Criminals are targeting the computer systems of school districts, universities, banks, large businesses, and other groups around the world, locking up their computer files, and refusing to unlock them until they are paid.
Published in “Europe”
The coronavirus pandemic has been hard on most businesses, but airlines have been hit harder than most. Many airlines have been forced to shut down. Those that remain in business are having to get creative.
Germany reports that Alexei Navalny, a well-known critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was poisoned. It seems likely that the Russian government is behind the attack, leaving the governments of other countries unsure of how to respond.
Among the more unusual news stories recently…thousands of people are trapped overnight in French trains, massive snakes fall from a kitchen ceiling in Australia, and a kite takes a young girl for a surprising and scary ride.
Among the more unusual news stories recently…a famous Dutch painting gets stolen for the third time, Sydney's new ferries are too tall, London's Tower Bridge gets stuck open, and a new law could require exercise for German dogs.
Researchers report that there is 10 times more plastic in the Atlantic Ocean than previously thought. The scientists got their results by collecting samples of "invisible" microplastics below the ocean's surface.
Today, NFK takes a look at two recent country-wide plans relating to food. The United Kingdom has begun an effort to encourage people to lose weight. In China, the government is asking people to stop wasting food.
Among the more unusual news stories recently…scientists discover that some bats use "baby talk" to communicate with their cubs, someone in China just paid $325,000 for a phone number, and a town in Switzerland gets hit with "chocolate snow".
Last year, a group working to protect sea animals rescued two beluga whales from an aquarium in China and flew them to Iceland. The belugas have now been moved into a protected ocean area off the coast of Iceland.
United Kingdom students who want to go to university will now have their A-level test grades based on predictions by their teachers instead of a government formula. The sudden change comes in response to strong protests over the formula's fairness.
Dogs are being trained to sniff out COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. So far, dogs seem to be quite good at detecting the illness, but it's not clear yet how useful these skills will be.