in Windsor and Richmond recorded 69 days above 30°C. On average, temperatures inside were 6°C warmer than outside and hit 40°C four occasions.

Further east in Riverwood and Parramatta recorded lower temperatures. However, for project researcher Sebastian Pfautsch, these data also highlighted the urban heat island effect. In Riverwood, the average day and night temperatures were 25.8°C and 25.4°C respectively, as brick surfaces hold the heat.

We correlated these data with what residents and social housing providers told us about how they manage heat and comfort in their different places.

A heat data logger installed in one of the homes in the study. Credit: Climate-Ready in 

Social Housing Team

So how do residents manage the heat?

At bilingual design workshops across the locations, themes from the interviews between groups of residents were shared.

Residents who said "I retreat" felt trapped rather than safe in their poorly adapted homes.

"Taking comfort" meant using ice, water spray, sheets and towels to cool spaces and bodies. Chinese residents used foods such as rice porridge congee to cool down. Residents also took comfort from housing providers and neighbors checking on their well-being on hot days.

Residents with access to a car "chased the air." This meant moving between air-conditioned spaces: friends' homes, coffee shops and supermarkets.

Residents without cars used cool spots, such as public libraries, that they could get to by public transport. Others whose families have lived in the area for decades used their local knowledge to chase the "Dee Why Doctor" and other local breezes, as well as sitting in the river.

Residents often return, though, to a home that has baked in the heat all day.

They had ingenious ways to get air moving with windows, doors and fans. "Making the air" was an important pattern across the groups.

Air movement was as important for bodily comfort as a cooler temperature, particularly for people who found it hard to breathe in the heat. As one participant said, "It's stuffy in the bedroom. It's really hard sometimes […] I feel I can't open the window because of the smells and noise."

In the workshops, different cultural groups shared their experiences of heat and strategies 

to manage it. Credit: Climate-Ready in Social Housing Team

Residents also created "rules" to manage the heat in their homes. These ranged from opening and closing doors and windows at certain times, to keeping lights off, to avoiding baking, to rationing air conditioning.

The groups benefited from sharing these themes. For example, the Chinese community, most of whom did not drive, had never thought of "chasing the air." On the other hand, using congee to feel cooler was news for others.

In each community, sharing these approaches prompted a broader conversation about more collective forms of adaptation, including shared spaces and practices in the built and natural environments.

This research is raising questions. There is a tension, for example, between the enclosure that air conditioning requires and the movement of fresh air many residents see as healthy. What implications might this have for a cooling hubs blueprint and the future of social housing, particularly where a need for security often means blocked openings and locked doors?

Climate-readiness does not mean reinforcing inadequate technical solutions that shut us in, or barely remedial solutions. These reduce us to what philosopher Georgio Agamben termed a "bare life," a condition that precludes the possibility of a good one. That need not be so.

Our research is trialing adaptive practices, drawing on local knowledge of cool spaces (both natural and built), and sharing these practices across cultures. It shows we can reimagine climate-readiness as part of a flourishing community.

The authors would like to acknowledge the contribution of all co-researchers in the Climate-Ready in Social Housing team.

Provided by The Conversation 

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

One billion people left dangerously exposed to heat stress by gaps in climate monitoring

Selfie culture and self-esteem: Study unravels the impact of social media on adolescent girls

by Stacey Coleen Lubag
February 25, 2024



Researchers have uncovered a complex interplay between social comparison, body surveillance, and selfie behaviors among Chinese female adolescents, highlighting the significant role of self-esteem as a moderating factor. This research, published in the journal Psychological Reports, provides insight into how the pressures of social media and societal beauty standards influence young women’s self-image and online behavior.

The digital age has caused a surge of social media platforms — namely platforms in which posting selfies is a main practice, especially among adolescents. Prior studies have indicated a connection between social media use and various psychological issues, such as body dissatisfaction and negative mood. The act of taking and sharing selfies in particular has been criticized for its potential to exacerbate these issues.

