Latest news with #Fulbright
RNZ News
12 hours ago
- General
- RNZ News
Country Life: Nick Roskruge - promoting Māori horticultural knowledge
Nick Rahiri Roskruge Photo: RNZ/Sally Round Nick Rahiri Roskruge has gone from working in a cropping gang to academia, and around the world teaching and learning about indigenous foods, but - as he says - he's never really left the paddock. His PhD in soil science led to a position as Professor of Ethnobotany at Massey University, a Fulbright award, and spending time with indigenous people and their crops in the Americas and the Pacific. Retired from his professorship, he said he was busier than ever and chatted to Country Life at his extensive māra in Manawatū about keeping traditional Māori horticultural knowledge alive. Follow Country Life on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , iHeart or wherever you get your podcasts. Several varieties of kūmara drying after harvest Photo: RNZ/Sally Round Nick Roskruge's collection of Indian corn cobs Photo: RNZ/Sally Round
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Science
- The Hindu
Humid phases once turned Arabian desert into a lush paradise: study
The region called Arabia sits at the heart of the earth's driest deserts, stretching from the Sahara in the west to India's Thar Desert in the east. It holds the distinction of being the largest biogeographical barrier on the planet. Over millennia, the arid conditions of the Saharo-Arabian Desert are expected to have prevented hominins and wildlife from migrating between Africa and Eurasia. Research has found that this arid barrier has existed for at least 11 million years. Then again, fossil evidence from the late Miocene and the Pleistocene epochs has suggested that water-dependent animals like crocodiles, hippopotamuses, and horses roamed the region as recently as 74,000 years ago. The two facts raise a curious idea: could Arabia, the formidable wall of dryness, have once been a more nourishing land? Mineral deposits uncovered recently in the caves of central Saudi Arabia have bolstered this possibility: that Arabia was indeed once part of a lush green landscape that, among other things, allowed animals — including our ancestors — to migrate through as they spread out of Africa. According to the researchers who studied the deposits, the cause of this lushness was intermittent phases of humidity the region experienced in the last eight million years, which gradually turned a desiccated landscape into a well-watered grassland. Their findings were recently published in Nature. In search of Green Arabia 'I visited Saudi Arabia as part of a Fulbright award. I was curious why no one was integrating Arabia into the Out of Africa story and wanted to assess the situation firsthand myself. At the time, I was working in India and I had hypothesised that movements out of Africa would have been across the Arabia-India zone,' Michael Petraglia, director of the Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, leader of the 'Green Arabia' project, and a coauthor of the study, said. The research team itself was international and was supported by the Saudi Heritage Commission in the kingdom's Ministry of Culture. For years, researchers believed that the Arabian Peninsula had always been a barren land with a foreboding environment and where humans had only settled a few thousand years ago, especially once they had managed to domesticate animals like camels and goats. This belief kept Arabia firmly out of theories of 'Out of Africa' — a popular model that suggests modern humans originated in Africa and then migrated to the rest of the world. The 'Green Arabia' hypothesis cuts through this belief and suggests that this now-arid land had the occasional humid or rainy phases that transformed it into a wet and verdant terrain, crisscrossed with rivers and lakes and capable of sustaining diverse plant and animal life. From a decade-long quest to accumulate evidence for the 'Green Arabia' idea, Petraglia singled out the Jubbah Oasis, a remnant of an ancient lake in Saudi Arabia. 'As soon as we arrived, we found buried archaeological sites on old lake beds! We have archaeological sites going back 500,000 years now and so we know early human ancestors, and our species, were crossing the area during times of high rainfall. We have now documented a network of rivers and about 10,000 ancient lakes of every age,' he said. The hypothesis is important because the Arabian Peninsula sits at a crossroads between Europe, Africa, and Asia. Researchers have expressed hope that understanding past climate in the region can help answer fundamental questions: How did early humans and their ancestors spread across continents? And how did changing environments shape their evolution? Let it drip When water flows through the ground, it sweeps up minerals in the soil along its path. When this mineral-rich water slowly drips into caves, it forms icicle-like formations that hang from the ceiling and rise up from the cave floor. These formations are called speleothems. The researchers collected 22 speleothems from seven cave systems located in central Saudi Arabia. The mere presence of these formations, they said, was evidence of a wetter past because they form in two conditions: sufficient regional rainfall and enough vegetation and soil carbon dioxide to form carbonic acid (which dissolves limestone and triggers speleothem formation). As a result, they added, any changes in humidity, groundwater, and vegetation would have altered the speleothems' structure. These changes are then preserved as the next mineral layer is deposited. Another advantage of using speleothem archives to reconstruct past climates is that they can be accurately dated using routine radiometric methods, such as uranium-thorium and uranium-lead dating. Uranium is a radioactive element and decays into thorium and lead at a fixed rate. This allows scientists to calculate how old a speleothem is by measuring the ratio of uranium to thorium in a sample. Radiometric dating of the mineral formations revealed that over the last eight million years, central Arabia had gone through cycles of wet and dry periods. The earliest sign of a humid phase was between 7.44 million and 6.25 million years ago, and the most recent ones were between 530,000 and 60,000 years ago. These wet phases were often relatively short-lived, lasting only thousands to tens of thousands of years at a time. 