NewzIntel.com

Category: Universities

  • MIL-Evening Report: Amid Dutton’s ‘hate media’ and Trump’s despotism, press freedom is more vital than ever

    COMMENTARY: By Alexandra Wake

    Despite all the political machinations and hate towards the media coming from the president of the United States, I always thought the majority of Australian politicians supported the role of the press in safeguarding democracy.

    And I certainly did not expect Peter Dutton — amid an election campaign, one with citizens heading to the polls on World Press Freedom Day — to come out swinging at the ABC and Guardian Australia, telling his followers to ignore “the hate media”.

    I’m not saying Labor is likely to be the great saviour of the free press either.

    The ALP has been slow to act on a range of important press freedom issues, including continuing to charge journalism students upwards of $50,000 for the privilege of learning at university how to be a decent watchdog for society.

    Labor has increased, slightly, funding for the ABC, and has tried to continue with the Coalition’s plans to force the big tech platforms to pay for news. But that is not enough.

    The World Press Freedom Index has been telling us for some time that Australia’s press is in a perilous state. Last year, Australia dropped to 39th out of 190 countries because of what Reporters Without Borders said was a “hyperconcentration of the media combined with growing pressure from the authorities”.

    We should know on election day if we’ve fallen even further.

    What is happening in America is having a profound impact on journalism (and by extension journalism education) in Australia.

    ‘Friendly’ influencers
    We’ve seen both parties subtly start to sideline the mainstream media by going to “friendly” influencers and podcasters, and avoid the harder questions that come from journalists whose job it is to read and understand the policies being presented.

    What Australia really needs — on top of stable and guaranteed funding for independent and reliable public interest journalism, including the ABC and SBS — is a Media Freedom Act.

    My colleague Professor Peter Greste has spent years working on the details of such an act, one that would give media in Australia the protection lacking from not having a Bill of Rights safeguarding media and free speech. So far, neither side of government has signed up to publicly support it.

    Australia also needs an accompanying Journalism Australia organisation, where ethical and trained journalists committed to the job of watchdog journalism can distinguish themselves from individuals on YouTube and TikTok who may be pushing their own agendas and who aren’t held to the same journalistic code of ethics and standards.

    I’m not going to argue that all parts of the Australian news media are working impartially in the best interests of ordinary people. But the good journalists who are need help.

    The continuing underfunding of our national broadcasters needs to be resolved. University fees for journalism degrees need to be cut, in recognition of the value of the profession to the fabric of Australian society. We need regulations to force news organisations to disclose when they are using AI to do the job of journalists and broadcasters without human oversight.

    And we need more funding for critical news literacy education, not just for school kids but also for adults.

    Critical need for public interest journalism
    There has never been a more critical need to support public interest journalism. We have all watched in horror as Donald Trump has denied wire services access for minor issues, such as failing to comply with an ungazetted decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

    And mere days ago, 60 Minutes chief Bill Owens resigned citing encroachments on his journalistic independence due to pressure from the president.

    The Committee to Protect Journalists is so concerned about what’s occurring in America that it has issued a travel advisory for journalists travelling to the US, citing risks under Trump administration policies.

    Those of us who cover politically sensitive issues that the US administration may view as critical or hostile may be stopped and questioned by border agents. That can extend to cardigan-wearing academics attending conferences.

    While we don’t have the latest Australian figures from the annual Reuters survey, a new Pew Research Centre study shows a growing gap between how much Americans say they value press freedom and how free they think the press actually is. Two-thirds of Americans believe press freedom is critical. But only a third believe the media is truly free to do its job.

    If the press isn’t free in the US (where it is guaranteed in their constitution), how are we in Australia expected to be able to keep the powerful honest?

    Every single day, journalists put their lives on the line for journalism. It’s not always as dramatic as those who are covering the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, but those in the media in Australia still front up and do the job across a range of news organisations in some fairly poor conditions.

    If you care about democracy at all this election, then please consider wisely who you vote for, and perhaps ask their views on supporting press freedom — which is your right to know.

    Alexandra Wake is an associate professor in journalism at RMIT University. She came to the academy after a long career as a journalist and broadcaster. She has worked in Australia, Ireland, the Middle East and across the Asia Pacific. Her research, teaching and practice sits at the nexus of journalism practice, journalism education, equality, diversity and mental health.

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Two Trustees appointed to the Natural History Museum board for four year terms commencing 17 March 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Two Trustees appointed to the Natural History Museum board for four year terms commencing 17 March 2025

    The Prime Minister has appointed Kate Robson Brown and Tanuja Randery as Trustees of the Natural History Museum.

    Kate Robson Brown

    Professor Kate Robson Brown is Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact, at University College Dublin, Ireland. In this role she leads both UCDResearch (discovery and applied research) and NovaUCD (enterprise and commercial activities), and is the University AI Champion. She is Professor of Engineering Mathematics and Biological Anthropology. She is a member of the Ireland National Advisory Forum for Space Research, Honorary Fellow of the Alan Turing Institute for Data Science and AI, President of the European Low Gravity Research Association, co-chair of the UK Space Academic Network, and a Visiting Professor in Data Science at Strathmore University in Nairobi. Her previous role was Director of the Jean Golding Institute for Data Science and AI at the University of Bristol. Her research explores the computational modelling of the microstructure and performance of living tissues and manufactured materials and their response to changing and extreme environments, including space. She has a collaborative ESA and UKSA funded experiment currently in orbit on the ISS.

    Tanuja Randery

    Tanuja is Managing Director of Amazon Web Services EMEA, responsible for setting EMEA strategy and guiding the company’s growth across the region. She leads multi-country, cross-functional teams who work closely with customers to support digital transformation, from start ups through to the world’s largest enterprises. Tanuja has more than 25 years of strategic, commercial and operational experience. She was previously Partner at management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, where she was responsible for leading enterprise transformation projects in the technology and industrial sectors.

    Prior to this she served as CEO, UK & Ireland for Schneider Electric, the global energy management firm. Tanuja serves as non-executive director on the board of BusinessLDN and was previously a trustee for Save the Children UK. She is committed to diversity projects and founded the PowerWomen Network—a cross-industry network for senior women business leaders. She was recognised as a top-50 Champions for Women in Business by the Financial Times’ HERoes in 2017 and 2018. She was ranked number 6 on the UK Tech50 2022 list of most influential people in IT and was recognised in the Yahoo Finance 2022 Heroes Women Role Model Lists. Tanuja also hosts a podcast, PowerWomen Speak, on what it takes for women to be successful in business. Born and educated in India, with a Master’s degree from Boston University, Tanuja has lived in London for the past 19 years.

    Remuneration and Governance Code

    Trustees of the Natural History Museum are not remunerated. This appointment has been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s [Governance Code on Public Appointments].

    The appointments process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Under the Code, any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years must be declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation, or candidature for election. Kate Robson Brown and Tanuja Randery have not declared any significant political activity.

    Updates to this page

    Published 30 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: NSU became the only university beyond the Urals to receive government support for training specialists in the field of AI

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Novosibirsk State University – Novosibirsk State University –

    The Ministry of Digital Development of the Russian Federation together with the ANO “Analytical Center under the Government of the Russian Federation” completed the competitive selection of universities that will train highly qualified specialists in the field of artificial intelligence until 2030. Grant support is provided in the form of subsidies from the federal budget, an essential condition is co-financing from industrial partners in the amount of at least 30%. NSU was included in the list of winners, taking fourth place in the ranking of universities, and became the only university beyond the Urals to receive support.

    Grant support will be provided for the development and implementation of a new bachelor’s degree program in “Applied Artificial Intelligence” in Institute of Intelligent Robotics NSU, admission to study will begin this academic year. The first intake will consist of at least 150 students.

    — One of the key research areas that will be developed on the basis of infrastructure modern campus of NSU, being built within the framework of the national project “Youth and Children”, is the theme “Advanced areas of applied mathematics: artificial intelligence and big data processing, applied engineering”. The new educational program was developed to solve technological problems of the new direction. Graduates of the program will be able to configure existing AI models, further train such models, use previously created software libraries and frameworks to solve applied problems, – commented the rector of NSU, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Mikhail Fedoruk.

    The Institute of Intelligent Robotics is the youngest educational division of NSU, where the number of undergraduate students in the Mechatronics and Robotics. Artificial Intelligence program has grown more than 7 times in 5 years, including due to foreign students. In 2024, according to the results of the university ranking for the quality of training specialists in the field of artificial intelligence, NSU became the leader among universities in the Siberian Federal District and entered the top 15 best universities in the country.

    — The grant competition was aimed at supporting the best Russian universities with strong educational programs in the field of AI and great potential for training new-level personnel. The high final score of the NSU application, which was prepared jointly by the Institute of Intelligent Robotics and Research Center in the field of artificial intelligence of NSU, confirms the significant potential of the university for training personnel to ensure technological leadership of the country. It is assumed that students in the new bachelor’s program will actively participate in the implementation of strategic technological projects of the NSU Development Program within the framework of “Priority”, – noted Svetlana Sablina, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs of NSU.

    The key feature of the training is the focus on the practical application of AI and solving real problems from industrial partners, who provide co-financing of educational programs in the amount of at least 30% of the grant amount. This became one of the essential conditions of the competition.

    — Rostelecom. Information Technologies acted as the university’s partner in implementing the new educational program. We have been cooperating with Rostelecom for over a year within the framework of the NSU Artificial Intelligence Center. Among the main joint projects are the development of an intelligent system for managing urban transport flows, a security system, etc. The second company that supported our initiative is T1 Innotech. This is a large company working in the field of IT and AI, our new partner, with whom we are just starting to work. Thanks to such cooperation, the educational program will be focused on the needs of the market and solving the problems of the modern AI industry. Even during the training, we will attract practicing teachers and involve students in work on real projects, — emphasized Alexander Lyulko, Director of the NSU Artificial Intelligence Center.

    Reference:

    The competition for government grants was held as part of the implementation of the events of the federal project “Artificial Intelligence” of the national project “Data Economy and Digital Transformation of the State”. The competitive selection of universities was carried out at two levels – “TOP DS” and “DS”. In total, 22 universities from 14 regions of Russia became winners, which will train top specialists in the field of AI. The final list included HSE, MIPT, ITMO, St. Petersburg State University and other leading universities in the country. By 2030, more than 10 thousand students are planned to be trained under the new educational programs.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Best goalkeeper and bronze medals: GUU victories at the XI All-Russian Championship of Russia in hockey

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    From April 22 to 27, 2025, the GUU hockey team participated in the Student Hockey League Championship, held in St. Petersburg.

    Our hockey players played a total of 12 games in 6 days. This year, 16 of the strongest student hockey teams from 11 subjects of the Russian Federation competed for the title of champion of the Championship.

    Following the draw, HC GUU met three teams from Nizhny Novgorod and St. Petersburg in the group stage. Having lost one match to Spartak RANEPA SPB in overtime with a score of 2:1, our hockey players entered the playoffs from the second line of the tournament table.

    In the quarterfinals of the main tournament, the GUU team faced a serious opponent – the current champions of the Championship “Black Bears – Polytech SPB”: the walls of their home arena helped the “bears” defeat our team, thereby sending the guys to play the tournament for the small cup of the Russian Championship in the 3×3 format.

    The group stage of the small cup took place in one day – our team played 5 matches in a row and again secured the second place in the tournament table. Based on the results of the second group matches, the opponent for the 1/4 finals was determined – “Nevskie Lviv SPB”, into whose gates our hockey players scored 5 goals and won with a score of 5:3. In the battle for a ticket to the final, the GUU team, unfortunately, suffered a defeat from the team from Orel and was forced to fight for bronze medals with the “Black Foxes” from Surgut.

    The magic of numbers in the 3×3 tournament was on our side and HC GUU won a confident victory with a score of 5:2 in the final match for bronze!

    The best player of the tournament was recognized as the goalkeeper of GUU Roman Shiryaev – it was he who received the individual award of the SHL tournament.

    The week was intense and difficult, now our geese are going to win more, because the final matches of the regular championships of the MSHL and NSHL await them in Moscow on the weekend.

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 04/30/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Election Diary: post-election rate cut and phone call from Trump in the pipeline

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

    It used to be de rigueur for the prime minister and opposition leader to turn up to the National Press Club in the final week of the election campaign. But now Liberal leaders are not so keen.

    Scott Morrison gave it a miss in 2022, although he was there in 2019. Nobody expected Peter Dutton, who has often been reluctant to face the Canberra press gallery in the past three years, to front the club this week.

    It’s also happened in the past that a leader has said something significantly newsworthy during the Q&A session on these final big occasions.

    Bob Hawke, days away from becoming prime minister in 1983, flagged he would be willing to break election promises if he found, on reaching office, that fiscal circumstances were different from what was anticipated. They were, and he did.

    Anthony Albanese on Wednesday made his appearance, but he was not going to grab a headline with anything unexpected.

    He delivered a spirited stump speech concentrating on everything Labor is offering voters – improvements to Medicare, tax cuts all round, and much else. He played and replayed his familiar mantra about nobody being left behind or held back. When it came to questions, the prime minister defended and deflected.

    Are Australians better off than before he was elected? Well, they’d be worse off if Dutton had had his way.

    Will whoever is in government need to increase the tax base in the next decade? “We’ll have not one but two income tax cuts.”

    Would he consider a compromise on Labor’s plan to tax unrealised capital gains on some superannuation balances? “We have our policy.”

    Is there something he regrets from the last three years? “I don’t pretend to be perfect.” So no regrets? “I’m not saying that at all.”

    What he is saying is that the final sprint of the campaign is not the time to enter the confessional.

    With the polls, and even most Liberals, at least privately, expecting Albanese to still be PM next week, whether in minority or majority government, he knows he has two challenges in these last days: to avoid being caught on any sticky paper, and to continue to project a sense of momentum by going full tilt (Labor people remember Bill Shorten easing up just before polling day in 2019). He is visiting every state, before he votes in his home electorate of Grayndler where, he indicated, his talisman dog Toto will accompany him to the polling booth on Saturday.

    Before his press club appearance, Albanese had encouraging news from the latest consumer price index quarterly figures, which showed underlying inflation falling to 2.9%. This points to another cut in interest rates.

    Westpac said, “Inflationary pressures have moderated, and the door is open for a rate cut in May”.

    The Reserve Bank doesn’t meet until May 19-20, but the prospect of a cut can be a mood lifter for stretched households – just as the pre-campaign February decrease was.

    Also able to be cast positively, US President Donald Trump, who has proved elusive in the face of the government’s attempts to get him to pick up the phone to discuss a tariff deal, confirmed a call would come. Asked whether he would speak to Albanese about trade, the president said, “they are calling, and I will talk to him, yes.”

    There is no detail of whether, or what, deal could be in the offing, but Trump, by signalling the call, has given (inadvertently) another bit of help to the government in an election in which the “Trump factor” has played all Albanese’s way.

    Instead of the press club, Dutton had done an hour’s “Ask Me Anything” appearance on Tuesday with Paul Murray on Sky, taking around a dozen viewers’ questions. It was an easy, friendly gig, directed squarely at his base. That might be one thing if he’s seeking the preferences of those voting One Nation or Trumpet of Patriots, but it is not where the middle-ground swinging voters are.

    In this last week, Dutton has put his anger at a section of the media on display. Earlier in the week he lashed out at the ABC, Guardian and “other hate media”.

    On Wednesday he doubled down, in a bit of pointed but embittered humour on FM radio when quizzed on tips for a good election night party. “I think alcohol is the first essential ingredient, I’m sure of that. Responsible drinking as well, but not watching the ABC would be a good start. For any young ones listening at home, forget the ABC.”

    Dutton’s disdain for the ABC is long-standing and well-known. But in an election campaign, why he thinks it is a good tactic to expose it so blatantly is a mystery. It shows questionable judgement and a lack of discipline.

    Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Election Diary: post-election rate cut and phone call from Trump in the pipeline – https://theconversation.com/election-diary-post-election-rate-cut-and-phone-call-from-trump-in-the-pipeline-255615

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: SPbPU at the exhibition in Tashkent: how to choose the profession of the future and enter a leading technical university

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    The 27th international exhibition “Education and Profession 2025” was held in Uzbekistan. The largest international educational event of the republic was organized by the Agency for Youth Affairs, the Ministry of Preschool and School Education of Uzbekistan and the company “My Fair” with the support of Rossotrudnichestvo and the National Bank of Uzbekistan. The event, which covered 12 cities of the country, brought together a record 100 universities from 15 countries for Central Asia. Our university was also represented at the exhibition.