At the heart of this phenomenon are two critical concepts: body surveillance, or the ongoing monitoring of one’s appearance against perceived beauty standards — and social comparison, the tendency to assess oneself against others. These behaviors have been linked to how individuals, particularly women, perceive their physical selves in relation to others.

The motivation behind this study stems from a growing concern over the impact of social media on mental health and self-perception among adolescents. With selfie culture, researchers aimed to delve deeper into the psychological mechanisms that drive selfie-taking and sharing behaviors, particularly among female adolescents. The study sought to explore how these behaviors are influenced by social comparisons on social networking sites (SNS) and whether the process is affected by individuals’ levels of self-esteem and body surveillance practices.

To investigate these relationships, the study utilized a survey method, collecting data from 339 female adolescents averaging 17 years of age, recruited across two high schools in central China. Participants were asked to complete self-report questionnaires that assessed their selfie behaviors, instances of upward and downward physical appearance comparisons, levels of body surveillance, and self-esteem. This allowed the researchers to analyze the relationship between these variables equally.

The findings revealed that body surveillance serves as a mediator between the act of comparing oneself to more attractive peers (upward comparison) and the frequency of selfie posting. In simpler terms, girls who often compared themselves to peers they perceived as more attractive were more likely to engage in behaviors that involved monitoring and scrutinizing their appearance — which in turn led to more frequent selfie posting on social media.

Moreover, the impact of body surveillance on selfie behaviors was found to be significantly stronger among adolescents with lower self-esteem. This suggests that for those with a less positive view of themselves, the cycle of comparison, surveillance, and posting is particularly pronounced.

It is important to consider that the studyʼs design and focus may have certain limitations. These include itʼs cross-sectional nature that only shows associations between variables at a single point in time — not total causality. Additionally, since the research only included female adolescents from China, the findings might not directly apply to other demographic groups or cultural contexts.

Despite these limitations, the research sheds light on the complex dynamics of social comparison, body surveillance, and selfie behavior in the digital age, emphasizing the need for a nuanced understanding of social media’s impact on adolescent well-being.

The study, “Social Comparison and Female Adolescentsʼ Selfie Behaviors: Body Surveillance as the Mediator and Self-Esteem as the Moderator,ˮ was authored by Zhenyong Lyu, Panpan Zheng, and Dongquan Kou at Yangzhou University.

 Potential New SYRIZA Leadership Election Voted Down By Party Congress

ByPaula Tsoni

February 25, 2024

SYRIZA congress attendees voted against new party elections which would challenge its current leader, Stefanos Kasselakis. Credit: Amna

The internal party elections thriller at main Greek opposition party SYRIZA continued on Sunday as party leader Stefanos Kasselakis clashed with his only likely co-candidate, Olga Gerovasili, over the date of a potential new leadership vote.

The matter was eventually voted down by the congress attendees, through a proposal by three other prominent SYRIZA figures who opined that a new leadership vote was untimely and unnecessary.

“The masks have fallen, we are not going to elections. We are going forward,” Kasselakis said after the vote.

MP and former minister Gerovasili declared her candidacy on Saturday, after Kasselakis had challenged on Thursday those who doubt his leadership to “find him an opponent” and go to fresh party elections, just five months since he took over as party chairman.

New leadership election voted down by SYRIZA members

In his Sunday morning speech, SYRIZA leader Kasselakis called for “clean solutions”, and a leadership election on March 10 “so that the winner has time for the difficult battle of the European Parliament elections, for an open horizon to the national elections, to put together the deeply wounded SYRIZA without backstabbing, without suffocating deadlines, without intermediate deadlines, without arbitrary conditions,” AMNA reports.

Parliament Vice-President Olga Gerovasili, the only member who would stand against Kasselakis for the party leadership, disagreed to the procedure going forward in any less than a month’s time.

She countered that, if Kasselakis withdrew his challenge to the party to find him a rival, “we stop here,” and added: “Now, if you want elections in 10 days… have them yourself and see what you get.”