'The findings highlighted that precipitation during humid intervals decreased and became more variable over time, as the monsoon's influence weakened, coinciding with enhanced Northern Hemisphere polar ice cover during the Pleistocene,' Monika Markowska, the lead author of the study, said in a statement. The researchers have proposed that these wetter conditions played a pivotal role in helping mammals and early humans migrate between Africa and Eurasia and that the Arabian Peninsula served as a hub of continent-scale biogeographic exchange. The past and the future Archaeological evidence throughout history has indicated that human populations expanded when the climate was wetter and that during dry periods, they either moved to more hospitable areas, even if they were also geographically restricted or simply went extinct. Will history repeat itself as 21st century humankind faces a climate crisis? This is a hard question to answer because human society today is highly technologised. For example, without air-conditioners, people may have already migrated out of regions suffering extreme heat today. That said, the past is more than just about humans. For the last 15 years, another interdisciplinary team of researchers (also involving Petraglia) has been documenting ancient lakes and archaeological sites from 200,000 years ago to the present to track a changing climate and its effects on ecosystems. 'The past holds many lessons for us, as climate and a warming earth is a serious concern to humanity today,' Petraglia said. Sanjukta Mondal is a chemist-turned-science-writer with experience in writing popular science articles and scripts for STEM YouTube channels.
Straits Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Fulbright's future in doubt as Trump targets elite scholarship
Mr Ryan Sutherland thought he had all the credentials needed to win a prestigious Fulbright fellowship. A medical student at Yale University, his proposal to study HIV transmission among transgender sex workers in Malaysia had been cleared by a US Fulbright review committee. He had worked for years with the Malaysian research center where the project was to be housed. Instead, he was turned down. And after this week's abrupt resignation of most of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, which cited unprecedented interference in the selection process by the Trump administration, he's left wondering whether he was denied a grant based on merit – or politics. The rejection letter didn't give a reason. 'People like me, who are early-career scientists, you're de-prioritising our whole career,' said Mr Sutherland, 31. 'It's creating this huge gap in research.' The administration's latest attempt to exert control over higher education has threatened a nearly 80-year-old institution that participants call a key instrument of American soft power. Every year, the highly selective Fulbright Programme awards more than 8,000 grants, both to US scholars pursuing research projects abroad and foreign academics seeking to study in the states. Created by Congress in the aftermath of World War II, the grants were meant to strengthen ties with other nations and cement America's image as a leader in cutting-edge research. On June 11, most members of the scholarship board resigned, after the administration blocked what they called 'a substantial number' of scholars from receiving the grants. The departing members, in a post on Substack, accused the administration of violating the law and warned the programme's integrity depended on remaining free from political interference. Now, that independence and the Fulbright's reputation for academic freedom are in doubt. Some of the rejected applicants planned to study topics the current administration does not favor, such as climate change. While some scholars search for alternate ways to fund their projects, others will likely consider research opportunities outside the US – undermining the point of the programme. 'If the Fulbright scholarship loses its integrity, it will impact the most effective form of soft diplomacy,' said Mr Haroon Rashid Sherzad, a 2006 scholar who now works in refugee support for an employment services firm in the UK. 'They're burning bridges between the US and other countries.' Reshaping higher education has been a key goal of President Donald Trump in his second term, a mission that has included attacks on Harvard University and stricter scrutiny of visa applications from foreign students. The US State Department, whose staff helps evaluate Fulbright grant applications, dismissed the board's criticism this week by calling the resigning members 'partisan political appointees' of former President Joe Biden. 'It's ridiculous to believe that these members would continue to have final say over the application process, especially when it comes to determining academic suitability and alignment with President Trump's executive orders,' a State Department official said. Several of the board members had prior roles in the administrations of Biden and President Barack Obama. Others have ties to such elite schools as Duke University and the University of California at Berkeley. Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas founded the programme in 1946, and it's currently administered by the US government in partnership with more than 160 countries. It receives an annual appropriation from Congress – totaling US$287.5 million (S$368.3 million) in 2023 – while other governments and host institutions also provide support. Board members are appointed by the president to three-year terms, but the programme is designed to be non-partisan. According to the members' resignation post, Congress specified that the board would have final approval authority over grant applications. Instead, 1,200 foreign grant recipients were being subjected to 'an unauthorised review process' and could be rejected, the members said. Mr Bera Topkara, a Fulbright scholar from Germany who studied theology at Emory University, began worrying about the programme's future after it cancelled a March seminar just weeks in advance. Now back in Berlin, he still encourages friends to apply, despite the uncertainty. 