All posts tagged: Central

French Central Bank Succession Fight Tests Macron’s Sway Ahead of 2027 Election

French Central Bank Succession Fight Tests Macron’s Sway Ahead of 2027 Election

Published by Sam Flores

By Elizabeth Pineau and Leigh Thomas PARIS, May 14 (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron faces a test next week ⁠when lawmakers ⁠decide whether to approve his former chief of staff to ⁠run the central bank, a nomination some critics say is part of a campaign to protect key institutions from a possible far-right election ​win in 2027. A rejection of Emmanuel Moulin would represent an embarrassing defeat, underlining the unpopular president’s lame-duck status less than a year before his second term ends. Meanwhile, approval would likely fuel rivals’ accusations that Macron is installing loyalists ‌to top jobs who can ensure his legacy and ‌hedge against possible National Rally (RN) victory in the next presidential vote. “The president is right to propose (Moulin’s) appointment, as it is technically justified, but he is taking a political risk should the proposal be rejected by parliament, ⁠given that he no ⁠longer has a majority,” said political analyst William Thay of think tank Le Millenaire. MOULIN IS EXPERIENCED ECONOMIC POLICYMAKER Opponents on the ​finance committees of both houses could …

2022 Central Division Dewey Lecture: The Question Is How to Live

2022 Central Division Dewey Lecture: The Question Is How to Live

Published by Jenni Sidey

Below is the audio recording of Allan Gibbard’s John Dewey Lecture, “The Question Is How to Live,” given at the 2022 Central Division Meeting. The full text is available on the APA website (member sign-in is required) as well as on JSTOR. The audio of the lecture is available here: “The Question Is How to Live” by Allan Gibbard Allan Gibbard is Richard B. Brandt Distinguished University Professor Emeritus at the University of Michigan, where he taught from 1977 until 2016. Prior to joining the faculty at Michigan, he held positions at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Chicago. He received his PhD at Harvard University. His fields of study include ethics, social choice theory, decision theory, philosophy of language, and metaphysics. His publications include Meaning and Normativity (Oxford University Press, 2012), Reconciling Our Aims: In Search of Bases for Ethics (Oxford University Press, 2008), and Thinking How to Live (Harvard University Press, 2003), as well as many articles and book chapters. Gibbard served as president of the APA Central Division from 2001 …

Drought fears in central and southern England as dry April leaves rivers low | Drought

Drought fears in central and southern England as dry April leaves rivers low | Drought

Published by Jenni Sidey

One of the driest Aprils on record for central and southern England has left river levels below normal, raising fears of drought in some areas over the summer. The latest UK hydrological survey – which tracks river and groundwater levels – suggests central and southern England and eastern Scotland will experience notably low river flows over the next three months, raising concerns about water shortages if dry weather persists. Other parts of the UK, however, are likely to fare better with normal to above-normal river flows in the north-west and western Scotland. Rainfall in April was 23% less than average, according to Met Office figures. In parts of East Anglia and the south-east, rainfall was even less. In Shoeburyness in Essex, it was the driest April on record, with only 0.6mm of rain – just 2% of the monthly average. Cambridgeshire – one of the most water-stressed areas in the UK – and Bedfordshire received less than 5% of average rainfall. Met Office forecasts for the rest of May suggest it is likely to be …

Surge of Cartel Violence in Central Mexico Forces Between 800 and 1,000 Families to Flee Homes

Surge of Cartel Violence in Central Mexico Forces Between 800 and 1,000 Families to Flee Homes

Published by Sam Flores

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Between 800 and 1,000 families have been forced to flee their homes in the mountains of central Mexico as a criminal mafia has attacked them with handmade explosives launched from drones and powerful weapons, community and human rights groups said Sunday. The wave of violence in the conflict-torn state of Guerrero started on Wednesday when a powerful group known as Los Ardillos began to fiercely attack the communities in a rural mountainous region. Thousands of people – including children and the elderly – were forced to flee in just a span of days after what they say were years of mounting attacks. At least one person was injured, said an organization representing the community, People’s Indigenous Council of Guerrero – Emiliano Zapata (CIPOG-EZ). Videos show families fleeing their homes early in the morning Sunday – on Mother’s Day – cloaked by darkness with nothing more than backpacks. Others images shared with The Associated Press show heavy gunfire of gunfire echoing over farms and drones rigged with explosives laying in the brush. …

Dozens killed in jihadist attacks in central Mali

Dozens killed in jihadist attacks in central Mali

Published by Sam Flores

A fresh wave of attacks by jihadist fighters in central Mali killed dozens of people, local and security sources said Saturday. Friday’s attacks were claimed by the al Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), who had already killed at least 30 people in attacks on villages on Wednesday. One local official said the latest attacks by the armed groups had brought the toll to more than 70 in recent days. Another local official put the death toll at 80. “Our hearts are bleeding,” one local youth leader said, accusing nearby army detachments of doing nothing to help, despite multiple calls. Read more‘A common enemy, but not a common project’: A fragile jihadist-separatist alliance in Mali One security source described the situation in the region as “worrying”. “JNIM is targeting villages that refused to sign local agreements,” the source added. The latest attacks come after JNIM and the Tuareg-dominated Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) carried out an unprecedented assault against the ruling junta in Mali last month. Since then, Mali’s security situation has …