Kasselakis replied to Gerovasili, asking her to withdraw her candidacy so that the matter be dropped, to which Gerovasili responded by saying that it was up to the congress to decide and that she was not the one who proposed new elections in the first place.

The matter was then put to a vote, and voted down by attendees.

The decision was made by delegates holding up their cards in support of a joint proposal submitted by SYRIZA-PA Parliamentary Group President Sokratis Famellos, together with Nikos Pappas and Giorgos Tsipras, to not hold a leadership election and for the congress to reaffirm its confidence in the recently elected party chairman Kasselakis.

The latter posted on Twitter: “Take the party in your hands. It is yours. Some have a plan for a bad election result [for the party] at the European Parliament elections. Some want to charge the failure on me, and take us to a new [boxing] ring.”

See

Senegalese demonstrate in Dakar both for and against President Sall

Dakar, Senegal – Sunday was supposed to be the day of the presidential election in Senegal. Instead, the weekend was marked by a series of protests in Dakar, with the opposition and civil society organisations calling on President Macky Sall to announce a date. His supporters also staged a big event in another part of the city.

Issued on: 25/02/2024 - 

Senegal's civil society protested again on Saturday 24 February 2024 to call President Macky Sall to announce a date for the election, here with the F24 collective, in Dakar. © RFI/Melissa Chemam

By:Melissa Chemam with RFI

Hundreds of protesters turned out on Saturday in the neighbourhood of HLM Grand Yoff, in Dakar, at the invitation of the F24 collective, many chanting "Macky Sall dictator".

Some opposition leaders and presidential candidates also answered the call and came to speak with the protesters, and support their demand for the election to take place as soon as possible.

Protesters at meeting organised by F24 in the popular neighbourhood of HLM Grand Yoff, in Dakar, Senegal, on 24 February 2024. © RFI/Melissa Chemam

"Sall must accede to this request from the Senegalese population," Dethié Fall, candidate for the Senegalese presidential election, told them "to this request from Senegalese democracy."

Thierno Alassane Sall, member of the FC25 Front, which brings together 16 of the 19 validated candidates, wants to repeat that they are not going to join the dialogue the President invited them to.

Senegal: Civil society, opposition step up protests to break political deadlock

"It is out of the question to sit down with the President of the Republic", he said.

"On Monday, we will submit a collective request to the Constitutional Council so that it complies with its decision", he added. "We have no intention of going to this dialogue!"

Peaceful gathering

Despite police presence, the rally went ahead peacefully.

Abdoulaye Bathily is the president of the communication commission of F24 movement, the "driving forces of Senegal".

He told RFI that Sall's action was tantamount to a coup.

"We are here to say no to this constitutional coup because we consider it a coup. And following the declaration of the President of the Republic who is not respecting the decisions of the Constitutional Council."

He denounced an "umpteenth attack on democracy", and added his voice to ask that the elections in Senegal be held on the due date.

"Of course, we have passed the date," he added, "but at least we can hold the elections before 2 April, the date of the end of the mandate of the President of the Republic."

Abdoulaye Bathily, coordinator for the F24 movement, led the meeting at HLM Grand Yoof, Dakar, Senegal, on Satruday 24 February 2024. © RFI/Melissa Chemam

Most political commentators have congratulated the F24 organisers for a successful meeting, well managed and beyond party lines.

Later on Saturday, a larger crowd met in front of the local town hall in Grand Yoff, and celebrated what they called a 'goodbye party' for the President.

F24 has invited people to return on Sunday to take selfies in front of what should've been their polling stations.

Organisers have also called for an opération ville morte (ghost town day) for Tuesday.
'Thank you' march

Meanwhile, in another part of the city, Macky Sall's supporters also marched to thank the President for his achievements.

Thousands of Senegalese gathered with placards reading "Macky is in our hearts".

A supporter of Senegal's current President holds up his portrait during a rally to support their leader in Dakar on 24 February 2024. 

