San Francisco News
Altitude sickness is typically mild but can sometimes turn very serious − a high-altitude medicine physician explains how to safely prepare
Brian Strickland, Senior Instructor in Emergency Medicine, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus Equipped with the latest gear and a thirst for adventure, mountaineers embrace the perils that come with conquering the world’s highest peaks. Yet, even those who tread more cautiously at high altitude are not immune from the health hazards waiting in the thin air above. Altitude sickness, which most commonly refers to acute mountain sickness, presents a significant challenge to those traveling to and adventuring in high-altitude destinations. Its symptoms can range from mildly annoying to incapacitating and, in some cases, may progress to more life-threatening illnesses. While interest in high-altitude tourism is rapidly
Why Egypt refuses to open its border to Palestinians forcibly displaced from Gaza
Liyana Kayali, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Sydney Around 1.5 million Palestinian civilians are currently squeezed into the southern Gaza city of Rafah after repeatedly being forced by Israeli bombardment and ground assaults to evacuate further and further south. The town, which originally had a population of 250,000, is now host to more than half of Gaza’s entire population. They are sheltering in conditions the UN’s top aid official has called “abysmal”, with disease spreading and famine looming. In a military onslaught the International Court of Justice has ruled a plausible case of genocide, Israel has so far killed over 29,000 Palestinians in the
Javier Milei: Argentina’s new president presses ahead with economic ‘shock therapy’ as social unrest grows
Sam Halvorsen, Reader in Human Geography, Queen Mary University of London; Sebastián Mauro, Associate professor, Universidad de Buenos Aires Only weeks into his term, Argentina’s new president, Javier Milei, seems to be making good on his promise to put a chainsaw to the country’s crisis-ridden economy. In his inaugural address, Milei told the nation: “There is no alternative to shock.” He dissolved half of the country’s ministries days later, and implemented a 50% devaluation of the peso. But amid massive spending cuts, prices continue to spiral. Argentina’s annual rate of inflation has reached a three-decade high of 254.2%. Milei blames the poor economy on years of
As war in Ukraine enters third year, 3 issues could decide its outcome: Supplies, information and politics
Tara Sonenshine, Edward R. Murrow Professor of Practice in Public Diplomacy, Tufts University In retrospect, there was perhaps nothing surprising about Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. Vladimir Putin’s intentions were, after all, hiding in plain sight and signaled in the months running up to the incursion. What could not be foreseen, however, is where the conflict finds itself now. Heading into its third year, the war has become bogged down: Neither is it a stalemate, nor does it look like either side could make dramatic advances any time soon. Russia appears to be on the ascendancy, having secured the latest major battlefield
Cult of the drone: At the two-year mark, UAVs have changed the face of war in Ukraine – but not outcomes
Paul Lushenko, Assistant Professor and Director of Special Operations, US Army War College Unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, have been central to the war in Ukraine. Some analysts claim that drones have reshaped war, yielding not just tactical-level effects, but shaping operational and strategic outcomes as well. It’s important to distinguish between these different levels of war. The tactical level of war refers to battlefield actions, such as patrols or raids. The operational level of war characterizes a military’s synchronization of tactical actions to achieve broader military objectives, such as destroying components of an adversary’s army. The strategic level of war relates to the way these military
Why the United States needs NATO – 3 things to know
Klaus W. Larres, Professor of History and International Affairs, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Former President Donald Trump has long made it clear that he deeply resents NATO, a 75-year-old military alliance that is composed of the United States and 30 other countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and France. Trump escalated his criticism of NATO on Feb. 10, 2024, when he said that, if he is elected president again in November 2024, the U.S. would not defend any member country that had not “paid up.” Trump also said that he would encourage Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, “to
Navalny dies in prison − but his blueprint for anti-Putin activism will live on
