Headlines

Uncovering the evolutionary limits of the COVID-19 virus

A new paper in Genome Biology and Evolution, indicates that while the COVID-19 virus has developed rapidly since 2019, it has done so within limited genetic channels. These genetic limits have remained unchanged. Despite scientists' earlier fears about dramatic, rapid evolution

China steps into Iran breach as investments face fire

Tehran has promised to ensure safe passage for vessels from all countries except those at war with it in the Strait of Hormuz, after Beijing intervened in the US-Iran conflict. Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday told Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during a

How Pakistan became the Iran war’s indispensable mediator

When Pakistani Field Marshal Asim Munir addressed Pakistan’s parliamentary security committee in March 2025, he asked a question that had been hanging over the country for years. “How long will we continue to sacrifice countless lives in the style of a soft state?” The question

Social media and monetization in the Ukraine-Russia war

The internet has become a battleground, writes the author of a new article in the Journal of Anthropological Research, and particularly so in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which has been called the first "TikTok war." In "Social Media Warfare: Monetization and