AFP - JOHN WESSELS

The event was mocked by a part of the national and local press, who condemns Sall for triggering one the West African nation's worst political crises.

According to Sall, he delayed the election because of disputes over the disqualification of potential candidates and concerns about a return to unrest seen in 2021 and last year.

Mamadou Dia, a 30-year-old student, defended Sall's record as president since 2012 and believes the election date matters little.Senegal's Macky Sall says his mandate as president will end in April

"We are here to show national and international opinion that what people are saying about Macky Sall is totally false. Macky Sall has done all he needed to do for Senegal," he told French news agency AFP.

Sall to expected to announce a date for the election on Tuesday evening, even if opposition candidates boycott his invitation to dialogue.

If no agreement is reached during the dialogue, Sall said it would be up to the Constitutional Council to decide the next step.

Putin has Used Laws to Repress More People over His Last Term Alone than Khrushchev or Brezhnev did in the Same Way during Similar Periods while in Power, ‘Project Media’ Finds

 

Putin has Used Laws to Repress More People over His Last Term Alone than Khrushchev or Brezhnev did in the Same Way during Similar Periods while in Power, ‘Project Media’ Finds

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Feb. 22 – Investigative journalists at the Project Media Group have concluded that over the last six years of Putin’s time in power, “about 116,000 people, not including those charged with interfering with police actions or Covid limitations, suffered from direct repression,” a figure greater than those in similar periods under Khrushchev or Brezhnev.

            The figure of 116,000, the Project Media Group says, includes those subjected to criminal or administrative prosecution” under articles that are in fact political or repressive (proekt.media/guide/repressii-v-rossii/#war_ukraine  discussed at svoboda.org/a/proekt-putin-repressiroval-za-shestj-let-boljshe-lyudey-chem-brezhnev/32830764.html).

            It estimates that just over 5600 people were prosecuted for such “crimes” since 2018. In addition. In addition, there were 5800 charged with resisting Putin’s expanding invasion of Ukraine either by refusing to fight or opposing that war, and another 100,000 detained for taking part in demonstrations not approved in advance by the authorities.

            Under Khrushchev between 1956 and 1961, there were only 4800 people charged for analogous “crimes;” and under Brezhnev between 1968 and 1973, there were just 1057. But of course, Project acknowledges, there were other forms of repression and the death penalty, conditions making any real compilation and comparison virtually impossible.

            The two Soviet leaders used a variety of extra-legal means to repress people. Putin does as well, including murder as in the case of Aleksey Navalny. But because emigration is an option, the numbers of such actions  under the Russian president are likely far smaller than under the two Soviet leaders with whom Project Media drew these comparisons.

The latest unfounded conspiracy theory: Cloud seeding is to blame for California's storms and flooding

Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times on Feb 25, 2024
Published in Weather News


LOS ANGELES — When a water agency for most of California's Inland Empire and parts of Orange County started a pilot program to seed clouds in the region in November to see if it could increase water supplies, officials expected to face some questions and skepticism.

What officials didn't expect was to be wrongly accused by conspiracy theorists and critics of causing one of California's strongest storms in recent history — or, worse yet, trying to poison the region.

Shortly after Southern California was hit by two major storms in February, dropping more than a foot of rain in some areas and causing floods and landslides, conspiracy-peddling accounts on social media have tried to blame the strength of the storms on the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA), a joint-power agency tasked with overseeing and protecting the Santa Ana River Basin that includes San Bernardino, Riverside and Orange Counties.

In videos and social media posts, the accounts suggest — without evidence — that the agency's new cloud-seeding program caused the two February storms. Shared thousands of times, the posts have prompted people to leave expletive-filled comments on the agency's social media accounts. Others have reached out directly to employees at the agency, accusing them of damaging people's homes by causing the storm or trying to poison communities with cloud-seeding chemicals.

Despite the accusations, agency officials said there was no cloud seeding during the last two major storms and, more important, cloud seeding can't create storms themselves. The agency also pointed to multiple studies that have been published over several decades, showing that the level of silver iodide used in cloud seeding is not toxic to humans and 1,000 times lower than the Environmental Protection Agency's drinking water standards.