Regina Smyth, Professor of Political Science, Indiana University Long lines of Russians endured subzero temperatures in January 2024 to demand that anti-Ukraine war candidate Boris Nadezhdin be allowed to run in the forthcoming presidential election. It was protest by petition – a tactic that reflects the legacy of Alexei Navalny, the longtime Russian pro-democracy campaigner. Authorities say Navalny, a persistent thorn in the side of Russian President Vladimir Putin, died in prison on Feb. 16, 2024. For more than a decade, Navalny fought Russian authoritarianism at
The Taliban’s war on women in Afghanistan must be formally recognized as gender apartheid
Vrinda Narain, McGill University https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/the-talibans-war-on-women-in-afghanistan-must-be-formally-recognized-as-gender-apartheid The second anniversary of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan is fast approaching. Since then, Afghan women have been denied the most basic human rights in what can only be described as gender apartheid. Only by labelling it as such and making clear the situation in Afghanistan is a crime against humanity can the international community legally fight the systematic discrimination against the country’s women and girls. Erasing women from the public sphere is central to Taliban ideology. Women’s rights institutions in Afghanistan, notably the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, have been dismantled while the dreaded Ministry
Niger coup: Military takeover is a setback for democracy and US interests in West Africa
Leonardo A. Villalón, University of Florida The West African nation Niger is under military rule following a coup in which President Mohamed Bazoum was overthrown and held captive by members of his own guard. On July 28, 2023, coup leaders named General Abdourahmane Tchiani as the new head of state, while international observers called for democratic norms to be reinstalled. Where the coup leaves the country and what happens next is unclear. The Conversation turned to Leonardo A. Villalón, political scientist and West African expert at the University of Florida, for some answers. How did this coup come about? At
How the Soviets stole nuclear secrets and targeted Oppenheimer, the ‘father of the atomic bomb’
Calder Walton, Harvard Kennedy School “Oppenheimer,” the epic new movie directed by Christopher Nolan, takes audiences into the mind and moral decisions of J. Robert Oppenheimer, leader of the team of brilliant scientists in Los Alamos, New Mexico, who built the world’s first atomic bomb. It’s not a documentary, but it gets the big historical moments and subjects right. The issues that Nolan depicts are not relics of a distant past. The new world that Oppenheimer helped to create, and the nuclear nightmare he feared, still exists today. Russian President Vladimir Putin is threatening to use nuclear weapons in his
Here’s how China is responding to US sanctions – with blocking laws and other countermeasures
Bashar Malkawi, University of Arizona After a recent meeting between U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and officials in Beijing, China released a statement demanding “practical action” over the issue of sanctions. The implication was that the punitive measures – imposed by the U.S. government on hundreds of Chinese individuals and entities over the past few years – impede any alleviation of the strained relations between the two economic giants. The statement followed a testy encounter in May 2023 in which Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu refused to meet his American counterpart because of sanctions. Clearly, the economic measures are hurting
Why is NATO expanding its reach to the Asia-Pacific region?
Gorana Grgić, University of Sydney Since Russia invaded Ukraine last year, NATO meetings and summits have been receiving significantly more attention compared to previous years. And there are several big-ticket items on the agenda at the upcoming summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, which begins on Tuesday. The foremost issue is, of course, NATO’s future military support to Ukraine in its ongoing war against Russia, particularly in the wake of reports of weapon delivery delays and the United States’ controversial decision to send cluster munitions to the Ukrainians. The allies will also discuss Ukraine’s potential membership in the group. Ukraine is seeking
Sweden is joining Nato: what that means for the alliance and the war in Ukraine
Simon J Smith, Staffordshire University and Jordan Becker, United States Military Academy West Point In a surprise move, Turkey has ended its veto on Sweden joining Nato, thereby removing all the barriers to its membership of the military alliance. Hungary quickly followed suit and, as a result of the two countries’ support, a consensus was able to be reached at the 2023 Nato summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan agreeing to support Sweden’s bid to join will be touted as one of the key achievements of the summit. Sweden submitted its formal application for membership in May