    The Education and Profession 2025 exhibition is a unique opportunity for applicants, students and young professionals to take a look into the future of their careers. Here you can learn about the requirements for admission to universities and colleges, scholarships and grants that make education more accessible, as well as about the professions that will determine the labor market in a few years – from IT development and bioengineering to sustainable development and digital art. Experts from leading universities reveal right at the exhibition which skills are critically important today. For example, the ability to work with data, adapt to change, manage a team or solve interdisciplinary problems.

    Deputy Head of the Agency for Youth Affairs Dilnozahon Kattakhanova emphasized the significance of the event: More than 100 universities are more than 100 opportunities for self-realization, discovering potential and choosing a decent education. Young people will be able to contribute to the development of science, technology and all spheres of life in the country.

    Head of Rossotrudnichestvo in Uzbekistan Irina Staroselskaya emphasized the importance of choice: Young people can choose not only a university, but also a country, a direction. The main thing is that education brings pleasure – after all, we spend most of our lives at work. Let the choice be conscious!

    Over the course of two days of the exhibition, the stand of the St. Petersburg Polytechnic University was visited by more than 1,700 high school students from Uzbekistan considering the possibility of studying in Russia. The main audience was senior students who studied in detail the prospects of entering Russian universities.

    Leading Advertising Manager of the SPbPU Center for International Recruitment and Communications Zhanna Trunkova and specialist of the Department for Work with Foreign Students Evgeniya Borodina held individual consultations for the guests. They explained in detail the conditions of enrollment, the range of available educational programs, as well as scholarship and financial support options for foreign students of the university.

    Uzbek schoolchildren received information about scholarships, admission requirements and promising professions. The speakers thanked the partners for their contribution to the organization of the largest educational project in the region.

    International educational exhibitions help not only to obtain information, but also to immerse yourself in a dialogue with universities. Personal consultations, career guidance tests and live communication with representatives allow you to compare your interests with the real demands of the economy. This is a chance to rethink career goals, choose an educational trajectory that corresponds to both personal ambitions and global trends, and also to begin building a professional path without gaps in knowledge, – emphasized the head of the International Education Department of SPbPU Evgeniya Satalkina.

    You can find out more about the admission procedure at Polytechnic University atSPbPU website, and fill out the form inin the applicant’s personal account.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: European-first semiconductor facility launches in Southampton

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    European-first semiconductor facility launches in Southampton

    A new facility to build the next generation of semiconductor chips, and the first of its kind in Europe, was opened at the University of Southampton.

    • Science Minister Lord Vallance unveils new electron beam facility for creating incredibly small patterns onto chips to enable breakthroughs in AI and medical tech
    • Comes alongside nearly £5 million in new government support to boost talent pipeline and address skills gap in growing semiconductor industry
    • Support will fund new bursaries, chip design courses and outreach in schools – helping deliver growth as part of our Plan for Change by strengthening our sector and creating high-skilled jobs

    A new facility using cutting edge electron beam technology to build the next generation of semiconductor chips, and the first of its kind in Europe, was opened at the University of Southampton by Science Minister Lord Vallance today (Wednesday 30 April).

    The new E-beam lithography facility is just the second in the world, and first outside Japan, and provides incredible accuracy that is critical to designing the tiny components that power technologies of the future, from medical diagnostics to defence systems.

    Semiconductors – the small chips that power devices from smartphones to satellites – already contribute an estimated £10 billion to our economy each year, with the sector projected to grow to an estimated £17 billion by 2030.

    Strengthening the sector offers a major opportunity to drive the growth at the heart of our Plan for Change, through boosting innovation and jobs. It also supports the UK’s wider Industrial Strategy to grow key advanced manufacturing sectors and secure global competitiveness.

    E-beam lithography uses a focused beam of tiny particles called electrons to create patterns in materials with unrivalled resolution – allowing researchers to create features thousands of times smaller than a human hair.

    Science Minister, Lord Vallance, said:

    Britain is home to some of the most exciting semiconductor research anywhere in the world – and Southampton’s new E-beam facility is a major boost to our national capabilities.

    By investing in both infrastructure and talent, we’re giving our researchers and innovators the support they need to develop next-generation chips right here in the UK.

    Our £4.75 million skills package will support our Plan for Change by helping more young people into high-value semiconductors careers, closing skills gaps and backing growth in this critical sector.

    The Science Minister’s visit to Southampton comes alongside new research being published today, which shows that one of the biggest barriers to achieving growth in the UK’s burgeoning semiconductor industry is a lack of emerging talent. With a single semiconductor worker contributing an average of £460,000 to the economy annually, the sector’s economic potential is huge.

    In response, the government has launched a new £4.75 million semiconductor skills package to help build the talent base needed to fuel this high-growth industry. The package will also help strengthen R&D capacity at leading universities, such as Southampton, which are central to UK semiconductor innovation and talent development. 

    By supporting local talent pipelines and university–industry collaboration, the programme will contribute to both regional and national economic growth, fuelling our Plan for Change, and reinforcing the role the semiconductors industry is set to play in the Industrial Strategy.

    The package includes:

    • £3 million for undergraduate bursaries, offering £5,000 each to 300 students starting Electronics and Electrical Engineering degrees this year, alongside specialist semiconductor content to raise awareness of the field, with a focus on courses that include semiconductor design and manufacturing.
    • £1.2 million for chip design training, with new chip design courses to teach practical chip design skills to undergraduates, postgraduates, and lecturers, as well as a feasibility study for new postgraduate conversion courses.
    • Almost £550,000 for school outreach, giving 7,000 students aged 15–18 and 450 teachers hands-on semiconductor experience in partnership with local employers, helping raise awareness and diversify the future workforce. This programme will be focused on existing UK semiconductor clusters – such as Newport, Cambridge, and Glasgow – helping to strengthen these ecosystems and create long-term career opportunities.

    This targeted skills support will underpin the long-term success of the UK semiconductor sector – helping to attract more students into high-value careers, fill key vacancies and support UK leadership in critical and emerging technologies that will be instrumental to our mission to grow the economy.

    University of Southampton’s Professor Graham Reed, who leads its Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), said:

    The introduction of the new E-Beam facility will reinforce our position of hosting the most advanced cleanroom in UK academia.

    It facilitates a vast array of innovative and industrially relevant research, and much needed semiconductor skills training.

    DSIT media enquiries

    Email press@dsit.gov.uk

    Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 6pm 020 7215 3000

    Updates to this page

    Published 30 April 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Foreign Minister Lin hosts welcome banquet for former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Landsbergis

    Source: Republic of China Taiwan

    Foreign Minister Lin hosts welcome banquet for former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Landsbergis

    Date：2025-01-14
    Data Source：Department of European Affairs

    January 14, 2025  
    No. 012  

    Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung on January 14 hosted a welcome luncheon for former Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Gabrielius Landsbergis and his wife. During the event, the two sides exchanged views on how democracies can counter authoritarian nations, furthering bilateral collaboration on drone development, and exploring other areas of cooperation. 
     
    Minister Lin thanked Mr. Landsbergis for his staunch support of Taiwan and for his proactive efforts to bolster bilateral relations between Taiwan and Lithuania during his tenure as foreign minister, adding that this was an excellent model of democratic solidarity. He stated that he had led 20 drone-related Taiwanese companies to the Drone Industry Business Forum in Lithuania last November, demonstrating Taiwan’s determination to build democratic supply chains together with Lithuania and substantively implementing integrated diplomacy. 
     
    Minister Lin also noted that authoritarian expansionism posed a significant challenge to the democratic community. Pointing to the recent incidents of underwater cable sabotage in the Baltic Sea and the waters around Taiwan, he underscored the urgent need for democracies to collaborate and adopt joint strategic responses and prevention measures.
     
    Mr. Landsbergis said that Taiwan and Lithuania had done their utmost to protect freedom and democracy since transitioning away from authoritarian rule in the 1980s. Observing that the two nations had long faced geopolitical security threats from authoritarian countries, he stressed that it was important for democratic partners to work in concert and that the peoples of Taiwan and Lithuania had forged a friendship based on mutual understanding and appreciation. With the two countries having achieved considerable success in various joint projects, he expressed the hope that bilateral cooperation would continue to deepen.
     
    During his tenure as foreign minister, Mr. Landsbergis arranged for Lithuania to donate COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan, making it the first European country to do so. He further showed a firm commitment to safeguarding the values of democracy and freedom and backed the establishment of a Taiwanese representative office in Lithuania including the name Taiwan. A staunch friend of Taiwan, he spared no effort to strengthen relations between the two countries. During his visit, Mr. Landsbergis will deliver a speech at an event organized by the Prospect Foundation and will engage with Taiwanese students at National Taiwan University. (E)

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: People’s mental health goes downhill after repeated climate disasters – it’s an issue of social equity

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ang Li, ARC DECRA and Senior Research Fellow, NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Healthy Housing, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne

    Across Australia, communities are grappling with climate disasters that are striking more frequently and with greater intensity. Bushfires, floods and cyclones are no longer one-off events. And this pattern is predicted to worsen due to climate change.

    As it becomes more common to face climate disasters again and again, what does this mean for the mental health and wellbeing of people affected?

    In a new study published today in the Lancet Public Health, we found experiencing repeated disasters leads to more severe and sustained effects on mental health compared to experiencing a single disaster.

    What we did in our study

    We drew on ten years of Australian data (2009–19) from the nationally representative Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey.

    Specifically, our study involved data from 1,511 people who experienced at least one disaster. We tracked them from the year before the first disaster, at the first disaster, and, where applicable, each subsequent disaster, and a few years after each disaster.

    We also included 3,880 people who did not experience disasters during this time but shared similar demographic, socioeconomic, health and place-based characteristics for comparison.

    We measured exposure to climate disasters based on whether respondents reported a weather-related disaster (for example, flood, bushfire or cyclone) damaged or destroyed their home in the previous year.

    The mental health outcomes were measured using two questionnaires commonly administered to assess depression and anxiety disorders (the 5-item mental health inventory) and psychological distress (the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale).

    Cumulative effects

    Our results show mental health declines became more severe with repeated disasters.

    The graph below plots the mental health trajectories for everyone in our study who experienced at least one disaster, and the control group who did not experience any disasters. We looked at a maximum of three disasters in the study due to data availability.

    It shows experiencing one disaster led to a decline in mental health during the disaster year, followed by a recovery to pre-disaster levels in the post-disaster period.

    However, with repeated disasters, mental health trajectories declined further and it took longer to recover to pre-disaster levels.

    We also found experiencing an additional disaster close to a previous disaster (for example, one or two years apart) was linked to greater mental health declines than disasters that were spaced further apart.

    Some risk factors

    We observed that certain factors consistently shaped mental health outcomes. For instance, having social support was consistently a protective factor, while having a long-term health condition consistently increased the risk of poorer mental health. This was true regardless of the number of disasters someone experienced.

    On the other hand, some risk factors became stronger with each disaster. In particular, households with lower incomes, those in rural areas, and younger people appeared to experience greater effects of cumulative disasters.

    There are some limitations to our research. For example, the data we had did not detail the type or severity of each disaster. It also was limited in what it could tell us about the mental health effects of three or more disasters.

    Nonetheless, our study provides novel insights into the mental health consequences of multiple climate disasters. This highlights the need for better support for communities facing an increasing number of emergencies.

    Our findings also align with other studies that have observed increasing risk to mental health with multiple disasters.

    At the same time, our findings add a new perspective by showing how trajectories can change over time. People’s mental health often recovers to pre-disaster levels after a single disaster, but repeat disasters can delay or halt this recovery.

    Why might repeated disasters lead to worse mental health?

    Repeated disasters, especially when they occur in close succession, can lead to cumulative stress driven by trauma and uncertainty. This can create a reinforcing cycle. People already facing social disadvantages – such as poor health and low income – are more likely to be exposed to disasters. In turn, these events disproportionately affect those facing existing disadvantages.

    The result is a compounding effect that can contribute to worsening mental health outcomes and slower recovery over multiple disasters. This means disasters are an issue of social equity and must be considered in efforts to reduce poverty and improve social outcomes, as well as health outcomes.

    Repeated disasters in particular can drain financial, social and community resources. They can exacerbate existing strain on household savings, disrupted social ties due to displacement, and reduced access to services after disasters – especially in rural areas.

    What can we do to support people through multiple disasters?

    We need to transform the way we think about disasters. It’s estimated children born today will experience up to seven times the number of extreme weather events across their lifetimes than someone born in 1960.

    We are starting to get a better picture of what people need to recover from climate disasters. Our research points to the need for clinical services (for example, GPs) to screen for past disaster exposures in mental health assessments.

    Emergency services need to plan services to reach at-risk groups during disasters. They also need to ensure recovery planning considers the effects of past disasters, for example by making sure support programs are not just tied to one disaster, but can be used across multiple.

    The current approach to emergency services that looks at “one disaster at a time” doesn’t work anymore. As the climate continues to change, we urgently need to consider the effects of multiple disasters in public health, welfare and disaster services.

    Ang Li receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

    Claire Leppold does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. People’s mental health goes downhill after repeated climate disasters – it’s an issue of social equity – https://theconversation.com/peoples-mental-health-goes-downhill-after-repeated-climate-disasters-its-an-issue-of-social-equity-254475

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Symbol of the Unconquered Spirit: 80 Years Since the Raising of the Victory Banner over the Reichstag

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –

    On April 30, 1945, several banners and flags of various units of the Red Army were installed over the Reichstag building in Berlin. But the Banner of Victory is considered to be a specially made cloth of the 150th Rifle Order of Kutuzov, 2nd degree, Idritskaya Division of the 79th Rifle Corps of the 3rd Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front. In accordance with Russian law, this banner is a symbol of Victory in the Great Patriotic War and a state relic.

    The Reichstag had also long had a more symbolic meaning in 1945. After the National Socialist German Workers’ Party came to power in Germany in 1933 and the building was set on fire, government meetings were no longer held there, and the plenary hall was not even repaired. In 1941, the windows were walled up, the basements became a bomb shelter, and anti-aircraft guns were installed in the corner towers. Nevertheless, for the Germans, the building remained one of the symbols of statehood. And the Soviet troops needed the final goal of their victorious campaign in the form of a real object. With the approval of Joseph Stalin, the Reichstag building was chosen as such a goal.

    Given the circumstances, the Reichstag was defended by elite SS units, not only Germans, but also Swedes, Norwegians, and Latvians. And the building was stormed by the most experienced Red Army guards. Due to the ferocity of the battles and the contradictory reports, it is difficult to reliably determine who was the first to raise the flag over the Reichstag. In addition to the nine flags specially made for this purpose, many went into battle with homemade flags. According to various sources, there were from 20 to 40 of them. Recently, it has been accepted that on the afternoon of April 30, the fighters of the 150th Rifle Division, Lieutenant Rakhimzhan Koshkarbayev and Private Grigory Bulatov, were in the lead. Later, two more flags were raised. Noticing this, the Germans began shelling the building and, having broken the glass dome, managed to destroy all three flags.

    Late in the evening of April 30 (already May 1 Moscow time), Junior Lieutenant Meliton Kantaria and Private Mikhail Egorov from the same 150th Rifle Division managed to install the banner on the eastern facade of the building, where it could not be reached by enemy artillery. It was this flag that became the Victory Banner. On May 2, after the capitulation of the Berlin garrison, the same soldiers were ordered to move the banner to the dome of the Reichstag. A few days later, for the sake of safety, the banner was removed, and on June 20 it was transported by plane to Moscow, where it was transferred for permanent storage to the Central Museum of the Armed Forces.

    Thus, both the actual and symbolic victory over Germany was achieved at the very beginning of May. All that remained was to confirm it legally.

    #Scientific regiment

    Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 04/30/2025

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Older Australians are also hurting from the housing crisis. Where are the election policies to help them?