The program, said Jeff Mosher, general manager of the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority, is just one of the ways that officials are looking to boost water supplies to the watershed's dams and basins, which serve about 6 million residents across four counties.

In San Diego County, where some have blamed the agency for the storm's damage, officials have had to point out that cloud seeding hasn't taken place in the county.

But that hasn't stopped emails and calls to the agency, or comments left on its social media accounts.

"Thanks to dumb [expletive] like you there's mudslides and flooding in California," one person told Mosher on the social platform X.

"Any other depopulation projects in the works?" another person asked on Instagram.

When the agency launched the program in November, Mosher said, he expected it to get some scrutiny. Although cloud seeding has been around for decades, many people are unfamiliar with the practice. But shortly after the storms, he said, he and others at the agency have seen a significant increase in emails and calls repeating some of the conspiracy theories being spread on social media.

In recent days, for example, he and others have fielded multiple emails and calls accusing SAWPA of causing the flooding in the wake of the storms. Other calls accuse the agency of causing chemtrails — a conspiracy theory claiming that condensation trials left behind by airplanes are toxic chemicals being sprayed on people for some unspecified nefarious reason.

Chemtrails have been associated with the practice of cloud seeding and seem to have been incorrectly associated with SAWPA's program as well, even though the agency does not use planes and instead seeds clouds from ground units.

Mosher has pointed out to some people that the agency did not cloud-seed during the Feb. 3-8 or Feb. 18-19 storms because meteorologists were predicting significant, even catastrophic, rain.

According to the agency, the last time it seeded clouds near the watershed was Feb. 1. And officials point out that, according to their own estimates, cloud seeding can increase precipitation by only about 5% to 10%.

But the emails and comments have continued, especially after one of the online videos pushing the conspiracy theory encouraged people to reach out directly to Mosher and two other employees at the agency.

The video, which has received thousands of likes on Instagram but was flagged Thursday for spreading false information, starts ominously with images of the damage caused by the storms.

"If the disastrous flooding and record rainfall hitting Southern California right now doesn't seem natural to you, it's probably because it isn't," a woman says, narrating a video of flooding and water rescues.

"We now have information from the government itself that it is performing weather modification, aka, cloud seeding," a man follows up.

The video claims that the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority "boasts about blasting cancer-linked silver iodide mixed with acetone."

The problem with the claims is that cloud seeding has not been a clandestine practice as the video claims, but has been discussed and studied in the open. Those studies, conducted over decades, have also found that the level of silver iodide used in seeding is so small it has had no noticeable effect on the environment, wildlife or the air breathed by people nearby.

The acetone, which is used when releasing silver iodide particles from the ground, converts into water and carbon dioxide, a spokesperson for the agency said.

Yet the conspiracy has seemed to piggyback off of other unfounded theories, such as chemtrails.

Some of the accounts pushing the conspiracy theory on TikTok and Instagram have tens of thousands of followers and have peddled other conspiracy theories, such as claims that the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol was orchestrated by the FBI, that world governments are in fact run by a secret cabal known as the New World Order, and that popular singer Taylor Swift is a psychological operation orchestrated by the Pentagon.

But like other misinformation that has infected social media platforms, the conspiracy has spread into the real world. In San Diego, one resident blamed the county Board of Supervisors for the flooding and damage caused by the recent storms.

"You guys seeded us on purpose," the resident said during the board's Feb. 6 meeting. "You destroyed these people's homes. They didn't have flood insurance, but you all knew that."

The resident, identified as "Kiera," wore a black hat that read, "COVID's a scam." Video of her comments has been shared on social media, pushing the unfounded claim that water seeding was to blame for the storms.

To back up her claim, the resident cited the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority's cloud-seeding program, even though the agency does not operate in San Diego County and the program is not being conducted there.

The resident also alluded to chemtrails.