'It's not just the academic experience, it's also the personal connections of people who are coming to Germany and also people who are going to the US,' said Mr Topkara, 25. 'That's the essence of the programme: to really connect people all around the world. And that will be lost immediately.' The administration has now rejected applications for seven of 17 US researchers who otherwise would have been greenlit to visit Norway, said Mr Curt Rice, executive director for Fulbright Norway, a non-profit organisation that oversees the programme in that country. They planned to research questions related to ethnic and gender diversity as well as climate change, he said. Some European countries including Norway and the Netherlands have devised a 'plan B' for applicants, according to Mr Rice and others: If they are rejected, their home countries will provide them alternative grants to study at US universities and other institutions, just without the prestigious Fulbright title. Still, even those studying subjects deemed acceptable by the White House may look to places like Canada, Australia or China before considering the US, Mr Rice said, especially if Trump stocks a new Fulbright board with ideologues in his image. 'Stopping a few topics damages the reputation of the programme, by making it a programme that doesn't respect academic freedom,' he said. Even for those whose applications were not denied, the resignations may cause further processing issues for scholars who will soon embark on their Fulbright trips. Those who have applications pending review may have to wait longer as well. 'Their scholarships can't be reviewed until a new board is appointed, so it will extend the waiting period,' said Ms Maggie Mahoney, who recently completed a stay in India on a Fulbright Scholar Award for international education administrators. 'It's going to turn away students and scholars looking to apply for the next deadline.' Still, Ms Mahoney said she thinks board members made the right decision in resigning. 'It's a risk that the board was right in taking, because the statement needed to be made,' she said. 'Otherwise they remain complicit in the misuse of the Fulbright intention.' The resignations have sparked heated discussions among Fulbright alumni about the program's present and future. Ms Alana Deluty, president of the Rhode Island chapter of the Fulbright Association, said some in the Fulbright community are advising this year's foreign scholars to hold off quitting their jobs until every aspect of their stay in the US has been approved. She fears the administration's actions will only deepen what she sees as America's loss of international influence. 'The fact that we're alienating the smartest, most accomplished people in the world, who normally would be flocking to the US – it's a huge loss for this country,' Ms Deluty said. 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New York Times
13-06-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Dimming America's Beacons to the World
To the Editor: Re 'Fulbright Board Resigns, Citing Political Interference' (news article, June 12): Your reporting on the mass resignation of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board captures a seismic moment in American public diplomacy. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his head of public diplomacy, Darren Beattie, have crossed a line that generations of diplomats, scholars and public servants refused to cross. They have politicized and undermined the Fulbright program, bringing dishonor to one of America's most respected global institutions. This is not bureaucratic reshuffling. It's a complete breach of the bipartisan mission to promote peace and understanding through education and cross-cultural exchange. I had the honor to serve as chair of the binational Fulbright commissions in Poland and Colombia. I've seen how Fulbright advances U.S. interests through something more enduring than force: academic excellence and mutual understanding. Senator Fulbright believed that empathy and education could help prevent conflict. The program was designed to erode the mistrust that sets nations against each other — not to serve short-term political agendas. Overriding merit-based selections. Subjecting scholars to unauthorized reviews. This isn't how you lead the world. It's how you lose it. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CNN
13-06-2025
- Politics
- CNN
5 things to know for June 13: Israel-Iran, Air India crash, DOGE cuts, Immigration protests, Extreme weather
Nearly all the members of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board have resigned after the Trump administration denied a 'substantial number' of Fulbright awards to people who had already been selected for the 2025-2026 academic year. According to the board, which selects students, scholars, teachers and others to participate in the prestigious cultural exchange program, the government also put 1,200 other foreign Fulbright recipients under 'an unauthorized review process' that could lead to rejection from the program. The award's 'proud legacy has depended on one thing above all: the integrity of the program's selection process based on merit, not ideology, and its insulation from political interference. That integrity is now undermined,' the former board members wrote in a statement. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day. Get '5 Things' in your inbox If your day doesn't start until you're up to speed on the latest headlines, then let us introduce you to your new favorite morning fix. Sign up here for the '5 Things' newsletter. Israel has launched an unprecedented attack on Iran that targeted its nuclear program and military. Israel's 200 fighter jets hit dozens of targets and reportedly damaged the country's primary nuclear enrichment facility. Nuclear scientists and key military leaders — including the commander-in-chief of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran's highest-ranking military officer and an aide to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — were killed. During the 'large-scale strike,' Iranian civilians reportedly felt the ground shaking and heard repeated explosions. Multiple videos showed flames and smoke billowing from buildings across Tehran. In response, Khamenei has vowed that Israel will face 'severe punishment for the attacks.' Israeli citizens have already begun to prepare by closing schools and securing medical facilities. Overnight, Iran launched over 100 drones toward Israeli territory in what is expected to be the first stage of a much larger counter-attack. At least 290 people died when an Air India jet crashed soon after departure from an airport in Ahmedabad, India, yesterday. The plane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, was en route to London when it crashed, hitting a hostel for doctors. The death toll includes 241 passengers and crew on Flight AI171 as well as people on the ground. Only one passenger, a British national, survived. Three officials from India's National Disaster Response Force said the flight recorder had been located. According to Boeing, this was the first major incident involving a 787 Dreamliner since the aircraft entered into service in 2011. However, the aerospace giant has had to deal with numerous safety incidents in the last several years, including fatal crashes and quality issues. The GOP-led House narrowly passed some of the federal spending cuts that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) sought to make unilaterally. The vote on Thursday to cancel $9.4 billion in federal spending for foreign aid and public broadcasting looked like it was going to fail. Then, Rep. Nick LaLota of New York and Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, both of whom had initially voted no, changed their votes in the final moments. If approved by the Senate, the legislation would cut $8.3 billion for US Agency for International Development (USAID) programs that provide humanitarian assistance, including health care, disaster aid and hunger relief. The bill would also slash $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS. Full Congressional approval would codify the DOGE cuts into law so that they can't be reversed by the next administration, and would help to insulate the Trump administration from legal challenges. Hours after a district court judge ruled that President Donald Trump had unlawfully federalized thousands of members of California's National Guard and ordered him to return control of the troops to the state, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals put that ruling on pause. California Gov. Gavin Newsom had sued Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after the president called the troops into federal service to quell the anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles. In his ruling, senior US District Judge Charles Breyer said Trump had not satisfied any of the requirements that must be met to call up a state's National Guard and that the demonstrations did not constitute an insurrection. A panel of three judges from the 9th Circuit will hold a hearing on the issue next week. Torrential rains swept through San Antonio, Texas, on Thursday, triggering flash floods that swept away 15 vehicles and claimed the lives of at least five people. The rains were so sudden and heavy that the San Antonio River rose from about 3 feet to over 25 feet in just two hours. Ten people had to be rescued from trees and bushes about one mile from where they entered the water, a San Antonio Fire Department official said. Authorities are continuing to search for two people who are still missing. Hats off to the first American pontiff Or should we say 'hats on?' Pope Leo XIV showed his allegiance to one Chicago sports team this week by donning a baseball cap during an appearance at the Vatican. Hey look! It's a new have identified a previously unknown species that fills an early gap in the fossil record of tyrannosaurus. The 86-million-year-old dinosaur has been named Khankhuuluu mongoliensis (the 'dragon prince of Mongolia'). 'Jaws' celebrates semi-centennialIt's been 50 years since the release of the original summer blockbuster — and going to the beach hasn't been the same since. To commemorate the film's upcoming anniversary, NBC plans to air a shark-ton of 'Jaws'-related content. 'Levitating' with happinessSinger Dua Lipa is positively thrilled by the ring on her left hand, particularly since it was placed there by her new fiancé, actor Callum Turner. Great idea or gross mistake?Instant ramen maker Cup Noodles is releasing a limited edition flavor that's sure to appeal to Gen Z, young millennials and anyone who follows TikTok trends. Which popular TikTok personality left the US this week after being detained by immigration agents in Las Vegas?A. MrBeastB. Addison RaeC. Charli D'AmelioD. Khaby Lame Take me to the quiz! $3.48 millionThat's how much a collection of historic gold coins fetched at auction in Paris this week. The coins, many of which date back centuries, were recovered from the wall of a house in France after the owner died in 2024. 'Weakening the standards now is indefensible from a public health standpoint and a betrayal of EPA's mission. The agency's mission is to protect public health and the environment, not to expose people to more toxic pollution.' — American Lung Association President and CEO Harold Wimmer, on the Environmental Protection Agency's proposal to scrap two major federal regulations that limit air pollution and planet-warming emissions from coal and gas-fired power plants. Check your local forecast here>>> See this elusive squid for the first timeScientists captured the first live sighting of the Gonatus antarcticus from 7,000 feet below the ocean's surface.