Harvard engineers built ant-like robots that work together without central control

Harvard engineers built ant-like robots that work together without central control

Published by Jenni Sidey

Ants do not need a foreman to raise a city. Working with little more than local cues, they excavate tunnels, pile up soil, and shape nests that can regulate airflow and temperature. That kind of collective competence has long fascinated scientists, partly because no single ant appears to understand the whole project. The intelligence seems to sit somewhere between the insects and the place they are changing. Now a team at Harvard has built a robotic version of that idea. Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences developed small cooperative robots that can organize themselves to either build structures or dismantle them, using only simple rules and changes in their surroundings. The work, published in PRX Life, was led by L. Mahadevan, whose lab has spent years studying how physical processes shape living systems, from insect colonies to folds in the brain and gut. “Our new study shows how simple, local rules can lead to the emergence of complex task completion that …

Themes of peace and human dignity have been central to Pope Leo as he marks his first year in office

Themes of peace and human dignity have been central to Pope Leo as he marks his first year in office

Published by Sam Flores

(The Conversation) — When he was elected pope on May 8, 2025, Robert Prevost, who took the name Leo XIV, greeted the crowd with Christ’s words to his disciples: “Peace be with you.” Peace has become a central theme of the pontificate of the first American pope. In recent months, opposing the war in the Middle East, Leo has said that the “world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants.” He led a “Prayer Vigil for Peace” on April 11, 2026, in which he criticized how the name of God has been used to justify war and death. He has also said that “military action will not create space for freedom” because true freedom can come only from patient dialogue. Prayer vigil for peace. Combined with his calls for peace is Leo’s equally outspoken emphasis on human dignity. In an age where power is concentrated in the hands of a few, the pope has urged Christians to make a “radical choice in favor of the weakest.” Technological advances, especially the rise of artificial intelligence, …

Can central banks curb inflation as energy costs rise? | Business and Economy

Can central banks curb inflation as energy costs rise? | Business and Economy

Published by Sam Flores

Central banks hold rates steady as energy shock tests inflation fight. Caught between rising inflation and slowing growth, the United States Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England are keeping interest rates and borrowing costs steady. That’s despite rising energy bills, fuel and food costs squeezing businesses and households worldwide. The International Monetary Fund is warning of a global slowdown, and no one knows how long the energy shock set off by the US-Israel war on Iran will last. The impact will be felt hardest in emerging markets and developing nations. Central banks face a tough choice: fight rising prices or support a weakening economy. Published On 5 May 20265 May 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Source link

Banksy installs new statue in central London : NPR

Banksy installs new statue in central London : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

A statue of a man holding a flag covering his face, and signed ‘Banksy’, which has appeared in Waterloo Place in London, Thursday, April 30, 2026. Kin Cheung/AP hide caption toggle caption Kin Cheung/AP A statue that was erected mysteriously in central London early Wednesday has been confirmed as the work of the mischievous, often politically oriented artist Banksy. The statue depicts a man in a suit hoisting a large flag.The flag’s cloth covers the man’s face, however, and his proud march appears to be courting disaster, as he steps off the plinth with no ground beneath him. The statue appeared in public just as King Charles III made a state visit to Washington, D.C., New York City and Virginia, in which the king and Queen Camilla were feted by President Trump at a state dinner and during which the British royal addressed Congress, arguing for the importance of NATO. The statue, which includes a Banksy signature on its base, was erected overnight on Wednesday. By Thursday, a video about the piece had been published …

2022 Central Division Presidential Address: Epistemic Reparations and the Right to Be Known

2022 Central Division Presidential Address: Epistemic Reparations and the Right to Be Known

Published by Jenni Sidey

Below is the audio recording of Jennifer Lackey’s presidential address, “Epistemic Reparations and the Right to Be Known,” given at the 2022 Central Division Meeting. The full text is available on the APA website. The audio of the lecture is available here: “Epistemic Reparations and the Right to Be Known” by Jennifer Lackey Jennifer Lackey is the Wayne and Elizabeth Jones Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Law (courtesy) at Northwestern University, Founding Director of the Northwestern Prison Education Program, and Senior Research Associate at the African Centre for Epistemology and Philosophy of Science at the University of Johannesburg. Her research is in social epistemology with a focus on epistemological issues within the American criminal legal system. She is the author of over sixty articles and four books, including her recent Criminal Testimonial Injustice, which won the 2024 North American Society for Social Philosophy Book Award. She is also the editor or co-editor of six volumes, editor-in-chief of Episteme and Philosophical Studies, and subject editor for the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Lackey was elected to …