"You don't think that anything is going on in the skies that you see?" she said. "We've seen those for years."

Timothy Tangherlini, a professor at UC Berkeley who has studied conspiracy theories, said it's common for them to be tied to other debunked theories in order for them to spread.

"They link them together in these super-conspiracy theories that are totalizing, and they give you an understanding of the world, a real us-versus-them thing," he said. "That's how conspiracy theories are held together."

Older conspiracy theories often help new conspiracies take root, offering people who are being exposed to the information some familiarity.

"Now next time you see it again, you see it from a couple of different sources, you think there may be something to that," Tangherlini said.

Conspiracy theories and misinformation have been particularly prevalent in the last couple of years, fueled by political polarization and distrust of government, official, scientific and journalistic sources, he said.

"Conspiracy theories are not really robust and you can make them fall apart, but they're incredibly resilient," he said. "That's why you see them come back to life."

In this case, he said, the storms that dumped more than a foot of rain in some parts of Southern California were more likely the result of climate change. For some of those who don't believe in climate change, or are politically opposed to action to address it, a conspiracy theory trying to lay blame on the storm to an unlikely, unseen, unproven force may seem more palatable than coming to terms to the visible effects of it.

"In some ways it's a counterargument," Tangherlini said. "People are saying this is due to climate change, and they're like, 'No, no, no, because in my ideological background I'm not a fan of climate change.'"

Mosher, who has watched some of the conspiracy videos, said he tries to see the misinformation as an opportunity, especially if it steers some people to the agency's website to learn more about the program.

"We're a public agency and we look for comments from the public, questions from the public, so we can respond to them," he said. "If people see those posts and contact us through email for our weather modification program and they have questions, we'll respond."


The agency, after all, is trying to be transparent about the program, he said.

"Our goal isn't to change people's minds — their opinions are their opinions," he said. "We just want to give them the information to help."


©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Demand For Exorcisms On The Rise In Tajikistan And Central Asia, Despite Crackdown, Scandals

February 25, 2024 
By Farangis Najibullah and Mullorajab Yusufzoda

The centuries-old Islamic practice survived decades of religious crackdowns during the atheistic Soviet era and most recently the Tajik government's attempts to restrict exorcisms.

DUSHANBE -- Exorcism is a key source of income for Sabohiddin Shodiev, a popular cleric in his rural community on the outskirts of Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan.

Shodiev -- not his real name -- says that every week he treats about 15 clients who ask him to expel what they believe is an evil spirit, or jinni, possessing them, or to rid them from "an evil eye."

The 53-year-old cleric has been practicing exorcisms -- which he learned to do from his father -- for more than two decades. Most of Shodiev's clients come from Dushanbe and nearby districts, but some to travel from faraway regions to seek his help.

Shodiev says he doesn't have a set fee for performing the Islamic rite. "It's up to the clients how much to pay."

Three Tajik clerics who spoke to RFE/RL claimed the demand for exorcisms is on the rise in the predominately Muslim country.

There are no official statistics in Tajikistan on exorcisms or the number of people performing the centuries-old practice, which survived decades of religious crackdowns during the atheistic Soviet era and most recently the Tajik government's attempts to restrict exorcisms.

Tajik laws do not ban the procedure. But several men who perform exorcisms have been jailed in recent years on charges of fraud, sexual molestation, or practicing the occult.

Some Tajiks see the ongoing efforts by the secular government as a way to keep a tab on "all things religious." As part of that campaign, Islamic hijabs have been banned in schools and offices, while growing a long or bushy beard is frowned upon for young men.

The spike in demand for exorcisms has led to a rise in the number of self-proclaimed exorcists, and charlatans, according to the clerics and officials.

Exorcisms are practiced among the followers of Islam, Christianity, and some other world religions.

There is a belief among Muslims that an evil spirit or jinni can possess a person but can be driven out of the possessed person's body through an exorcism that includes reciting certain verses from the Koran.

But several Tajik clergymen told RFE/RL that many clerics in the country refrain from performing exorcism because it requires special training.