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Victoria Cornell, Research Fellow, Flinders University

    shutterstock beeboys/Shutterstock

    It would be impossible at this stage in the election campaign to be unaware that housing is a critical, potentially vote-changing, issue. But the suite of policies being proposed by the major parties largely focus on young, first home buyers.

    What is glaringly noticeable is the lack of measures to improve availability and affordability for older people.

    Modern older lives are diverse, yet older people have become too easily pigeonholed. No more so than in respect to property, where a perception has flourished that older people own more than their fair share of housing wealth.

    While the value of housing has no doubt increased, home ownership rates among people reaching retirement age has actually declined since the mid-1990s.

    Older people can also face rental stress and homelessness – with almost 20,000 homeless people in Australia aged over 55. Severe housing stress is a key contributing to those homelessness figures.

    It’s easy to blame older Australians for causing, or exacerbating, the housing crisis. But doing so ignores the fact that right now, our housing system is badly failing many older people too.

    No age limits

    Owning a home has traditionally provided financial security for retirees, especially ones relying on the age pension. This is so much so, that home ownership is sometimes described as the “fourth pillar” of Australia’s retirement system.

    But housing has become more expensive – to rent or buy – for everyone.

    Falling rates of home ownership
    combined with carriage of mortgage debt into retirement, restricted access to shrinking stocks of social housing, and lack of housing affordability in the private rental market have a particular impact on older people.

    Housing rethink

    Housing policy for older Australians has mostly focused on age-specific options, such as retirement villages and aged care. Taking such a limited view excludes other potential solutions from across the broader housing system that should be considered.

    Furthermore, not all older people want to live in a retirement village, and fewer than 5% of older people live in residential aged care.

    More than 20,000 older Australians are homeless, blamed in part on severe housing stress.
    Michael Heim/Shutterstock

    During my Churchill Fellowship study exploring alternative, affordable models of housing for older people, I discovered three cultural themes that are stopping us from having a productive conversation about housing for older people.

    • Australia’s tradition of home ownership undervalues renting and treats housing as a commodity, not a basic need. This disadvantages older renters and those on low income.

    • There’s a stigma regarding welfare in Australia, which influences who is seen as “deserving” and shapes the policy responses.

    • While widely encouraged, “ageing-in-place” means different things to different people. It can include formal facilities or the family home that needs modifications to make it habitable as someone ages.

    These themes are firmly entrenched, often driven by policy narratives such as the primacy of home ownership over renting. In the past 50 years or so, many have come to view welfare, such as social housing, as a last resort, and have aimed to age in their family home or move into a “desirable” retirement village.

    Variety is key

    A more flexible approach could deliver housing for older Australians that is more varied in design, cost and investment models.

    The promises made so far by political parties to help younger home buyers are welcome. However, the housing system is a complex beast and there is no single quick fix solution.

    First and foremost, a national housing and homelessness plan is required, which also involves the states and territories. The plan must include explicit consideration of housing options for older people.

    Funding for housing developments needs to be more flexible in terms of public-private sector investment and direct government assistance that goes beyond first home buyer incentives.

    International models

    For inspiration, we could look to Denmark, which has developed numerous co-housing communities.

    Co-housing models generally involve self-managing communities where residents have their own private, self-contained home, supported by communal facilities and spaces. They can be developed and designed by the owner or by a social housing provider. They can be age-specific or multi-generational.

    Australian policy makers could look to the success of social housing developments in Copenhagen, Denmark.
    ToniSo/Shutterstock

    Funding flexibility, planning and design are key to their success. Institutional investors include

    • so-called impact investors, who seek social returns and often accept lower financial returns

    • community housing providers

    • member-based organisations, such as mutuals and co-operatives.

    Government also plays a part by expediting the development process and providing new pathways to more affordable ownership and rental options.

    Europe is also leading the way on social housing, where cultural attitudes are different from here.

    In Vienna, Austria, more than 60% of residents live in 440,000 socially provided homes. These homes are available for a person’s entire life, with appropriate age-related modifications permitted if required.

    At over 20% of the total housing stock, social housing is also a large sector in Denmark, where the state and municipalities support the construction of non-profit housing.

    Overcoming stereotyes

    Our population is ageing rapidly, and more older people are now renting or facing housing insecurity.

    If policymakers continue to ignore their housing needs, even more older people will be at risk of living on the street, and as a result will suffer poor health and social isolation.

    Overcoming stereotypes – such as the idea that all older people are wealthy homeowners – is key to building fairer, more inclusive solutions.

    This isn’t just about older Australians. It’s about creating a housing system that works for everyone, at every stage of life.

    Victoria Cornell is employed by Flinders University, and received The AV Jennings Churchill Fellowship to investigate alternative, affordable models of housing that could help older Australians to age-in-place

    – ref. Older Australians are also hurting from the housing crisis. Where are the election policies to help them? – https://theconversation.com/older-australians-are-also-hurting-from-the-housing-crisis-where-are-the-election-policies-to-help-them-255391

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Regional field advisors

    Source: Walking Access New Zealand

    Senitra Nathan-Marsh

    senitra.nathan-marsh@herengaanuku.govt.nz

    027 229 1285

    Senitra considers herself a “fruitsalad” being a descendent of many iwi from Te-Ika-a-Māui and Rarotonga, however, she considers her ukaipō beneath her maunga Koro Ruapehu.

    For the majority of her life, Senitra ventured between Tokoroa and Central Hawkes Bay, between her kui and koro. Throughout her upbringing, Senitra absorbed the Mātauranga of her koroua and embraced their old values and ways.

    Senitra’s career has traversed many landscapes, starting from (the fun stuff) scaling her own maunga, Koro Ruapehu, tracking and catching manu on her whenua, and mahi the ngahere back home.

    Since her “good old ranger days,” she has worked for local regulatory bodies such as district councils, DOCs, and post-settlement governance entities. Her “niche” is navigating governmental and regulatory processes, as she likes to ” geek out ” about legislation.

    Senitra created her business, Uehā Environmental, to continue to be of service to our communities whilst also completing her Masters in Māori and Indigenous Leadership, focusing rangatiratanga (self-determination and leadership) when receiving taonga from Tangaroa (whale strandings)

    She currently fulfils a role of passion as a kaimanaaki (helper) alongside mana moana (people of the sea), mana whenua (people of the land), DOC and Massey University for when taonga strand, and considers her happy place alongside Ikanui (whales and dolphins), activating and supporting kaitiakitanga and rangatiratanga.

    You will often see Senitra with her four-legged buddy Tex (included in the picture), exploring along rivers and in outdoor recreational areas.

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Inflation is easing, boosting the case for another interest rate cut in May

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra

    Daria Nipot/Shutterstock

    Australia’s headline inflation rate held steady at a four-year low of 2.4% in the March quarter, according to official data, adding to the case for a cut in interest rates at the next Reserve Bank board meeting in May.

    A key measure of underlying inflation closely watched by the RBA fell to 2.9%, returning to within the 2-3% inflation target band for the first time since 2021.

    Food and beverages, tobacco, education and housing were the main contributors to the rise in the headline Consumer Price Index.

    Financial markets are pricing in a quarter-percentage point cut in the cash rate to 3.85% in May.

    The inflation report was the last piece of major economic data before Saturday’s federal election.

    Prices are still rising, just at a slower rate

    A fall in inflation does not mean prices are falling. Overall, prices are continuing to rise, but at a slower pace.

    Moreover, prices continue to rise at a higher rate for some things people notice most, such as meat, fruit and vegetables. Concerns about the high cost of living will not go away. But it is good news for households that prices are now rising less than wages, which are growing by 3.2%.

    Some of the CPI components rising fastest are services such as health, which rose 4.1% in the year to March, and education, up 5.7%.

    Rents increased by 5.5% over the year, still rapid but less than in 2023 and 2024. The movements differed across the country. Rents were up almost 9% in Perth but fell in Hobart.

    New home prices only rose by 1.4% over the year as project-home builders made promotional offers to attract buyers in a more subdued market.

    Some of the recent fall in inflation represents the effect of government measures such as temporary electricity rebates and lower public transport fares. These represent some relief for households from cost-of-living pressures. But they may obscure trends in underlying inflationary pressures.

    The Reserve Bank’s preferred measure of underlying inflation, the trimmed mean measure, removes such impacts by excluding items with the largest price movements up or down. This measure of inflation has fallen to 2.9%, back within the central bank’s target, from 3.3%.

    Green light for an interest rate cut

    Headline inflation is around the middle of the Reserve Bank’s 2-3% medium-term target band. The large 1% quarterly increase in the June quarter of 2024 will drop out of the next annual calculation. So inflation may soon be below the bottom of the band. This has been forecast by Westpac’s economics team (headed by former RBA assistant governor Luci Ellis), for example.

    In its most recent published forecast the Reserve Bank expected inflation to be 2.4% in June. So it may be pleased to see it already there for two quarters. It would also be relieved to see the underlying rate back within the target band.

    In February, Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock conceded the bank had arguably been “late raising interest rates on the way up”. It did not want to be late on the way down.

    At its April 1 meeting, the Reserve Bank board called the May 19-20 meeting “an opportune time to revisit the monetary policy setting with the benefit of additional data about inflation” and other factors.



    Read more:
    Reserve Bank holds rates steady, cautious about the economic outlook

    Global economic outlook darkens

    The outlook for global economic activity has weakened as the US’s trade war with China has escalated. The International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for global economic growth in 2025 from 3.3% to 2.8%.

    The negative outlook for the global economy and rising business uncertainty certainly adds weight to the case for an official interest rate cut. It would help Australian businesses weather a possible downturn.

    Tariff rises will push up inflation in the US. But there is a bipartisan commitment in Australia not to engage in retaliatory tariff increases. This means there will not be any such inflationary impetus here.

    Indeed, as Bullock pointed out in her April press conference, if China diverts exports that are effectively blocked from entering the US to Australia, then the US tariffs may lower inflationary pressures here.

    Concerns about the inflationary impact of a weaker Australian dollar have eased in recent days. The currency has rebounded to 64 US cents from its early April low of 59.5 US cents.

    The Reserve Bank will, as always, consider a wide range of information in deciding whether to cut interest rates in May. But the single most important piece of information is now giving it the green light.

    Market economists expect another couple of rate cuts in 2025 after May, depending on the impact of the erratic US economic policies on the global economy.

    What does it mean for the election?

    After the CPI release, Treasurer Jim Chalmers noted core inflation was at a three-year low. “This is a powerful demonstration of the progress that Australians have made together in the economy,” he said.

    Chalmers will be hoping the Reserve Bank and the electorate share his view. Labor is more likely to be re-elected if voters regard the cost-of-living pressures as abating.

    John Hawkins was previously a senior economist in the Reserve Bank.

    Stephen Bartos does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Inflation is easing, boosting the case for another interest rate cut in May – https://theconversation.com/inflation-is-easing-boosting-the-case-for-another-interest-rate-cut-in-may-255116

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The NSU History Museum exhibition “The Great Patriotic War in Faces. Novosibirsk State University” opened at NSU

    Translation. Region: Russian Federal

    Source: Novosibirsk State University – Novosibirsk State University –

    The exhibition presents the stories of people who directly participated in military actions or were engaged in scientific activities and made a tangible contribution to the victory of the people of the Soviet Union over fascist Germany. In total, the exhibition contains 126 portraits. Until May 23, the exhibition can be seen in the second-floor passage between the first and third blocks of the NSU Academic Building (1 Pirogova St.).

    — Of course, there are academicians here. For example, Mikhail Alekseevich Lavrentyev, Hero of Socialist Labor, laureate of the Lenin and State (Stalin) Prizes. He received some of these awards for his scientific contribution to the people’s victory. He was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, Second Class, and five Orders of Lenin. His research and the cumulative shells he developed played a major role and influenced the outcome of the Battle of Kursk in 1943. Among the veterans, those people who made a significant contribution, there are many researchers. For example, Aleksey Andreyevich Lyapunov, Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences. He was a very young lieutenant when, during offensive battles in the area of the Kursk Magnetic Anomaly, he made an adjustment for magnetic deviation in the artillery calculation, which ensured the success of the artillery preparation, — said Lidiya Vorobtsova, Director of the NSU History Museum.

    Another participant in the war was Samson Semenovich Kutateladze, an academician, founder of one of the leading scientific schools in thermal physics and hydrodynamics. He was at the front from August 1941 to May 1945. The legendary rector of NSU Spartak Timofeevich Belyaev, an academician, professor, has many awards, he went through the entire war and was demobilized with the rank of junior lieutenant.

    The exhibition presents stories not only of outstanding scientists and academicians, but also of those people who worked and taught at NSU. For example, Angelina Ivanovna Kuzmina is a linguist and participant in the Great Patriotic War.

    — I personally remember her very well. When I was studying at the Humanities Department, in the late 1970s — early 1980s, Angelina Ivanovna taught us German. She went through almost the entire war from the spring of 1942 until its end. She was a telegraph operator, a radio operator, and a communications platoon commander, and also worked as a translator during this period. She was a unique person, a candidate of philological sciences, an associate professor at our university. A very charming and positive-minded woman, — recalls Lidiya Vorobtsova.

    Luiza Stefanovna Bocharova is a candidate of economic sciences, a senior lecturer, and later an associate professor of the political economy department of our university. She worked in counterintelligence at the headquarters of the 2nd Air Army of the Southwestern Front, and later the 1st Ukrainian Front.

    The exhibition also features a portrait and history of Lev Yakovlevich Savelyev, a professor at the NSU Department of Higher Mathematics and a participant in the Great Patriotic War. Lev Yakovlevich was born in 1929 in Odessa. At the age of 14, he volunteered for the Red Army, and in a short period of time, he received the qualification of “3rd class radio operator-telegraphist” and the military rank of “corporal” at radio operator courses. After demobilization in August 1945, Lev Yakovlevich continued his studies at school, and two years later he became a student at the Mathematics Department of Moscow State University. After graduating from Moscow State University, he came to Novosibirsk, where NSU had just opened. He taught courses in mathematical and functional analysis, probability theory and mathematical statistics, random processes, and many others.

    We can literally talk for a very long time about each “hero” of the exhibition, because each one made their own contribution to the Victory.

    — I think that students, teachers, and staff will be very pleased to see and read about the people who are presented at the exhibition. In addition, we have two special pages on the website of the NSU History Museum. One is also dedicated to the participants of the Great Patriotic War, and the second page is called “War Participants Remember,” that is, these are memories of the war years. You can always go to the website of our museum and get to know them. The heroes of these stories describe their time and how they, still very young guys, many just after finishing school, went to war. Some left universities, some just graduated from university and went to the front at that time. Recently, we had an exhibition dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the birth of one of the oldest professors of the Humanities Institute, then the Humanities Faculty, Varlen Lvovich Soskin. In the exposition, we presented more extensive information about the period when he was at war. Overall, we have war photographs of about half of the war participants, so there is something to look at and appreciate, to be proud of those people who taught and worked at our university, and those thanks to whom we are now celebrating this wonderful holiday, Victory Day, – summed up Lidiya Vorobtsova.

    The exhibition materials were collected from several sources. These include materials from the NSU History Museum, personal files from the NSU archive, written memoirs of combatants, and photographs of the “Victory Relay” that took place in 2010. At one time, for the 30th anniversary of the Victory in 1975, a large stand was displayed on the wall near the Maltsevskaya Auditorium, which is located in the main, historical building of NSU, where about 70 war veterans were presented. The NSU History Museum supplemented this information over time. In addition to the materials from the 1970-80s exhibitions, the Museum staff analyzed reference publications for the 75th anniversary of the Great Victory, which also mention the stories of Siberian front-line soldiers. The NSU Social Management Department, which works directly with WWII veterans, helped to fill in some personal stories and also display them along with the portraits at the exhibition.

    Today’s exhibition presents the most complete information on the majority of those people who are associated with Novosibirsk State University and the Siberian Branch of Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences and who are direct participants in the Great Patriotic War or contributed to the Victory through their scientific work.

