The tsunami that swept Indonesia after a magnitude 7.5 earthquake has killed at least 1,200 people, with the death toll still rising. In our lead story, Anja Scheffers explains how Indonesia’s coastline acts to funnel tsunami waves towards vulnerable coastal communities.
And while the region’s geography means quakes and tsunamis are inevitable, some are asking: would a better early-warning system have saved lives?
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MAST IRHAM/EPA
Anja Scheffers, Southern Cross University
A combination of tectonic plates, geography and poor infrastructure make Indonesia vulnerable to deadly tsunamis.
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Arts + Culture
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Muhammad Fajar, Northwestern University
Universities are never a neutral ground that can be isolated from political processes.
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Environment + Energy
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Jane Cunneen, Curtin University
Local knowledge and awareness of the risks of tsunamis can better prepare people when disaster strikes.
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Cristina Santin, Swansea University; Stefan H Doerr, Swansea University
But humans can counteract global warming impacts by creating more fire-resilient societies.
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Health + Medicine
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Gabriel Neal, Texas A&M University
Does it seem like everyone you know drinks apple cider vinegar, mainly in hopes of losing weight? Vinegar has a long history of high hopes attached to it. A doctor who loves vinegar explains.
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Politics + Society
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Andrew Bonnell, The University of Queensland
Though the fall of the Berlin Wall did not bring along the utopia many had hoped for, it is a symbolic moment for the victors of the Cold War.
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Science + Technology
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Todd Adams, Florida State University
The Nobel Prize for physics was awarded to three scientists for the inventions of optical tweezers – in which two laser beams can hold a tiny object – and a method for creating powerful lasers.
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