In the meantime, the spike in demand for exorcisms has led to a rise in the number of self-proclaimed exorcists, and charlatans, according to the clerics and officials. Many of them perform exorcisms and do faith healings.

Some also mix in elements of the occult, which is outlawed in Tajikistan and prohibited within Islam.

Tajikistan's Religious Affairs Committee said, "Muslims believe that the Koran has healing powers, therefore they seek help [from exorcisms] to treat certain mental health issues, but unfortunately there have been cases in which some [self-proclaimed exorcists] tried to take advantage of people's [religious] beliefs."

Exorcism Gone Wrong

Tajik law-enforcement agencies in recent years released what they called footage of self-proclaimed exorcists and faith healers molesting their female clients. The incidents were allegedly recorded by hidden cameras, which police installed after receiving complaints.

In 2021, police in the northern Sughd Province released a video that purportedly shows Alijon Ghaniev, a 50-year-old self-proclaimed exorcist and faith healer, performing an unusual ritual on a female client that ends with sexual intercourse.

According to local media, Ghaniev charged his 21-year-old client the equivalent of $14 for three exorcism and faith healing sessions.

The Tajik government keeps tabs on religious practices.

State television showed what it described as Ghaniev's exorcism tools, including several knives, tarot cards, various herbs, and a bunch of dried tree branches. Once in police custody, Nabiev told the TV channel that he regretted his actions "getting out of control under the devil's temptation."

It is not clear if Nabiev's confession was voluntary or was made under pressure.

In a similar case in 2019, a court in Hisor district handed a prison sentence to Juraboi Sochaev, who was accused of sexually harassing his female clients during exorcism rites. Sochaev charged his clients up to $270 for a session, prosecutors said.

A probe is under way in the northern city of Khujand against a self-proclaimed exorcist, Abduvali Nabiev, 68, who was arrested in October on sexual harassment charges.

Police and prosecutors said none of the men has had religious education or medical training but claimed to have special abilities to expel jinni and treat ailments.

SEE ALSO:
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Exorcisms made shocking headlines in Central Asia recently when a woman died due to severe beatings during the ritual in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent.

Court documents say two men used a hammer, chain, and stakes in the procedure that broke several of the woman's ribs and caused internal bleeding. The exorcists were sentenced to 2 1/2 and three years in prison.

Gone Underground

Asked about the tragic Uzbek case, Shodiev said he has never performed or heard of an exorcism that led to physical harm.

"We do use some tools, but we don't beat the clients to death, we just tap their elbow, for example, with the blunt side of a knife," Shodiev said.

Shodiev and many others in Tajikistan no longer perform exorcisms openly, fearing what they see as the government's campaign against the practice.

About five to seven years ago, clients used to come to Shodiev's house for the procedure, but nowadays he visits them in the evenings in their homes to perform the ritual.

"I don't want to get accused of some made-up charges, like practicing the occult, for example," he said.

For some Tajiks -- such as Akmal Halimov, a 34-year-old resident of the Vadhat district -- the scandals surrounding the exorcists have done little to erode their faith in the religious ritual.

Halimov believes an exorcism saved him after he "was possessed by an evil spirit" during his student years in Dushanbe.

"My relatives took me to a mullah who treated me for 10 days. After that I felt that something bad had left my body," he said.

But in the rural district of Mastchoh, Zuhro Mukhtorova isn't optimistic about receiving any benefits from an exorcism.

About a decade ago, the 34-year-old Mukhtorova developed an illness that affects her ability to speak. When medical treatments didn't help, relatives suggested she must have been "possessed by jinni." Mukhtorova has been to several exorcists, but despite her faith in them the rituals have not helped her.

She still speaks with difficulty and has given up on exorcisms

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Farangis Najibullah is a senior correspondent for RFE/RL who has reported on a wide range of topics from Central Asia, including the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on the region. She has extensively covered efforts by Central Asian states to repatriate and reintegrate their citizens who joined Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.