    In addition to portraits and stories of NSU employees, teachers and scientists, the exhibition features a digital panel with documents from the Novosibirsk Regional Archives, which are dedicated to the heroism of Siberians during the Great Patriotic War. The demonstration was organized by Andrey Vladimirovich Dmitriev, head of the Department of Russian History at the NSU Humanities Institute. The exhibition includes three expositions:

    “Breakthrough Division”

    The exhibition is dedicated to the combat path of the 133rd Rifle Division, later the 18th Guards Division, formed before 1941 in Novosibirsk and taking part in many battles of the Great Patriotic War. This division fought on the Kalinin Front in the autumn of 1941 and in the winter of 1941-1942 during the Battle of Moscow, participated in battles near Rzhev, in Belarus and the Baltics, and ended its journey on the territory of East Prussia.

    “Novosibirsk residents to the front”

    The exhibition presents materials related to the history of the 150th Rifle, then 22nd Guards Siberian Volunteer Division, created in Novosibirsk in the summer of 1942. Those people whose names are given to the streets of our city fought and died in its ranks: Mikhail Perevozchikov, Boris Bogatkov, Olga Zhilina.

    “Novosibirsk – a city of labor valor”

    The exhibition contains systematized data on the contribution of our fellow countrymen who remained in the rear to achieving Victory. Among them, one can highlight the collection of funds and voluntary donations, the production of weapons, the procurement of food and much more. All this data was collected and prepared by Novosibirsk historians and archivists to justify assigning Novosibirsk the title of “City of Labor Valor” in 2020.

    The exhibit files contain electronic copies of original archival documents, a number of unique photographs, text explanations and illustrative materials. The Novosibirsk Regional Archives exhibition will continue to work until May 12.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Which Roman emperor was most like Donald Trump?

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Edwell, Associate Professor in Ancient History, Macquarie University

    SvetlanaVV/Shutterstock

    Something tells me US president Donald Trump would love to be a Roman emperor. The mythology of unrestrained power with sycophants doing his bidding would be seductive.

    But in fact, Roman emperors were heavily constrained by institutions, the economy and popular mood. Yes, some challenged and sidelined the institutions of their day – but this often sparked a powerful backlash.

    As someone who’s studied Ancient Rome for years, I’ve recently been asked which Roman emperor was most like Donald Trump. In some ways he’s a pastiche of several Roman leaders.

    Julius Caesar

    Of course, Julius Caesar was never an emperor. He was a military leader and politician when the Roman Republic was in its death throes.

    While Trump has no military experience, some have compared him with Caesar.

    English classicist Mary Beard explains the appeal of this comparison for Trump’s foes and supporters alike.

    The Roman Republic was originally a system of shared political authority. The Senate, the people and elected magistrates shared power.

    But in the first century BC, powerful and charismatic figures became more prominent. The old power-sharing arrangements broke down.

    Caesar was the ultimate populist who overthrew the conventional means of Republican government.
    Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913/The Metropolitan Museum of Art

    Caesar was the most significant of these figures. He was the ultimate populist who overthrew the conventional means of Republican government. Due to his military successes, vast fortune and enormous popular appeal, Caesar broke the system entirely.

    Caesar fast-tracked the development of executive power in one person. This doomed the Roman Republic itself.

    Trump has also sidelined key institutions and increased the powers of singular executive government. Threatening judges and the chair of the Federal Reserve are further examples of over-reach.

    Trump draws on popular appeal to escape ramifications for these actions. His TV career, political rallies and domination of the news cycle contribute to a cult of personality.

    Caesar paid the ultimate price for concentrating executive power in himself. He was stabbed to death by a group of angry senators. The republic, however, was beyond saving.

    Caesar and the Roman Republic were different to Trump and America. Caesar was a blue-blood patrician, which Trump isn’t. Rome had its most powerful centuries ahead of it, while America is in decline.

    Octavian: the man who became Augustus

    Caesar didn’t manage the transition from Republic to autocracy. It was his nephew, Octavian, who did that.

    After more than a decade of civil wars following Caesar’s murder in 44 BCE, Octavian became Augustus (27 BCE–14 CE) or emperor.

    While he claimed to restore the republic, Augustus exercised ultimate power over the army, political institutions and the courts. He finished the process Caesar and others began, dominating the Senate and once-powerful positions such as consulships.

    Augustus’ domination of the entire political system draws parallels with Trump. Some observers liken Trump to Augustus. They see similarities in Trump’s intimidation of institutions (including the courts and media) that provide checks on presidential power.

    Augustus also developed a cult of personality, which is a feature of Trump’s rise.

    Nero: from populist to pariah

    Nero (54–68 CE), a colourful successor of Augustus, employed advisors with no political backgrounds. Epaphroditus, for example, was a former slave who became Nero’s secretary. He controlled the flow of information to and from the emperor. He became very wealthy and was intensely loyal to Nero.

    Trump has shown similar instincts. Think of the wide-ranging powers to cut government programs granted to Elon Musk and his inexperienced team.

    Like Trump, Nero could entertain a crowd. He publicly sang and recited poetry, which previous emperors never did. The elites detested this but the broader population loved it. Nero also put on lavish palace banquets.

    But by the time of his death by suicide aged 30, Nero had isolated everyone.

    It’s too simplistic, though, to say Trump is a Nero, as others have done. Trump remains connected to a large support base, as evidenced by his two presidential election victories.

    Like Trump, Nero could entertain a crowd.
    Ivan Moreno sl/Shutterstock

    Roman emperors were constrained by institutions

    While Roman emperors dominated the institutions of state, they were still constrained by them. Some who fell foul of the army, the most important state institution, met ignominious ends.

    In 217 CE, the unpopular emperor Caracalla was knifed by a soldier while relieving himself.

    Emperor Caracalla was eventually stabbed by a soldier while relieving himself.
    Samuel D. Lee Fund, 1940/The Metropolitan Museum of Art

    Emperor Severus Alexander was murdered in 235 CE by his own troops while clutching his mother’s knees.

    Some speculate the US army might intervene to protect the Constitution against Trump. But the army’s relationship to the US government is more complex than in ancient Rome.

    Some emperors became unpopular due to their arrogance toward the Senate, court officials and their own bodyguards.

    In 96 CE, Domitian was killed in a conspiracy of the court chamberlain. His death was cheered by many due to his autocratic style.

    And Emperor Commodus, once popular due to his eccentric antics and public games, was murdered by a champion wrestler in 192 CE. His mistress, Praetorian prefect and court chamberlain arranged it. The Senate declared Commodus a public enemy.

    The creeping power of executive authority

    The over-reach of executive authority will likely define Trump’s second term. But there are many constraints he can’t ignore. Some of the most powerful operate outside America. Bond-holders, of whom China is the second largest, are a notable example.

    The eventual displeasure of support bases may hasten the demise of the Trump phenomenon. I sincerely hope it doesn’t end with the brutality some of the emperors met with.

    Executive over-reach and intimidation of key institutions may permanently damage America’s reputation. In the case of ancient Rome, we know the outcomes. What comes next in America is the great unknown.

    Peter Edwell receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

    – ref. Which Roman emperor was most like Donald Trump? – https://theconversation.com/which-roman-emperor-was-most-like-donald-trump-254573

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Is your child anxious about going on school camp? Here are 4 ways to prepare

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Micah Boerma, Researcher, School of Psychology and Wellbeing, University of Southern Queensland

    Nitinai Thabthong/Shutterstock

    One of the highlights of the school year is an overnight excursion or school camp. These can happen as early as Year 3.

    While many students are very excited about the chance to go away with their classmates, some may experience anxiety and even fear about being away from home and their usual routines.

    Anxiety disorders are the second most common mental disorder among children and adolescents in Australia. One in 14 young people are affected.

    Separation anxiety (fear or dread about being separated from caregivers) is the most common anxiety disorder amongst young people in Australia. This affects about 4% of young people aged four to 17. Students with anxiety may refuse to attend the camp. Or they may go and not participate in activities or have periods of intense anxiety.

    While these trips are a small part of a young person’s school year, positive and negative experiences can form important beliefs about their self-confidence and independence.

    Here are four ways to prepare your anxious child to attend and enjoy camp.

    1. Understand the anxieties

    Anxiety isn’t a one-size-fits-all condition. For one child, it may be the fear of not fitting in or the dread of being homesick. For another, it may be the fear of being away from parents, believing something bad will happen.

    So the first step is to really listen to a child about their anxietty.
    Asking open-ended questions, such as “what is the one thing about going to camp that worries you most?” can help to determine their core fear.

    When they tell you, avoid jumping in quickly to reassure them they “will be fine”. This can feel dismissive and invalidate their concerns.

    Instead, reflect what you hear so they feel understood. For example, “I hear you a really worried about what it will be like to spend the night away from us. You’ve never done this before.”

    Ask your child what they are worried about. Maybe it’s a certain activity on camp.
    Andrew Angelov/Shutterstock

    2. Understand the ‘cycle of avoidance’

    Anxious people tend to overestimate the likelihood of something terrible happening and underestimate their ability to cope if it occurred.

    When a young person sidesteps something scary, they feel initial relief. But this avoidance prevents them from learning the feared situation may not be as dangerous as think. Importantly, they do not get the opportunity to test their coping skills and build confidence. This inadvertently increases their anxiety.

    It can help to talk to your child about how avoiding camp might feel better in the short term but it makes fun activities – such as sleepovers or trips – harder in the future.

    4. Build the ‘bravery muscle’

    You also might want to talk about how you can build the “bravery muscle”.

    This involves gradually exposing a child to their fears and building confidence in their ability to cope. This way fears lose their power.

    Start with easier tasks. For example, if the main worry is “something bad will happen to mum and dad if I am not with them at night”, start with your child staying with a grandparent while you go out for dinner. Then you could try staying overnight at a grandparent or a trusted friend’s house.

    You can also pair these tasks with coping tools. Your child could do a breathing exercise or a grounding excercise, where they focus on things around them, rather than the thoughts and feelings distressing them.

    When organising these tasks, it is crucial parents acknowledge the distress their child might experience, while communicating their confidence the child can do it.

    Celebrate every effort and task completed, no matter how small.

    You could prepare for camp with a sleepover somewhere else.
    NataliyaBack/Shutterstock

    4. Make a plan with school

    Parents and caregivers are not in this alone. So make sure you talk to your class teacher or year group leader if you haven’t already. Some helpful tips are:

    • organise a “camp buddy” for the bus ride or to share a tent/room with

    • organise a “go-to” teacher for your child to gain support from during camp

    • access information about the accommodation and activities as soon as possible so you can practice. This could include your child camping in a tent with a friend, bike riding, or bush walking.

    It’s not expected the steps above will erase your child’s anxiety entirely – that is not realistic. But they can give them coping tools to face their anxiety and come out the other side stronger. School camps can be an exciting experience where a young person may discover they are braver than they thought.

    Micah Boerma does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Is your child anxious about going on school camp? Here are 4 ways to prepare – https://theconversation.com/is-your-child-anxious-about-going-on-school-camp-here-are-4-ways-to-prepare-252290

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for April 30, 2025

    ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on April 30, 2025.

    Locked up for life? Unpacking South Australia’s new child sex crime laws
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Xanthe Mallett, Criminologist, CQUniversity Australia Melnikov Dmitriy/Shutterstock It’s election time, which means the age old “tough on crime” rhetoric is being heralded by many politicians aiming to score votes. Opposition leader Peter Dutton is pushing for a national public sex offender register. Currently only Western Australia has

    Why do dogs eat poo? A canine scientist explains
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mia Cobb, Research Fellow, Animal Welfare Science Centre, The University of Melbourne nygi/Unsplash When miniature dachshund Valerie was captured after 529 days alone in the wilds of Australia’s Kangaroo Island, experts speculated she survived partly by eating other animals’ poo. While this survival tactic may have saved

    On ‘moral panic’ and the courage to speak – the West’s silence on Gaza
    Palestinians do not have the luxury to allow Western moral panic to have its say or impact. Not caving in to this panic is one small, but important, step in building a global Palestine network that is urgently needed, writes Dr Ilan Pappé ANALYSIS: By Ilan Pappé Responses in the Western world to the genocide

    Sick of eating the same things? 5 ways to boost your nutrition and keep meals interesting and healthy
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Collins, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle Loquellano/Pexels Did you start 2025 with a promise to eat better but didn’t quite get there? Or maybe you want to branch out from making the same meal every week or the same lunch for work

    Peace in our time? Why NZ should resist Trump’s one-sided plan for Ukraine
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert G. Patman, Professor of International Relations, University of Otago GettyImages Getty Images Is it possible to reconcile increased international support for Ukraine with Donald Trump’s plan to end the war? At their recent meeting in London, Christopher Luxon and his British counterpart Keir Starmer seemed to

    ‘A living collective’: study shows trees synchronise electrical signals during a solar eclipse
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Monica Gagliano, Research Associate Professor in Evolutionary Biology, Southern Cross University Zenit Arti Audiovisive Earth’s cycles of light and dark profoundly affect billions of organisms. Events such as solar eclipses are known to bring about marked shifts in animals, but do they have the same effect on

    Greenpeace slams deep sea mining bid as ‘rogue’ disregard for global law
    By Reza Azam Greenpeace has condemned an announcement by The Metals Company to submit the first application to commercially mine the seabed. “The first application to commercially mine the seabed will be remembered as an act of total disregard for international law and scientific consensus,” said Greenpeace International senior campaigner Louisa Casson. “This unilateral US

    State of the states: the campaign is almost over, so how has it played out across Australia?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Clune, Honorary Associate, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney While many Australians have already voted at pre-poll stations and by post, the politicking continues right up until May 3. So what’s happened across the country over the past five weeks? Here, six experts analyse how

    ‘No compassion… just blame’: how weight stigma in maternity care harms larger-bodied women and their babies
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Briony Hill, Deputy Head, Health and Social Care Unit and Senior Research Fellow, Monash University Kate Cashin Photography According to a study from the United States, women experience weight stigma in maternity care at almost every visit. We expect this experience to be similar in Australia, where

    Renewables, coal or nuclear? This election, your generation’s energy preference may play a surprising role
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Magnus Söderberg, Professor & Director, Centre for Applied Energy Economics and Policy Research, Griffith University Christie Cooper/Shutterstock In an otherwise unremarkable election campaign, the major parties are promising sharply different energy blueprints for Australia. Labor is pitching a high-renewables future powered largely by wind, solar, hydroelectricity and

    Trump says diversity initiatives undermine merit. Decades of research show this is flawed
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paula McDonald, Professor of Work and Organisation, Queensland University of Technology Pixel-Shot/Shutterstock US President Donald Trump declared earlier this year he would forge a “colour blind and merit-based society”. His executive order was part of a broader policy directing the US military, federal agencies and other public

    Housing affordability is at the centre of this election, yet two major reforms seem all but off-limits
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matt Garrow, Editorial Web Developer This federal election, both major parties have offered a “grab bag” of policy fixes for Australia’s stubborn housing affordability crisis. But there are still two big policy elephants in the room, which neither side wants to touch. The first is negative gearing.

