Author: DW

The Russian rouble has plunged to its lowest level against the dollar since the immediate aftermath of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in March 2022. The ruble hit 113 against the US dollar on November 28. On Wednesday, Russia’s central bank announced it would stop foreign-currency purchases to try and strengthen the currency and ease pressures on financial markets. What’s behind the currency plunge? The ruble has been sliding since late summer, falling by more than a third since August. Oil prices have fallen in the same period, hitting Russia’s earning capacity from its most important commodity. That has piled pressure onto…

“It’s not just Germany, the whole world is currently divided when it comes to the Middle East conflict,” says Meron Mendel, director of the Anne Frank Educational Center in Frankfurt. He’s a proponent of dialogue between different points of view, but this is not easy to achieve nowadays. The public tone has become harsher, including in Germany. There are people who regard every criticism of Israel as a form of antisemitism, and there are pro-Palestinian activists who disrupt cultural events. This recently happened in Berlin. US artist Nan Goldin, one of the most renowned contemporary photographers in the world, had traveled to…

I was 17 years old the first (and only) time I used laughing gas — nitrous oxide — for fun. I was with some friends who showed me. It was sold at the grocery store. As an anxious teenager, I was wary, but the fact it was available for legal purchase at the supermarket helped assuage my concerns. If it was really that harmful, I thought, surely it wouldn’t be available for anyone to buy. Health experts say this is a common introduction to the party drug. Kids are told, often by peers, that laughing gas won’t harm them. They may believe it…

India’s 18-year-old rising star Gukesh Dommaraju beat world champion Ding Liren with the white pieces in game 3 of the World Chess Championship in Singapore on Wednesday, leveling the scores again after his surprise defeat in the opening game of the match.  The two players had drawn in the second game, so now stand on 1.5 points each after three games heading into the first rest day of the match on Thursday. “It feels great. The last two days I was happy with my play,” Gukesh said in the press conference after the relatively quick win in 37 moves. “My play…

Russia is deploying Chinese and Iranian combat drones in its full-scale war against Ukraine. It is also fielding North Korean soldiers and ballistic missiles. Soon, Russia might send Yemeni fighters into battle, according to reporting from the Financial Times newspaper. The paper said Yemen’s Islamist Houthi militia is recruiting men for deployment in the Russian military and that it has already sent hundreds of fighters to Russia through a “shadowy trafficking operation.” Citing some of the men involved, the Financial Times said Yemeni individuals were promised salaried employment and citizenship in Russia. When they arrived in the country, the men were forced to…

The US has imposed sanctions on 21 Venezuelanofficials for their role in suppressing protests after a presidential election in July, a senior Washington official said on Wednesday. Among those targeted by the sanctions are members of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s Cabinet, including Planning Minister Ricardo Jose Menedez and Communications Minister Freddy Alfred Nazaret, as well as top intelligence officials Alexis Jose Rodriguez and Javier Jose Marcano. Washington says Maduro falsely claimed victory in the vote and that opposition leader  Edmundo Gonzalez is the president-elect. “Maduro and his representatives’ repressive actions in the wake of the Venezuelan presidential election are a desperate attempt to silence the…

Germany is drawing up a list of bunkers for a new app to help civilians find emergency shelter amid increasing tensions with Russia.Residents are also being encouraged to turn garages and basements into bomb shelters as part of a new review of suitable locations. Underground car parks, train stations and government buildings could also be converted – while a special app is being developed to help direct people to their nearest shelter during an emergency, according to the German interior ministry.A government spokesperson did not make any reference to the potential threat from Russia or other nations – and also…

The world of opera was shaken on the morning of November 29, 1924. Giacomo Puccini, the most famous composer of his time, had died in Brussels as a result of surgery for throat cancer. Or rather, as a result of post-operative treatment. The 66-year-old chain smoker’s heart turned out to be too weak for radiation therapy — a technology that was still in its infancy 100 years ago. Ten operas in forty years Puccini composed ten operas during his four decades of creative work. At least seven of them are among the most popular of all time, including “Manon Lescaut,” “La…

Our bodies require a core temperature of 36.5 to 37 degrees Celsius (97.7 to 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Although it does everything in its power to maintain that temperature, the body can only do so much on its own — more than five million people die every year due to freezing or excessively hot temperatures. Metabolism regulates body temperature The body regulates its core temperature through metabolism-activating receptors.  To maintain the ideal level of warmth, the metabolism ensures that the food we consume is broken down so that our cells can utilize nutrients. When it’s cold, the body needs more energy, and our blood…

When Ding Liren competes for the world championship chess crown in Singapore over the next three weeks, the likable Chinese player will not — as most of his predecessors had — be sitting at the board as the top player. Instead, he is the underdog. “I was a bit anxious and tended to think too much,” Ding told the Chinese news agency Xinhua, describing his somewhat puzzling recent crisis of form. After winning the World Championship title in a close and nerve-wracking match at the start of 2023, not much has gone right for Ding. “I still believe that I can turn things…