    The Vietnam War ended 50 years ago today, yet films about the conflict still struggle to capture its complexities
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Scarlette Nhi Do, Sessional Academic, The University of Melbourne Scene from Apocalypse Now (1979) Prime Video The Vietnam War (1955–1975) was more than just a chapter in the Cold War. For some, it was supposed to achieve Vietnam’s right to self-determination. For others, it was an attempt

    Willis warns of a ‘tight’ budget to come, but NZ should be going for productivity, not austerity
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dennis Wesselbaum, Associate Professor, Department of Economics, University of Otago Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images Finance Minister Nicola Willis has warned her 2025 “Growth Budget” will be “one of the tightest budgets in a decade”, with plans to reduce spending by billions. It’s clear New Zealand is following a

    50 years after the ‘fall’ of Saigon – from triumph to Trump
    30 April 1975. Saigon Fell, Vietnam Rose. The story of Vietnam after the US fled the country is not a fairy tale, it is not a one-dimensional parable of resurrection, of liberation from oppression, of joy for all — but there is a great deal to celebrate. After over a century of brutal colonial oppression

    Labor maintains clear lead in all polls and is likely to win election
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Labor leads by between 52–48 and 53–47 in four new national polls from Resolve, Essential, Morgan and DemosAU. While Labor’s vote slumped from a high 55.5–44.5 in

    Election Diary: Albanese will be encouraged by ‘Trump’ effect in helping Canadian Liberals to victory
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Labor will be encouraged by the Liberals’ victory in Canada’s election, undoubtedly much helped by US President Donald Trump. Trump’s extraordinary attack on the United States’ northern ally, with his repeated suggestion Canada should be the 51st American state, galvanised

    French Minister Valls warns New Caledonia is ‘on a tightrope’, pleads for ‘innovative’ solutions
    By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk French Minister for Overseas Manuel Valls, who is visiting New Caledonia this week for the third time in two months, has once again called on all parties to live up to their responsibilities in order to make a new political agreement possible. Failing that, he said

    Did ‘induced atmospheric vibration’ cause blackouts in Europe? An electrical engineer explains the phenomenon
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mehdi Seyedmahmoudian, Professor of Electrical Engineering, School of Engineering, Swinburne University of Technology The lights are mostly back on in Spain, Portugal and southern France after a widespread blackout on Monday. The blackout caused chaos for tens of millions of people. It shut down traffic lights and

    Tarakinikini appointed as Fiji’s ambassador-designate to Israel
    By Anish Chand in Suva Filipo Tarakinikini has been appointed as Fiji’s Ambassador-designate to Israel. This has been stated on two official X, formerly Twitter, handle posts overnight. “#Fiji is determined to deepen its relations with #Israel as Fiji’s Ambassador-designate to Israel, HE Ambassador @AFTarakinikini prepares to present his credentials on 28 April, 2025,” stated

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Mud pies for some, barriers for others

    Source:

    30 April 2025

    When we think of nature play, we envision children swinging from trees, decorating mud pies with gum nuts, and delving through creek beds. But nature play must be more than this and needs to cater to children of all ages and capabilities, say researchers at the University of South Australia.

    Now, as Australians head to the polls – and with equity and education on the national agenda – new research has revealed a gap in how nature playspaces are designed and delivered across the country.

    Despite the growing popularity of nature play areas that help children climb, dig, and connect with nature, a new study has found no clear, evidence-based guidelines to ensure all children – regardless of age, ability, or location – can access and benefit from these spaces.

    The review of more than 7000 documents identified only one regulatory guideline, with most offering inconsistent, vague or incomplete advice for those planning nature play in schools, early learning centres, and communities.

    UniSA researcher, Dr Kylie Dankiw, says that without a national approach to the design and development of nature playspaces, some children will be left on the sidelines.

    “Nature playspaces are known to support children’s health, development, and well-being. But without national practice guidelines, families, educators, councils and planners may struggle to know the best way to create them,” Dr Dankiw says.

    “These spaces offer hands-on experiences with nature, plants, sand, stones, and even sounds – which foster creativity, curiosity, and a deeper connection to the environment.

    “Being in and around nature sparks children’s imagination and, with the right design, can inspire creativity, problem-solving, and meaningful discoveries.

    “As more playspaces are created in early learning centres, schools and communities, it’s vital they’re made safe, inclusive and enriching for all.

    “While many guidelines highlight key features that can support the design of nature playspaces, the advice is often unclear, inconsistent, or lacking in detail, making it hard to apply in different settings, age groups, and developmental needs.

    “Without national guidelines, different advocacy and regulatory groups are using different approaches, which can lead to confusion around safety, accessibility, and the best way to support children’s development.”

    Co-researcher, UniSA’s Dr Margarita Tsiros, says that national, research-backed recommendations are needed to ensure consistency and quality across the country.

    “All children can benefit from nature play. While many existing spaces include engaging and inclusive elements, there is a real need for evidence-based guidance to help designers, educators, and councils create high-quality nature experiences,” Dr Tsiros says.

    “We need to champion nature play with a shared understanding that it’s about giving children joy, freedom and opportunities to connect with the natural world.

    “With practical safe and inclusive national guidelines, Australia’s nature playspaces can truly support the needs of all children.”

    …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

    Contacts for interview:  Dr Kylie Dankiw E: Kylie.Dankiw@unisa.edu.au
    Media contact: Annabel Mansfield M: +61 479 182 489 E: Annabel.Mansfield@unisa.edu.au

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Locked up for life? Unpacking South Australia’s new child sex crime laws

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Xanthe Mallett, Criminologist, CQUniversity Australia

    Melnikov Dmitriy/Shutterstock

    It’s election time, which means the age old “tough on crime” rhetoric is being heralded by many politicians aiming to score votes.

    Opposition leader Peter Dutton is pushing for a national public sex offender register. Currently only Western Australia has a registry that is open to the public.

    In South Australia, Premier Peter Malinauskas brought in tougher child sex offender laws earlier this week.

    What are these new laws in SA?

    Under these new laws, serious child sex offenders are to be permanently locked up or electronically monitored, if they reoffend.

    Automatic indefinite detention is a significant change.

    Previously, the South Australian attorney-general could apply to the Supreme Court to request an offender be indefinitely detained, if the offender was considered to remain a danger to children and could not be rehabilitated.

    The courts would then decide if they would grant the request, basing their decision on medical and other expert evidence.

    The changes in SA mean those found guilty of a second serious sexual offence against anyone younger than 17 now receive automatic indefinite detention.

    To be considered for release under the new law, an offender needs to show they can control their sexual instincts – so the onus is on them to prove they are not at risk of reoffending.

    To achieve this, two court-selected psychologists would have to provide reports demonstrating the offender was both willing and able to resist committing further sex offences.

    And if they are ever released, they will be electronically monitored for the rest of their lives.

    In addition, registered child sex offenders would be banned from working with anyone under 18.

    The new law also strengthens “Carly’s Law”, which focuses on reducing the sexual grooming of children online by adult predators.

    Inconsistencies across Australia

    The age of legal consent is 16 across Australia, except SA and Tasmania, where it is 17.

    In 2024, an Australian Institute of Criminology report highlighted many of the inconsistencies across the country, including terminology and definitions of sexual offences, despite efforts to achieve national regularity.

    Each state and territory approaches the problem of child sexual abuse differently.

    In NSW, for example, sentencing for child sexual offences has increased over time. This reflects societal expectations given what we know now about the long-term, traumatic consequences of victimisation.

    However, one consideration in sentencing in NSW is whether the sentence could have a “crushing” effect on the offender, and whether they may be entitled to an “element of mercy”.

    Certainly, a full life sentence is a significant departure from this position.

    Why now?

    There is little doubt this is a political move, as these changes were first promised by Labor in the build-up to the 2022 SA election.

    Then in January 2025, Labor announced it planned to introduce them in March – right before the federal election.

    On the face of it, toughening laws aimed at reducing sexual violence against children is a good thing. No one would argue.

    However, the legislation has been fast-tracked in the wake of a number of cases where those previously convicted of a sexual offence against a child reoffended.

    One such case is Dylan Lloyd, who is alleged to have assaulted a 12-year-old girl while she travelled alone on a train. Lloyd had previously been convicted of assaulting a 10-year-old girl in 2021, and since then more alleged victims have come forward to police.

    Cases such as Lloyd’s are preventable, as in this case Lloyd should still be imprisoned. This is one step forward. But consistency across states is needed and the long-term consequences need considering more fully.

    Whether these laws will have the desired deterrent effect has not been answered.

    We need to ensure personal and societal factors affecting crime rates, and which influence peoples’ attitudes and behaviours, are not overlooked.

    Will the laws be good for the community?

    These changes do have the potential to have a meaningful impact, but changing the behaviour of potential offenders is far more complex.

    Potential offenders usually don’t consider the law. At a micro level, their behaviour is most affected by biological and psychological factors, including alcohol, drug addiction and mental health issues, as well as social and environmental factors.

    In addition, there are numerous human rights and constitutional issues with permanent detention or lifelong monitoring, and the SA government may be walking into a legal minefield now they have removed the possibility of parole.

    It would be better to allow judges options for discretion, as the context in which the offending happened is crucial in determining the likelihood of someone being successfully rehabilitated.

    Mandatory full life sentences ignore the fact many sex offenders can be successfully rehabilitated.

    One study in Queensland, which considered local and global evidence, indicated sexual recidivism can be significant reduced when offenders complete sex offender treatment programs.

    Although it costs money to run these programs, the savings outweigh the costs of ongoing incarceration – particularly if we consider indefinite detention.

    Black-and-white laws with little room for movement produce unintended and harmful outcomes.

    It will be interesting to see how the new laws in SA play out in court and if any other states and territories follow suit.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Locked up for life? Unpacking South Australia’s new child sex crime laws – https://theconversation.com/locked-up-for-life-unpacking-south-australias-new-child-sex-crime-laws-255429

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Did ‘induced atmospheric vibration’ cause blackouts in Europe? An electrical engineer explains the phenomenon

    Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Mehdi Seyedmahmoudian, Professor of Electrical Engineering, School of Engineering, Swinburne University of Technology

    The lights are mostly back on in Spain, Portugal and southern France after a widespread blackout on Monday.

    The blackout caused chaos for tens of millions of people. It shut down traffic lights and ATMs, halted public transport, cut phone service and forced people to eat dinner huddled around candles as night fell. Many people found themselves trapped in trains and elevators.

    Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has said the exact cause of the blackout is yet to be determined. In early reporting, Portugal’s grid operator REN was quoted as blaming the event on a rare phenomenon known as “induced atmospheric vibration”. REN has since reportedly refuted this.

    But what is this vibration? And how can energy systems be improved to mitigate the risk of widespread blackouts?

    How much does weather affect electricity?

    Weather is a major cause of disruptions to electricity supply. In fact, in the United States, 83% of reported blackouts between 2000 and 2021 were attributed to weather-related events.

    The ways weather can affect the supply of electricity are manifold. For example, cyclones can bring down transmission lines, heatwaves can place too high a demand on the grid, and bushfires can raze substations.

    Wind can also cause transmission lines to vibrate. These vibrations are characterised by either high amplitude and low frequency (known as “conductor galloping”), or low amplitude and high frequency (known as “aeolian vibrations”).

    These vibrations are a significant problem for grid operators. They can place increased stress on grid infrastructure, potentially leading to blackouts.

    To reduce the risk of vibration, grid operators often use wire stabilisers known as “stock bridge dampers”.

    What is ‘induced atmospheric vibration’?

    Vibrations in power lines can also be caused by extreme changes in temperature or air pressure. And this is one hypothesis about what caused the recent widespread blackout across the Iberian peninsula.

    As The Guardian initially reported Portugal’s REN as saying:

    Due to extreme temperature variations in the interior of Spain, there were anomalous oscillations in the very high voltage lines (400 kV), a phenomenon known as “induced atmospheric vibration”. These oscillations caused synchronisation failures between the electrical systems, leading to successive disturbances across the interconnected European network.

    In fact, “induced atmospheric vibration” is not a commonly used term, but it seems likely the explanation was intended to refer to physical processes climate scientists have known about for quite some time.

    In simple terms, it seems to refer to wavelike movements or oscillations in the atmosphere, caused by sudden changes in temperature or pressure. These can be triggered by extreme heating, large-scale energy releases (such as explosions or bushfires), or intense weather events.

    When a part of Earth’s surface heats up very quickly – due to a heatwave, for example – the air above it warms, expands and becomes lighter. That rising warm air creates a pressure imbalance with the surrounding cooler, denser air. The atmosphere responds to this imbalance by generating waves, not unlike ripples spreading across a pond.

    These pressure waves can travel through the atmosphere. In some cases, they can interact with power infrastructure — particularly long-distance, high-voltage transmission lines.

    These types of atmospheric waves are usually called gravity waves, thermal oscillations or acoustic-gravity waves. While the phrase “induced atmospheric vibration” is not formally established in meteorology, it seems to describe this same family of phenomena.

    What’s important is that it’s not just high temperatures alone that causes these effects — it’s how quickly and unevenly the temperature changes across a region. That’s what sets the atmosphere into motion and can cause power lines to vibrate. Again, though, it’s still unclear if this is what was behind the recent blackout in Europe.

    Atmospheric waves can sometimes be seen in clouds.
    Jeff Schmaltz/NASA

    More centralised, more vulnerable

    Understanding how the atmosphere behaves under these conditions is becoming increasingly important. As our energy systems become more interconnected and more dependent on long-distance transmission, even relatively subtle atmospheric disturbances can have outsized impacts. What might once have seemed like a fringe effect is now a growing factor in grid resilience.

    Under growing environmental and electrical stress, centralised energy networks are dangerously vulnerable. The increasing electrification of buildings, the rapid uptake of electric vehicles, and the integration of intermittent renewable energy sources have placed unprecedented pressure on traditional grids that were never designed for this level of complexity, dynamism or centralisation.

    Continuing to rely on centralised grid structures without fundamentally rethinking resilience puts entire regions at risk — not just from technical faults, but from environmental volatility.

    The way to avoid such catastrophic risks is clear: we must embrace innovative solutions such as community microgrids. These are decentralised, flexible and resilient energy networks that can operate independently when needed.

    Strengthening local energy autonomy is key to building a secure, affordable and future-ready electricity system.

    The European blackout, regardless of its immediate cause, demonstrates that our electrical grids have become dangerously sensitive. Failure to address these structural weaknesses will have consequences far worse than those experienced during the COVID pandemic.

    Mehdi Seyedmahmoudian does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Did ‘induced atmospheric vibration’ cause blackouts in Europe? An electrical engineer explains the phenomenon – https://theconversation.com/did-induced-atmospheric-vibration-cause-blackouts-in-europe-an-electrical-engineer-explains-the-phenomenon-255497

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-Evening Report: On ‘moral panic’ and the courage to speak – the West’s silence on Gaza

    Palestinians do not have the luxury to allow Western moral panic to have its say or impact. Not caving in to this panic is one small, but important, step in building a global Palestine network that is urgently needed, writes Dr Ilan Pappé

    ANALYSIS: By Ilan Pappé

    Responses in the Western world to the genocide in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank raise a troubling question: why is the official West, and official Western Europe in particular, so indifferent to Palestinian suffering?

    Why is the Democratic Party in the US complicit, directly and indirectly, in sustaining the daily inhumanity in Palestine — a complicity so visible that it probably was one reason they lost the election, as the Arab American and progressive vote in key states could, and justifiably so, not forgive the Biden administration for its part in the genocide in the Gaza Strip?

    This is a pertinent question, given that we are dealing with a televised genocide that has now been renewed on the ground. It is different from previous periods in which Western indifference and complicity were displayed, either during the Nakba or the long years of occupation since 1967.

    During the Nakba and up to 1967, it was not easy to get hold of information, and the oppression after 1967 was mostly incremental, and, as such, was ignored by the Western media and politics, which refused to acknowledge its cumulative effect on the Palestinians.

    But these last 18 months are very different. Ignoring the genocide in the Gaza Strip and the ethnic cleansing in the West Bank can only be described as intentional and not due to ignorance.

    Both the Israelis’ actions and the discourse that accompanies them are too visible to be ignored, unless politicians, academics, and journalists choose to do so.

    This kind of ignorance is, first and foremost, the result of successful Israeli lobbying that thrived on the fertile ground of an European guilt complex, racism and Islamophobia. In the case of the US, it is also the outcome of many years of an effective and ruthless lobbying machine that very few in academia, media, and, in particular, politics, dare to disobey.

    The moral panic phenomenon
    This phenomenon is known in recent scholarship as moral panic, very characteristic of the more conscientious sections of Western societies: intellectuals, journalists, and artists.

    Moral panic is a situation in which a person is afraid of adhering to his or her own moral convictions because this would demand some courage that might have consequences. We are not always tested in situations that require courage, or at least integrity. When it does happen, it is in situations where morality is not an abstract idea, but a call for action.

    This is why so many Germans were silent when Jews were sent to extermination camps, and this is why white Americans stood by when African Americans were lynched or, earlier on, enslaved and abused.

    What is the price that leading Western journalists, veteran politicians, tenured professors, or chief executives of well-known companies would have to pay if they were to blame Israel for committing a genocide in the Gaza Strip?

    It seems they are worried about two possible outcomes. The first is being condemned as antisemites or Holocaust deniers. Secondly, they fear an honest response would trigger a discussion that would include the complicity of their country, or Europe, or the West in general, in enabling the genocide and all the criminal policies against the Palestinians that preceded it.

    This moral panic leads to some astonishing phenomena. In general, it transforms educated, highly articulate and knowledgeable people into total imbeciles when they talk about Palestine.

    It disallows the more perceptive and thoughtful members of the security services from examining Israeli demands to include all Palestinian resistance on a terrorist list, and it dehumanises Palestinian victims in the mainstream media.

    Lack of compassion
    The lack of compassion and basic solidarity with the victims of genocide was exposed by the double standards shown by mainstream media in the West, and, in particular, by the more established newspapers in the US, such as The New York Times and The Washington Post.

    When the editor of The Palestine Chronicle, Dr Ramzy Baroud, lost 56 members of his family — killed by the Israeli genocidal campaign in the Gaza Strip — not one of his colleagues in American journalism bothered to talk to him or show any interest in hearing about this atrocity.

    On the other hand, a fabricated Israeli allegation of a connection between the Chronicle and a family, in whose block of flats hostages were held, triggered huge interest by these outlets.

    This imbalance in humanity and solidarity is just one example of the distortions that accompanies moral panic. I have little doubt that the actions against Palestinian or pro-Palestinian students in the US, or against known activists in Britain and France, as well as the arrest of the editor of the Electronic Intifada, Ali Abunimah, in Switzerland, are all manifestations of this distorted moral behaviour.

    A similar case unfolded just recently in Australia. Mary Kostakidis, a famous Australian journalist and former prime-time weeknight SBS World News Australia presenter, has been taken to the federal court over her — one should say quite tame — reporting on the situation in the Gaza Strip.

    The very fact that the court has not dismissed this allegation upon its arrival shows you how deeply rooted moral panic is in the Global North.

    But there is another side to it. Thankfully, there is a much larger group of people who are not afraid of taking the risks involved in clearly stating their support for the Palestinians, and who do show this solidarity while knowing it may lead to suspension, deportation, or even jail time. They are not easily found among the mainstream academia, media, or politics, but they are the authentic voice of their societies in many parts of the Western world.

    The Palestinians do not have the luxury of allowing Western moral panic to have its say or impact. Not caving in to this panic is one small but important step in building a global Palestine network that is urgently needed — firstly, to stop the destruction of Palestine and its people, and second, to create the conditions for a decolonised and liberated Palestine in the future.

    Dr Ilan Pappé is an Israeli historian, political scientist, and former politician. He is a professor with the College of Social Sciences and International Studies at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom, director of the university’s European Centre for Palestine Studies, and co-director of the Exeter Centre for Ethno-Political Studies. This article is republished from The Palestine Chronicle, 19 April 2025.

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Why do dogs eat poo? A canine scientist explains

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mia Cobb, Research Fellow, Animal Welfare Science Centre, The University of Melbourne

    nygi/Unsplash

    When miniature dachshund Valerie was captured after 529 days alone in the wilds of Australia’s Kangaroo Island, experts speculated she survived partly by eating other animals’ poo.

    While this survival tactic may have saved the resilient sausage dog, it highlights a behaviour that makes many dog owners cringe.

    This type of “recycling” is surprisingly common in our canine companions. But why would dogs, even those with full food bowls, choose to indulge in such a revolting habit?

    Here’s why some dogs can’t resist a faecal feast, known more technically as coprophagia.

    What is coprophagia?

    Coprophagia or coprophagy is the scientific term for eating faecal matter (poo). It’s a behaviour displayed across a number of animal species.

    Around half of all dogs try eating poo at some stage – either their own, another dog’s, or other animals’. Research suggests about one in four dogs have made it a regular habit.

    In wild canids like foxes and wolves, mothers will eat their puppies’ stools to keep dens clean and reduce scents that might attract predators.

    It’s also thought that eating fresh faeces could reduce the likelihood of intestinal parasites being spread, offering an evolutionary benefit to our dogs’ wild counterparts.

    Modern dogs still actively clean their puppies’ poo away in the first few weeks of life, a behaviour that puppies observe and can learn.

    Licking away ‘waste’ from their puppies is a normal maternal behaviour in dogs.
    Anurak Pongpatimet/Shutterstock

    Nutritional factors

    As unpalatable as it might seem to us, poo still contains considerable nutrients that offer valuable compounds as a food source when times are tough.

    Dogs do have different preferences to us in terms of texture, taste and odour of their food, so we should not be hasty to dismiss what might appeal to them.

    Medical reasons

    The links between diet, gut flora and diseases that might influence behaviours like coprophagia are still emerging. At this stage, there seems to be no apparent link with age or diet.

    There could be underlying health reasons for your dog seeking out a sneaky snack, so do mention it to your vet and get a health check if your dog is known to frequent the kitty litter box, for example.

    Punishment in toilet training, living conditions that don’t provide enough to do or room to explore (like kennel facilities), and psychological distress have all been linked to dogs eating their own poo.

    Shelters and kennel facilities are often built for hygiene and safety, not to keep dogs’ minds and bodies active.
    Evgenii Bakhchev/Shutterstock

    A strain on relationships

    Our typical response to seeing dogs eat any kind of poo ranges from disgust to concern. At best it makes us less likely to want a lick to the face, at worst it can really strain our human-animal bonds.

    One study from the United Kingdom showed that dogs eating their own poo after rehoming was in the top ten reasons for the adoption failing in the first four weeks when dogs were returned to the shelter.

    Dogs can potentially transmit parasites and bacteria to humans through licking, regardless of whether they eat poo. This serves as a good reminder to ensure your dog receives appropriate parasite control and encourage all household members to follow good hygiene practices, like washing hands before eating.



    Read more:
    Is it okay to kiss your pet? The risk of animal-borne diseases is small, but real

    Help, my dog keeps eating poo

    While Valerie’s tale of survival shows us coprophagia may be life-saving in extreme situations, most of our doggo companions aren’t facing wilderness survival challenges.

    Thankfully, coprophagia is often manageable.

    Understanding why our dogs might eat poo – whether based on evolutionary instinct, medical issues or psychological triggers – can help us address this canine behaviour with compassion rather than just disgust.

    If your dog indulges often, providing appropriate stimulation through regular exercise, social connection with people and other dogs, offering toys and safe chews can help. Sometimes, a trip to the vet might be needed to rule out any underlying health issues.

    Offering fun activities is one way to reduce the chance of your dog eating poo.
    Kojirou Sasaki/Unsplash

    Dogs reprimanded for toileting accidents might eat the evidence to avoid future punishment, creating a new problem behaviour. Instead, rewarding your puppy or dog for toileting in the right location (and giving them frequent opportunities to do so) is likely to establish toileting routines you will approve of, making coprophagia less likely.

    By the same token, dogs can’t eat what isn’t left lying around. Regular poo-pickups in your yard, dog park, kitty litter box and other likely locations will remove temptation and help set your dog up for success.

    If Valerie has taught us anything, it’s that what might be considered our dogs’ most revolting habits are actually remarkable adaptations that deserve our understanding and empathy, even if we can’t rally enthusiastic support.

    Mia Cobb does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Why do dogs eat poo? A canine scientist explains – https://theconversation.com/why-do-dogs-eat-poo-a-canine-scientist-explains-234361

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Appointments – Three Fellows Selected for 2025 Melvin MS Goo Writing Fellowship

    Source: East-West Center

    HONOLULU (Apr. 29, 2025) – The East-West Center is pleased to announce that historian John Delury and journalists Mengyu Dong and Sylvie Zhuanghave been selected as the 2025 recipients of the Melvin MS Goo Writing Fellowship. Supported by a generous endowment from the Melvin MS Goo Memorial Fund, the fellowship awards financial support via the East-West Center Foundation to individuals for projects that enhance understanding between the United States and China. 2025 projects will cover Chinese migration to the US via Central America, technological competition between the two nations, and US-China relations through a Roman Empire lens.

    About the Fellows

    John Delury, visiting professor of political science at John Cabot University in Rome

    An American historian of modern China and East Asian affairs, John Delury has authored two books and contributed numerous essays featured in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, New Statesman, and The New York Times. As a Goo Fellow, Delury is developing a longform feature piece examining US-China relations through the lens of the Roman Empire. Delury is hopeful this piece “can enhance mutual understanding between the peoples of China and the United States at a critical moment in their relationship. Written from the vantage point of Rome, it’s an ambitious essay, and I am grateful for the fellowship’s support to make it possible.”
     
    Mengyu Dong, senior editor for China Digital Times

    Based in Northern California, journalist Mengyu Dong’s reporting on migrant communities has appeared in the BBC, Radio Free Asia, and Initium Media, among others. As part of the Goo Fellowship, Dong is writing a book chronicling the personal stories behind the latest wave of Chinese migration to the United States via Central America, known within the Chinese community as zouxian, or “the walk route.”
     
    Sylvie Zhuang, China desk reporter for South China Morning Post

    A Beijing-based journalist and former research consultant at the World Bank, Sylvie Zhuang reports on Chinese politics and US-China technological rivalry. Through the Goo Fellowship, she will explore how advancements in AI and space exploration impact human society and geopolitical power. Zhuang said she will also be examining tech rivalries “from the perspective of Chinese science fiction, which presents a unique set of philosophies, pointing to the hopes and fears of a shared future.”  

    “These projects mark an exciting and meaningful continuation of the Fellowship’s mission,” said East-West Center Goo Fellowship Coordinator Devon Grandy. “The selection committee was particularly pleased by the breadth of topics and distinctive approaches offered by this year’s cohort. We’re confident that their stories will resonate with audiences in the United States, China, and beyond.”

    “We are very pleased that we were able to award three excellent writing fellowships this year,” said Susan Kreifels, East-West Center Journalism Program Manager. “We believe each unique story will help serve Melvin MS Goo’s legacy of understanding between the people of China and the United States.”

    About the Melvin MS Goo Memorial Fund

    The Melvin MS Goo Memorial Fund was established through a gift of the Melvin MS Goo Revocable Living Trust to memorialize Mr. Goo’s intent for his legacy gift to enhance understanding between the United States and China. Melvin MS Goo was a veteran journalist who led a 34-year career in the United States and Asia prior to his passing in 2016. Born in Macau and graduating high school in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, Mr. Goo worked for 18 years as a reporter, editor, and editorial writer at The Honolulu Advertiser. In 1977 he was awarded the prestigious Nieman Fellowship at Harvard University. Mr. Goo continued his career in Asia, rising to Chief News Editor at The Nikkei Weekly and later Editor-in-Chief at Taiwan News.
     
    The East-West Center, established by the US Congress in 1960, promotes better relations and understanding among the people and nations of the United States, Asia, and the Pacific through cooperative research, study, and dialogue. The Center is an independent, public, nonprofit organization with funding from the US government, and additional support provided by individuals, foundations, corporations, and governments in the region. The East-West Center Foundation is a private non-profit organization, established in 1982 to broaden and diversify private support for the Center.

    MIL OSI – Submitted News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Sick of eating the same things? 5 ways to boost your nutrition and keep meals interesting and healthy

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Collins, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle

    Loquellano/Pexels

    Did you start 2025 with a promise to eat better but didn’t quite get there? Or maybe you want to branch out from making the same meal every week or the same lunch for work almost every day?

    Small dietary changes can make a big difference to how you feel, how your body functions and health indicators such as blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels.

    You can meet your nutrient needs by eating a range of foods from the key food groups:

    • vegetables and fruit
    • protein (legumes, beans, tofu, meats, poultry, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds)
    • grains (mostly wholegrain and high-fibre)
    • calcium-rich foods (milk, yoghurt, cheese, non-dairy alternatives).

    But you also need a variety of foods to get enough vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients from plant foods. Phytonutrients have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and other functions that help keep you healthy.

    Use these five dietary tweaks to boost your nutrient intake and add variety to what you eat.

    1. Include different types of bran to boost your fibre intake

    Different types of dietary fibre help improve bowel function through fermentation by gut microbes in the colon, or large bowel. This creates larger, softer bowel motions that then stimulate the colon to contract, leading to more regular bowel movements.

    Add different types of dietary fibre – such as oat bran, wheat bran or psyllium husk – to breakfast cereal or add some into recipes that use white flour:

    • psyllium husk is high in soluble fibre. It dissolves in water forming viscous gel that binds to bile salts, which get excreted and your body is then not able to convert them into cholesterol. This helps lower blood cholesterol levels as well as with retaining water in your colon, making bowel motions softer. Soluble fibre also helps slow the digestive process, making you feel full and slows the normal rise in blood sugar levels after you eat

    • wheat bran is an insoluble fibre, also called roughage. It adds bulk to bowel motions, which helps keep your bowel function regular

    • oat bran contains beta-glucan, a soluble fibre, as well as some insoluble fibre.

    Try keeping small containers topped up with the different fibres so you don’t forget to add them regularly to your breakfast.

    Psyllium husk is high in soluble fibre, which dissolves in water and slows digestion.
    Shawn Hempel/Shutterstock

    2. Add a different canned bean to your shopping list

    Dried beans are a type of legume. From baked beans to red kidney beans and chickpeas, the canned varieties are easy to use and inexpensive. Different colours and varieties have slightly different nutrient and phytonutrient profiles.

    Canned beans are very high in total dietary fibre, including soluble fibre and resistant starch, a complex carbohydrate that resists digestion in the small intestine and then passes into the colon where it gets fermented.

    The body digests and absorbs the nutrients in legumes slowly, contributing to their low glycemic index. So eating them makes you feel full.

    Regularly eating more legumes lowers blood sugar levels, and total and LDL (bad) cholesterol.

    Add legumes to dishes such as bolognese, curry, soups and salads (our No Money No Time website has some great recipes).

    3. Try a different wholegrain, like buckwheat or 5-grain porridge

    Wholegrain products contain all three layers of the grain. Both the inner germ layer and outer bran layer are rich in fibre, vitamins and minerals, while the inner endosperm contains mostly starch (think white flour).

    Wholegrains include oats, corn (yes, popcorn too), rye, barley, buckwheat, quinoa, brown rice and foods made with wholegrains, like some breads and breakfast cereals such as rolled oats, muesli and five-grain porridge.

    Wholegrains aren’t just breakfast and lunch foods. Dinner recipe ideas include tuna and veggie pasta bake,
    chicken quesadillas and buckwheat mushroom risotto.

    4. Try a different vegetable or salad mix every week

    A review of the relationship between plant-based diets and dying of any cause followed more than half a million people across 12 long-term studies.

    It found people who ate the most plants had a lower risk of dying during the study and follow-up period than those who ate hardly any.

    Add a rainbow coleslaw to your meal.
    Kiian Oksana/Shutterstock

    Try adding a new or different vegetable or salad item to your weekly meals, such as rainbow coleslaw, canned beetroot, raw carrot, red onion, avocado or tomatoes.

    Or try a stir-fry with bok choy, celery, capsicum, carrot, zucchini and herbs.

    The more variety, the more colour, flavour and textures – not to mention phytonutrients.

    5. Go nuts

    Cashews, walnuts, almonds, macadamias, pecans and mixed nuts make a great snack.

    (Peanuts are technically a legume because they grow in the ground but we count them as nuts because their nutrient profile is very similar to the tree nuts.)

    You have to chew nuts well, which means your brain receives messages that you are eating and should expect to soon feel full.

    Nuts are energy-dense, due to their high fat content. A matchbox portion size (30 grams) contains about 15 grams of fat, 5 grams of protein and 740 kilojoules.

    While some people think you need to avoid nuts to lose weight, a review of energy restricted diets found people who ate nuts lost as much weight as those who didn’t.

    My colleagues and I at the University of Newcastle have created a free Healthy Eating Quiz where you can check your diet quality score, see how healthy your usual eating patterns are and how your score compares to others. You can also get some great ideas to make your meals more interesting .

    Clare Collins AO is a Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of Newcastle, NSW and a Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) affiliated researcher. She is a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Leadership Fellow and has received research grants from NHMRC, ARC, MRFF, HMRI, Diabetes Australia, Heart Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, nib foundation, Rijk Zwaan Australia, WA Dept. Health, Meat and Livestock Australia, and Greater Charitable Foundation. She has consulted to SHINE Australia, Novo Nordisk, Quality Bakers, the Sax Institute, Dietitians Australia and the ABC. She was a team member conducting systematic reviews to inform the 2013 Australian Dietary Guidelines update, the Heart Foundation evidence reviews on meat and dietary patterns and current Co-Chair of the Guidelines Development Advisory Committee for Clinical Practice Guidelines for Treatment of Obesity.

    – ref. Sick of eating the same things? 5 ways to boost your nutrition and keep meals interesting and healthy – https://theconversation.com/sick-of-eating-the-same-things-5-ways-to-boost-your-nutrition-and-keep-meals-interesting-and-healthy-245672

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Padilla Joins Sanders and Over 100 Lawmakers in Reintroduction of Medicare for All

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)

    Padilla Joins Sanders and Over 100 Lawmakers in Reintroduction of Medicare for All

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and over 100 lawmakers in reintroducing the Medicare for All Act, historic legislation that would guarantee health care as a fundamental human right to all people in the United States regardless of income or background.

    Despite spending twice as much per person on health care as other wealthy nations, more than 85 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured, one out of every four Americans cannot afford their prescription drugs, over half a million people go bankrupt due to medically-related debt, and more than 60,000 die because they cannot afford to go to a doctor.

    “Every American deserves access to high quality, affordable health care, regardless of their zip code or tax bracket,” said Senator Padilla. “As the Trump Administration recklessly attacks essential public health services that millions of Californians and Americans across the country depend on, guaranteeing the fundamental right to health care is more important than ever. No American should go bankrupt because of medical costs, and Congress must do better to ensure that everyone has equitable access to care.”

    “The American people understand, as I do, that health care is a human right, not a privilege and that we must end the international embarrassment of the United States being the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care to all of its citizens,” said Senator Sanders. “It is not acceptable to me, nor to the American people, that over 85 million people today are either uninsured or underinsured. Today, there are millions of people who would like to go to a doctor but cannot afford to do so. This is an outrage. In America, your health and your longevity should not be dependent on your wealth. Health care is a human right that all Americans, regardless of income, are entitled to and they deserve the best health care that our country can provide.”

    Under this legislation, Medicare would provide comprehensive health care to every American with no premiums, no co-payments, and no deductibles. It would also expand Medicare to include dental, hearing, and vision care, and it would give every American the freedom to choose their doctors without endless paperwork or fighting their insurance company. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that Medicare for All would save our health care system $650 billion a year. Further, researchers at Yale University have estimated that Medicare for All would save 68,000 lives a year.

    Senator Sanders, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Representatives Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.-07) and Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.-06) lead the legislation. Including Senator Padilla, the legislation has 16 cosponsors in the Senate and 104 cosponsors in the House. The total number of cosponsors represents an increase from last Congress and also includes Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).

    “Nurses see the failure of our country’s profit-driven health care system every time we clock in to work,” said Nancy Hagans, President of National Nurses United. “In the richest country on earth, nobody should be forced to choose between taking their medications and putting food on the table. Yet countless families are pushed to the breaking point while greedy corporations charge astronomical, ludicrous fees for care that our patients have every right to receive. Nurses are fighting for a future in which our patients’ health is put first always and that’s why we are proud to continue our support for Medicare for All. When we guarantee health care for all, corporations and billionaires will no longer be able to deny anyone the care that they need.”

    “We are long overdue for a universal health care system that guarantees care for all — free of copays, deductibles, and job-based coverage restrictions,” said Dr. Diljeet K. Singh, M.D., Dr.P.H., and President of Physicians for a National Health Program. “With the passage of the Medicare for All Act, physicians can focus on healing patients, not battling insurers over denials and delays. Patients will finally be able to seek care without the constant fear of crushing medical bills. Physicians for a National Health Program proudly stands with our legislators in the fight to make excellent health care a reality for everyone in America.”

    “As Donald Trump, Robert Kennedy and Congressional Republicans rush to strip health care from millions of Americans, we know this: We must not only block their cruel cuts but move America to a system that provides health care to everyone as a matter of right,” said Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen. “America spends much more than other wealthy countries on health care only to have the worst health outcomes. The system works for health insurers, Big Pharma, hospital chains and private equity firms – but no one else. Medicare for All would ensure everyone in America can get the care they need throughout their lives. It is the realistic, humane, just and efficient reform we need.”

    “Postal workers know the value of affordable, universal services, grounded in a commitment to putting people over profits. That’s the type of service we are committed to provide communities across the country, day in and day out,” said Mark Dimondstein, President of American Postal Workers Union. “For too long, greedy corporations and their Wall Street investors have been able to deny the people of the country the quality, affordable, universal health care working people deserve. Medicare for All, health care as a human right, will make us all healthier and financially better off. A health care system that works for working people, not the profits of the insurance companies, is long overdue. It’s time for Medicare for All.”

    “Health care should be a human right. But every time we negotiate with a boss for the right to see a doctor, they nickel and dime us until people have to choose between their health and putting food on the table,” said Shawn Fain, President of the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW). “We’re sick of having to go on strike just to have decent health care. We’re sick of corporate America asking us to give up raises, retirement security, or work-life balance at the bargaining table so working-class people can avoid medical bankruptcy. Our current health care system is a con job that only works for the billionaire class. Medicare for All is common sense, and it’s what the working class needs. The UAW is proud to support this bill.”

    “If you want to renew the public’s faith in our political system, pass the Medicare for All Act of 2025,” said Alan Minsky, Executive Director, Progressive Democrats of America. “This one piece of legislation will instantly end the era, which has lasted far too long, when profits and wealth accumulation are more important than human life, including yours. MFA will return the general welfare, and the well-being of every individual, to the heart of our social contract. That will renew faith in America.”

    “Health care is a right, not a privilege. The reintroduction of the Medicare for All Act is a crucial step toward ending a system that profits from people’s pain,” said Analilia Mejia and DaMareo Cooper, Co-Executive Directors of Popular Democracy. “Too many Americans are forced to choose between paying their rent and paying for life-saving medication, while corporations rake in billions. Medicare for All isn’t just a policy—it’s the lifeline working families desperately need. Our communities deserve a health care system that prioritizes people over profits. We will fight until we win the health care we deserve.”

    “Health care is a human right and a basic need. Yet instead of getting health care, Americans get delays, denials, and bills they cannot afford. Today, predatory insurance CEOs are poised to reap the windfall from the tax scam giveaways earmarked for billionaires and corporations. The oligarchs that put Donald Trump and Dr. Oz in power want everything we have. We get sicker, make impossible choices, and go broke. They boost the stock prices of corporations – like UnitedHealth – that profit off our pain, and buy more mansions and yachts. We can put an end to those warped priorities through Medicare for All,” said Sulma Arias, executive director of People’s Action Institute. “Working people have made this the wealthiest nation in the history of the world, and there is more than enough if we don’t let the corporate crooks and billionaires steal it. So it’s time to choose: Our health care or their greed?”

    Senator Padilla has long been a leader in the fight to make health care more equitable in the United States. Last year, Padilla, Senator Hirono, and Senator Booker introduced the Health Equity and Accountability Act (HEAA) of 2024 to address health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities as well as women, the LGBTQ+ community, rural populations, and socioeconomically disadvantaged communities across the United States. Additionally, Padilla and Booker introduced the Equal Health Care for All Act, bicameral legislation that would make equal access to medical care a protected civil right to help address the racial inequities and structural failures in America’s health care system.

    Full text of the bill is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Duckworth, Durbin, Colleagues Push Trump Administration to Reconsider Student Visa Revocations

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth
    April 28, 2025
    [WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, along with 35 Senate Democrats in pressing the Trump Administration to reconsider recent decisions to revoke student visas in a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons.
    The Senators began by urging the Administration to undo unlawful student visa revocations, citing a recent reversal of some terminations, writing: “We recently learned that your agencies have been revoking student visas and terminating Student Exchange and Visitor Information System (SEVIS) records across the country. These actions to end student status reflected an unannounced change in policy and were inconsistent with existing laws, regulations, policies, and agency guidance governing the maintenance and termination of student status—that is why we welcomed the news late last week that in response to litigation around the country, ICE has reversed these SEVIS terminations. We now urge you to undo other actions to end student status that are inconsistent with such laws, regulations, and agency guidance and ensure that all future actions to end student status fully comply with the law.”
    The Senators continued by highlighting the lack of reasoning provided in many of these visa revocations, writing: “[S]tudents across the country—who by all accounts appear to have followed all of the applicable laws and agency guidance—have reported visa revocations with no clear explanation as to the basis to terminate status. SEVP has completed at least 4,736 total terminations of student visa holders’ SEVIS records. By DHS’s own admission, the statute and regulations do not provide SEVP the authority to terminate nonimmigrant status by terminating a SEVIS record. Your decision to reverse such terminations is therefore prudent and required by law.”
    The Senators then outlined the Trump Administration’s apparent violation of federal law in revoking these visas, writing: “Current laws, regulations, and agency guidance also require notice to be provided when a student’s status is being terminated or revoked. Here, it is not clear that students were provided the notice required by law. Many students were notified by universities that they have lost their student status when their SEVIS records have been terminated, without being provided any information about potential reinstatement. Some students received emails that their visas were revoked and were directed to self-deport, with no clear information as to the basis for their revocation or means by which they can appeal the revocation. Some students only learned about losing status when arrested by masked federal agents. These reports suggest that students were not given notice of the termination of their status in a manner consistent with existing laws, regulations, and agency guidance.”
    The Senators conclude with an appeal to the Administration to reconsider these visa revocations and warning to adhere to federal law, before making a series of immigration requests, writing: “Students who have entered through our legal immigration system and followed the law remain unsure of what, if any, steps they may take to maintain their status and safeguard themselves from immigration enforcement. While we are relieved that ICE has reversed these SEVIS terminations, we now urge you to undo other actions to end student status that are inconsistent with such laws, regulations, and agency guidance. Finally, we understand that you are contemplating additional actions to end student status. Any such changes must be consistent with applicable statutes, including requirements for notice with respect to changes that would deprive a student of their status and ability to live and study in the United States and place them at risk of detention.”
    In addition to Duckworth and Durbin, the letter is co-signed by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennett (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM),  Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
    A full copy of the letter is available below and on Senator Duckworth’s website.
    Dear Secretary Noem, Secretary Rubio, and Acting Director Lyons:
    We recently learned that your agencies have been revoking student visas and terminating Student Exchange and Visitor Information System (SEVIS) records across the country.  These actions to end student status reflected an unannounced change in policy and were inconsistent with existing laws, regulations, policies, and agency guidance governing the maintenance and termination of student status—that is why we welcomed the news late last week that in response to litigation around the country, ICE has reversed these SEVIS terminations. We now urge you to undo other actions to end student status that are inconsistent with such laws, regulations, and agency guidance and ensure that all future actions to end student status fully comply with the law.
    Foreign students must navigate a complicated mix of agencies to maintain their status.  Under current regulations and policy, students who enter into the United States on an F-1 student visa or J-1 exchange visitor visa are admitted to the United States for “duration of status.” This essentially means that F-1 and J-1 visa holders may be in good standing as long as they comply with the terms and conditions of their status, even if their visa has expired. Students who enter on an M-1 visa for vocational education are admitted for a fixed time period to complete their course of study. The Office of Student Exchange and Visitor Programs (SEVP), within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), works with universities and program administrators to determine whether F-1 and M-1 students are meeting requirements for their visas and terminate SEVIS records as appropriate under SEVP regulations.  The Department of State (DOS) Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs administers the J-1 exchange visitor visa, but their records are maintained by SEVIS. Existing regulations and agency guidance inform students and other visa holders of how they might lose their student status, including that they cannot be convicted of serious crimes, cannot work unless authorized by DHS, and must be completing the education or program related to their visa. However, students across the country—who by all accounts appear to have followed all of the applicable laws and agency guidance—have reported visa revocations with no clear explanation as to the basis to terminate status. SEVP has completed at least 4,736 total terminations of student visa holders’ SEVIS records. By DHS’s own admission, the statute and regulations do not provide SEVP the authority to terminate nonimmigrant status by terminating a SEVIS record. Your decision to reverse such terminations is therefore prudent and required by law.
    Current laws, regulations, and agency guidance also require notice to be provided when a student’s status is being terminated or revoked. Here, it is not clear that students were provided the notice required by law.  Many students were notified by universities that they have lost their student status when their SEVIS records have been terminated, without being provided any information about potential reinstatement. Some students received emails that their visas were revoked and were directed to self-deport, with no clear information as to the basis for their revocation or means by which they can appeal the revocation. Some students only learned about losing status when arrested by masked federal agents. These reports suggest that students were not given notice of the termination of their status in a manner consistent with existing laws, regulations, and agency guidance.
    Once a student’s visa is revoked, although their status is not automatically terminated, removal proceedings may be initiated against them, allowing them to be detained at the discretion of DHS. Similarly, when a student’s SEVIS record is terminated, the student is no longer in an authorized period of stay in the United States, and students and their universities cannot regularly maintain student records in SEVIS, as is required to maintain student status. In addition, upon SEVIS record termination, the student must depart the United States or take other action to restore legal status, and DHS “may investigate to confirm the departure of the student.”
    Students who have entered through our legal immigration system and followed the law remain unsure of what, if any, steps they may take to maintain their status and safeguard themselves from immigration enforcement.  While we are relieved that ICE has reversed these SEVIS terminations, we now urge you to undo other actions to end student status that are inconsistent with such laws, regulations, and agency guidance.  Finally, we understand that you are contemplating additional actions to end student status. Any such changes must be consistent with applicable statutes, including requirements for notice with respect to changes that would deprive a student of their status and ability to live and study in the United States and place them at risk of detention.
    We also request information to better understand how your departments are implementing any new, unannounced policies with respect to identifying students for status revocation.  Please provide the following information by May 12, 2025:
    Any guidance issued by DOS and/or DHS governing the revocations of nonimmigrant visas, issued from January 20, 2025 to date.
    Any guidance issued by DOS and/or DHS governing how nonimmigrants are to be notified of visa revocations, issued from January 20, 2025 to date.
    Any guidance issued by DOS and/or DHS governing the terminations of SEVIS records, issued from January 20, 2025 to April 25, 2025.
    Any guidance issued by DOS and/or DHS governing how student visa holders are to be notified of SEVIS terminations, issued from January 20, 2025 to April 25, 2025.
    Any guidance issued by DOS, DHS, and/or the Department of Justice governing the initiation of removal proceedings or immigration enforcement against student visa holders and other nonimmigrants, issued from January 20, 2025 to date.
    Any guidance issued by DOS and/or DHS regarding the use of artificial intelligence to search national databases, criminal records, and social media to identify nonimmigrants for visa revocation or to otherwise end status, issued from January 20, 2025 to date.
    The total number of student visas (F-1, M-1, or J-1 visas) that have been revoked since January 20, 2025 to date, disaggregated by:
    Student’s country of origin;
    Consulate or embassy that issued the visa;
    Visa category/Optional Practical Training (OPT);
    Date of revocation:
    University of study;
    Type of degree or field of study;
    Notice provided;
    Legal basis for revocation;
    Any grace period to allow students to make travel or other arrangements, and
    Whether the student’s SEVIS record was also terminated.
    The total number of SEVIS record terminations that have been issued since January 20, 2025, to April 25, 2025, disaggregated by—
    Student’s country of origin;
    Visa category/Optional Practical Training (OPT);
    Date of revocation:
    University of study;
    Type of degree or field of study;
    Whether the termination was initiated by the university or by DHS, etc.
    Basis for termination;
    Notice provided;
    Any grace period to allow students to make travel or other arrangements, and
    Whether the student’s visa was revoked.
    The number of student visa holders on F-1, M-1, J-1 nonimmigrant status issued Form I862, Notice to Appear, initiating removal proceedings.
    Thank you for your prompt attention to this critical matter.
    Sincerely,
    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Advocacy – Voting ban “undermines democratic principles” says justice group

    Source: People Against Prisons Aotearoa

    The Government has announced the total disenfranchisement of people incarcerated in New Zealand prisons. This replaces a partial ban, and will see all prisoners prevented from participating in elections. The move violates a 2018 Supreme Court ruling that stripping prisoners of the right to vote violated the Bill of Rights. People Against Prisons Aotearoa spokesperson and University of Auckland criminologist Dr. Emmy Rākete says the ban is undemocratic.

    “The right to vote is the basis of democratic government. Legitimate governments cannot arbitrarily remove people from the pool that elects them. If the Government strips New Zealanders of the right to vote, it is attacking the democratic principles it claims to be founded on.”

    “The Supreme Court has already ruled that banning prisoners from voting is unlawful. The Government is spitting on the rule of law.”

    Corrections data show that the prison population is currently more than 50% Māori.

    “Aotearoa has been subjected to months of racist meltdowns from Government ministers over hysterical claims that co-governance or abiding by Te Tiriti unfairly favours Māori. Now, on a whim, those same teary-eyed ministers will arbitrarily ban thousands of primarily Māori people from participating in their precious democratic institutions.”

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Peace in our time? Why NZ should resist Trump’s one-sided plan for Ukraine

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert G. Patman, Professor of International Relations, University of Otago

    GettyImages Getty Images

    Is it possible to reconcile increased international support for Ukraine with Donald Trump’s plan to end the war? At their recent meeting in London, Christopher Luxon and his British counterpart Keir Starmer seemed to think so.

    Starmer thanked New Zealand for its “support” for a “coalition of the willing” that would safeguard the implementation of a potential peace deal concluded by the Trump administration.

    But unless something drastically changes in the near future, all the signs point to the US president envisaging a Ukraine peace settlement on Russian president Vladimir Putin’s terms.

    According to that view, peace can only be achieved if Ukraine is prepared to accept that territories wholly or partially annexed by Russia now belong to Moscow.

    In 2014, Russia seized Crimea on the Black Sea. Following the illegal 2022 invasion, Russia claimed four parts of eastern and southern Ukraine as its own – Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and the Zaporizhzhia region.

    At the same time, Trump’s peace deal includes a provision that rules out NATO membership for Ukraine. This meets a key Russian demand that seeks to deny Ukraine’s sovereign right to choose its own security arrangements.

    According to Trump, Putin’s major concession is the promise that Russia will not annex the rest of Ukraine – something Moscow has been trying to do for the past three years.

    To accept this, however, liberal democracies such as New Zealand and Britain would be tacitly signalling they share common values and interests with the Trump administration and its apparent enthusiasm for a geopolitical partnership with Putin’s dictatorship.

    And in some ways, Trump’s Ukraine peace initiative is a bigger challenge for New Zealand than it is for Britain.

    Keir Starmer and Christopher Luxon speak to the media during a visit to a UK military base training Ukrainian troops, April 22.
    Getty Images

    Lessons of the past

    Like Britain, New Zealand fought in two world wars in the 20th century to advance, among other things, certain key international principles. These included state sovereignty and a prohibition on the use of force to change borders, principles subsequently enshrined in the United Nations Charter.

    But unlike Britain, New Zealand is a relatively small state that does not have a veto in the UN Security Council to protect its interests. Consequently, it is even more dependent on an international rules-based order for its security and prosperity.

    For New Zealand, Trump’s current Ukraine peace plan is a clear and present danger because it would set such a terrible precedent.

    Under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons (left over from when it was part of the Soviet Union) in return for assurances from Russia, the US and UK that recognised Ukrainian independence and the inviolability of its existing borders.

    The Trump administration’s plan, however, insists Ukraine must accept the illegal and partial dismemberment of its territory to attain peace with Russia.

    Rewarding Russian aggression in this way is tantamount to a failure to learn the historical lessons of the 20th century. In particular, it seems to forget the period during the 1930s when Britain tried in vain to appease an expansionist Nazi regime in Germany.

    Trump’s peace plan basically endorses the idea that “might is right” and that it is fine for great powers or big countries to steal land from smaller countries.

    Adjusting NZ foreign policy

    In Trump’s top-down world view, multilateral institutions and international law are regarded as superfluous at best and an enemy at worst.

    In such a world, relatively small powers such as New Zealand, with “no cards to play” at the top table, must either submit to the dominance of great powers (including the US) or suffer the consequences.

    Moreover, there is a real risk that Trump’s stance toward Putin’s regime will be viewed as weakness by China, Russia’s most important backer. This could embolden Beijing to increasingly assert itself in the Indo-Pacific, including the Pacific Islands region, where New Zealand has core strategic interests.

    Trump’s plan for Ukraine brings into sharp focus what has already been evident from other recent trends: a domestic slide toward autocracy in Washington, the unilateral imposition of tariffs, and territorial threats against close allies Canada and Denmark.

    As European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen put it, “The West as we knew it no longer exists.”

    The transactional nature of Trump’s leadership – including that peace in Ukraine can be bought with mineral rights and territorial trade-offs – suggests the US can no longer be relied on to provide a security guarantee for liberal democracies in Europe or elsewhere.

    The current New Zealand government needs to find the self-confidence and resolve to admit Trump is backing Putin’s imperial project in Ukraine. And it needs to adjust its foreign policy accordingly.

    This does not mean Wellington should weaken its traditional friendship with the US.

    On the contrary, many Americans might expect and welcome the prospect of New Zealand clearly and publicly standing against their president’s dangerous alignment with an authoritarian regime at Ukraine’s expense.

    Robert G. Patman does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Peace in our time? Why NZ should resist Trump’s one-sided plan for Ukraine – https://theconversation.com/peace-in-our-time-why-nz-should-resist-trumps-one-sided-plan-for-ukraine-255495

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ‘A living collective’: study shows trees synchronise electrical signals during a solar eclipse

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Monica Gagliano, Research Associate Professor in Evolutionary Biology, Southern Cross University

    Zenit Arti Audiovisive

    Earth’s cycles of light and dark profoundly affect billions of organisms. Events such as solar eclipses are known to bring about marked shifts in animals, but do they have the same effect on plants?

    During a solar eclipse in a forest in Italy’s Dolomites region, scientists seized the chance to explore that fascinating question.

    The researchers were monitoring the bioelectrical impulses of spruce trees, when a solar eclipse passed over. They left their sensors running to record the trees’ response to the eclipse – and what they observed was astonishing.

    The spruce trees not only responded to the solar eclipse – they actively anticipated it, by synchronising their bioelectrical signals hours in advance.

    This forest-wide phenomenon, detailed today in the journal Royal Society Open Science, reveals a new layer of complexity in plant behaviour. It adds to emerging evidence that plants actively participate in their ecosystems.

    Lead author Monica Gagliano discusses the research findings.

    Do trees respond collectively?

    The research was led by Professor Alessandro Chiolerio of the Italian Institute of Technology, and Professor Monica Gagliano from Australia’s Southern Cross University, who is the lead author on this article. It also involved a team of international scientists.

    A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, fully or partially blocking the Sun’s light.

    An eclipse can inspire awe and even social cohesion in humans. Other animals have been shown to gather and synchronise their movements during such an event.

    But scientists know very little about how plants respond to solar eclipses. Some research suggests the rapid transitions from darkness to light during an eclipse can change plant behaviour. But this research focuses on the responses of individual plants.

    The latest study set out to discover if trees respond to a solar eclipse together, as a living collective.

    Alessandro Chiolerio and Monica Gagliano at the site of the study.
    Simone Cargnoni

    What the research involved

    Charged molecules travel through the cells of all living organisms, transmitting electrical signals as they go. Collectively, this electrical activity is known as the organism’s “electrome”.

    The electrical activity is primarily driven by the movement of ions across cell membranes. It creates tiny currents that allow organisms, including humans, to coordinate their body and communicate.

    The researchers wanted to investigated the electrical signals of spruce trees (Picea abies) during a partial solar eclipse on October 25, 2022. It took place in the Costa Bocche forest near Paneveggio in the Dolomites area, Italy.

    The study took place in the Dolomites in northeast Italy.
    Monica Gagliano

    The scientists set out to understand the trees’ electrical activity during the hour-long eclipse. They used custom-built sensors and wired them to three trees. Two were healthy trees about 70 years old, one in full sun and one in full shade. The third was a healthy tree about 20 years old, in full shade.

    They also attached the sensors to five tree stumps – the remnants old trees, originally part of a pristine forest, but which were devastated by a storm several years earlier.

    For each tree and stump, the researchers used five pairs of electrodes, placed in both the inner and outer layers of the tree, including on exposed roots, branches and trunks. The electrodes were connected to the sensors.

    This set-up allowed the scientists to monitor the bioelectrical activity from multiple trees and stumps across four sites during the solar eclipse. They examined both individual tree responses, and bioelectrical signals between trees.

    In particular, the scientists measured changes in the trees’ “bioelectrical potentials”. This term refers to the differences in voltage across cell membranes.

    The scientists attached electrodes and sensors to the trees to monitor their electrical activity.
    Zenit Arti Audiovisive

    What did they find?

    The electrical activity of all three trees became significantly more synchronised around the eclipse – both before and during the one-hour event. These changes occur at a microscopic level, such as inside water and lymph molecules in the tree.

    The two older trees in the study had a much more pronounced early response to the impending eclipse than the young tree. This suggests older trees may have developed mechanisms to anticipate and respond to such events, similar to their responses to seasonal changes.

    Solar eclipses may seem rare from a human perspective, but they follow cycles which can occur well within the lifespan of long-lived trees. The scientists also detected bioelectrical waves travelling between the trees. This suggests older trees may transmit their ecological knowledge to younger trees.

    Such a dynamic is consistent with studies showing long-distance signalling between plants can help them coordinate various physiological functions in response to environmental changes.

    The two older spruce trees in the study had a much more pronounced early response to the impending eclipse than the young tree.
    Zenith Audiovisual Arts

    The researchers also detected changes in the bioelectrical responses of the stumps during the eclipse, albeit less pronounced than in the standing trees. This suggests the stumps were still alive.

    The research team then used computer modelling, and advanced analytical methods including quantum field theory, to test the findings of the physical experiment.

    The results reinforced the experimental results. That is, not only did the eclipse influence the bioelectrical responses of individual trees, the activity was correlated. This suggests a cohesive, organism-like reaction at the forest scale.

    The researchers also detected changes in the bioelectrical responses of the stumps during the eclipse.
    Zenit Arti Audiovisive

    Understanding forest connections

    These findings align with extensive prior research by others, highlighting the extent to which trees in forest ecosystems are connected.

    These behaviours may ultimately influence the forest ecosystem’s resilience, biodiversity and overall function, by helping it cope with rapid and unpredictable changes.

    The findings also underscore the importance of protecting older forests, which serve as pillars of ecosystem resilience – potentially preserving and transmitting invaluable ecological knowledge.

    This research is featured in a documentary, Il Codice del Bosco (The Forest Code), premiering in Italy on May 1, 2025.

    The findings underscore the importance of protecting older forests. Pictured: the Dolomites region.
    Zenith Audiovisual Arts

    Monica Gagliano received funding for this research from the Templeton World Charity Foundation.

    Prudence Gibson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. ‘A living collective’: study shows trees synchronise electrical signals during a solar eclipse – https://theconversation.com/a-living-collective-study-shows-trees-synchronise-electrical-signals-during-a-solar-eclipse-255499

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Young bats learn to be discriminating when listening for their next meal

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Logan S. James, Research Associate in Animal Behavior, The University of Texas at Austin

    A frog-eating bat approaches a túngara frog, one of its preferred foods. Grant Maslowski

    It is late at night, and we are silently watching a bat in a roost through a night-vision camera. From a nearby speaker comes a long, rattling trill.

    Cane toad’s rattling trill call.

    The bat briefly perks up and wiggles its ears as it listens to the sound before dropping its head back down, uninterested.

    Next from the speaker comes a higher-pitched “whine” followed by a “chuck.”

    Túngara frog’s ‘whine chuck’ call.

    The bat vigorously shakes its ears and then spreads its wings as it launches from the roost and dives down to attack the speaker.

    Bats show tremendous variation in the foods they eat to survive. Some species specialize on fruits, others on insects, others on flower nectar. There are even species that catch fish with their feet.

    The calls male frogs use to attract mates also attract eavesdropping predators. Here, a frog-eating bat consumes an unlucky male túngara frog.
    Marcos Guerra, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

    At the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, we’ve been studying one species, the fringe-lipped bat (Trachops cirrhosus), for decades. This bat is a carnivore that specializes in feeding on frogs.

    Male frogs from many species call to attract female frogs. Frog-eating bats eavesdrop on those calls to find their next meal. But how do the bats come to associate sounds and prey?

    We were interested in understanding how predators that eavesdrop on their prey acquire the ability to discriminate between tasty and dangerous meals. We combined our expertise on animal behavior, bat cognition and frog communication to investigate.

    How do bats know the sound of a tasty meal?

    There are nearly 8,000 frog and toad species in the world, and each one has a unique call. For instance, the first rattling call that we played from our speaker came from a large and toxic cane toad. The second “whine chuck” came from the túngara frog, a preferred prey species for these bats. Just as herpetologists can tell a frog species by its call, frog-eating bats can use these calls to identify the best meal.

    Over the years, our research team has learned a great deal from frog-eating bats about how sound and echolocation are used to find prey, as well as the role of learning and memory in foraging success. In our newly published study, we focused on how associations between the sounds a bat hears and the prey quality it expects arise within the lifespan of an individual bat.

    Adult bats like the one pictured have extensive acoustic repertoires and remember specific frog calls year after year. Young bats must learn which calls to respond to – and, critically, which to ignore – over time through experience.
    Grant Maslowski

    We considered whether the associations between sound and a delicious meal are an evolved specialty that bats are born with. But this possibility seemed unlikely because the bat species we study has a large geographic distribution across Central and South America, and the species of frogs found across this range vary tremendously.

    Instead, we hypothesized that bats learn to associate different sounds with food as they grow up. But we had to test this idea.

    First, we and our collaborators spent time in the forest and at ponds to record the mating calls from 15 of the most common frog and toad species in our study area in Panama.

    Rachel Page, one of the lead authors on the study, takes a bat out of a mist net in Panama.
    Jorge Alemán, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

    Then, we set up mist nets along streams in Soberanía National Park to capture wild bats for the study.

    Frog call, bat response

    For the testing, each bat was housed individually in a large, outdoor flight chamber. From a speaker on the ground in the center, we played calls from one frog species on loop for 30 seconds and measured the behavior of the bat, which was hanging from a cloth roost. As we expected, adult bats were generally uninterested in the sounds of species that were unpalatable, such as those with toxins or those that are too large for the bat to carry.

    But it was a different story for young bats. Juveniles responded with significantly more predatory behaviors in response to the calls of toxic toads compared with the adults. They also responded more weakly than adults to the sounds of túngara frogs, a palatable, abundant prey that adult bats prefer.

    Thus it seems that juvenile bats must learn the associations between sounds and food over the course of their lives. As they grow up, we believe they learn to ignore the calls of frogs that aren’t worth the trouble and zero in on the calls of frogs that will be a good meal.

    To better understand how sounds drive prey associations, we measured the acoustic properties of the different calls. We found that some of the most noticeable features of the calls correlated with body size: Larger frogs produce lower-frequency calls – that is, their voices are deeper. Both the adult and juvenile bats responded more strongly to larger species, which would provide larger meals.

    However, there was a clear exception in the responses of adults, where the toxic toads and very large frogs elicited much weaker responses than expected for their body size. This finding led us to hypothesize that bats have early biases to pay attention to sounds associated with larger body size. Then they must learn through experience that meal quality is not only about size. Some large meals are toxic or impossible to carry, making them unpalatable.

    Once the researchers have studied each frog-eating bat for a few days, they safely release it where it was originally captured. Footage courtesy of Léna de Framond-Bénard and Eric de Framond-Bénard, compiled by Caroline Rogan.

    After the bats spent a few days with us, we released each one back at its original site of capture. The bats departed, taking with them a small RFID tag, just like the ones pet owners use to identify their dogs and cats, in case we meet again as part of a future study.

    As the bats go on with their lives in the wild, we continue our quest to deepen our understanding of the subtleties of information discrimination. How do individuals weed through information overload to make choices that make sense and benefit them? That’s the same challenge we all face each day.

    Logan S. James receives funding from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, McGill University, and the Earth Species Project.

    Rachel Page receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

    Ximena Bernal receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

    – ref. Young bats learn to be discriminating when listening for their next meal – https://theconversation.com/young-bats-learn-to-be-discriminating-when-listening-for-their-next-meal-253321

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –