The World: Latest Stories

Dreams of trade spurred construction of the St Lawrence Seaway, opening the Great Lakes to intercontinental shipping. The Seaway also transformed the lakes' ecosystems, thanks to unintended biological hitch-hikers such as Quagga and Zebra mussels.

For thousands of years, the Heiltsuk people of Canada have passed down a record of surviving the ice age in an area that didn’t freeze over. Now, archaeologists working in the region have uncovered the physical evidence.

The moon has a large liquid ocean and lots of hydrogen — the fuel for microbial life.

Entire villages in Kenya have been receiving a basic income through a charity program, there's a small test initiative in the Netherlands, India is considering it, and Canada is rolling out a basic income pilot program in several cities in Ontario this summer. But it’s Finland that may be the farthest along.

Australia has universal health care, while the US currently has a patchwork system of government-provided, employer-provided and individually purchased plans.

Much of the content was lost in translation — quite literally.

The world's fastest-growing aviation market wants to stop buying foreign-made planes. Or at least not as many.

It's the occupation, stupid. Palestinian cartoonist Mohammad Sabaaneh says the Arab-Israeli struggle is not about a particular conflict. It's about the daily humiliations of occupation.

French pollsters have spent the past 15 years working out a strategy to get a more accurate picture of National Front supporters.

The new branch appeared even though winter has come to Antarctica.

Does it really matter who wins the French election? It might matter more who is running Facebook.

Threats to cut US spending on development abroad would impact women and girls. Across Women's Lives has analyzed the numbers.

A Tibetan student won't be allowed to carry her country's flag in a graduation ceremony's parade of flags. UMass Amherst says it's policy. Kalsang Nangpa says it's discrimination.

A search for meaning is underway in China, after generations grew up with the Communist Party destroying temples and churches, persecuting the religious, and telling the young that religion was the opiate of the masses, and counter-revolutionary to boot. Now, with many Chinese feeling that a moral and ethical center is missing from their increasingly materially comfortable lives, a growing number are seeking meaning in religion and spiritual practice. Host Mary Kay Magistad explores why, in conversation with fellow former China correspondents Ian Johnson, author of "The Souls of China: The Return of Religion After Mao," and Jennifer Lin, author of "Shanghai Faithful: Betrayal and Forgiveness in a Chinese Christian Family."

Muna Assaf used to work in public health. But when she went into Besan 101.9 to pitch a radio show, the owner made her station manager.

For Lebanese photographer Fadi BouKaram, visiting all 47 towns and cities in the US named Lebanon is proving to be a challenging, but rewarding task.

BuzzFeed writer Scaachi Koul discusses how white privilege affects her family and how racism is institutionalized in Canada.

President Barack Obama is a superstar in France. French voters even wish he were the one running.

On the floor of this big-box home improvement store in east San Jose, shoppers can interact with a white plastic pillar that is touchscreen-enabled and speaks directly to users.

Afghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar returned to Kabul Thursday after ending 15 years of rebellion against the Afghan government. He happens to bear an uncanny resemblance to Star Wars character Count Dooku, the Sith Lord.

Immigration detention is big business. Trump will make it even bigger.

Trump’s anti-refugee push has hidden victims.

For the last few years, the Czech Republic has been viewed as the last bastion of liberal democracy in Central Europe. That could soon change.

On Monday, the US Department of Agriculture announced that it now plans to roll back school lunch standards dealing with sweetened milk, sodium and whole grains, among other things.

You're kidnapped and put in a room with no windows, no books, no TV, nothing, and you're handcuffed to a radiator. You have no idea if or when you're going to be released. Cartoonist Guy Delisle captures the desperation of this true story.

Richard Spencer, the American white nationalist known for getting punched in the face on camera and extolling Donald Trump with a Hitlerian salute, has formed a new publishing venture with Swedish far-right extremists.

The opposition accuses elected President Maduro of maneuvering to strengthen his grip on power.

California sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild ventured out of her liberal bubble to try to grasp why some conservatives reject government regulations in Louisiana, even as industry pollution persists, largely unchecked, for years.

The US military says its THAAD missile defense system is now operational in South Korea. The hope is that it can shoot down North Korean missiles. But how effective is it?

The singer of Afghanistan’s first rock band, now living in Oakland, California, talks about how music can bring communities together.

On Saturday, a police officer in the Dallas suburb of Balch Springs shot 15-year-old Jordan Edwards, a high school freshman, through the passenger side window of a car. The officers were responding to calls of underage drinking at a house party.

A variety of religions are thriving in post-Mao China.

It's not easy being original. Especially when you're a public figure giving a speech?

The Yurok Tribe has lived along the Klamath River in Northern California for thousands of years, relying on the annual salmon run for food and revenue. But dams on the Klamath have created conditions for a deadly aquatic parasite that threatens to wipe out the vital Chinook salmon run.

Vietnam is in the midst of a four-day holiday. Their jubilant festivities mark the reunification of North and South Vietnam. But in Boston’s Vietnamese community, the "Fall of Saigon" is a day of collective mourning.

Conservative climate groups target Trump with TV ad.

Tough talk on North Korea, followed by a personal invite from President Trump. Huh?

Some US officials and pundits are fond of saying North Korea is a threat. But is it?

May 1 is France’s Labor Day, usually a festive day for union workers, a day of social engagement and rallies all over France. It always intensifies during election years, when the celebration sits between the two voting rounds. And this year is no exception.

Loyalty Day is newly controversial this year — but it's not new at all.

Seoul, the capital of South Korea, has more megachurches than any other city in the world. But right now, Protestant evangelical leaders in South Korea don’t have the best reputation.

The Bikini Anthem preserves the history of the Marshall Islands, which gained independence on May 1, 1979.

Emily has already helped hundreds of refugees make it safely to shore. Now, roboticists are trying to make the craft even more effective — by making it more autonomous.

In a tiny corner of the Siberian Arctic, Russian scientists are working to forestall global climate catastrophe by restoring the Ice Age ecosystem.

While the song has a universal message, its origins are much more complex.

Aid groups call on warring parties in Yemen to pull back from battle over the country's main seaport.

Engineer Christine Dailey spends her time puzzling over problems like exercising in space, fuel slosh in zero gravity and more.

Our smartphones are full of highly accurate sensors that make the devices a breeze to use. But these sensors could also give hackers clues about our data and passwords.

Cassini successfully plunged between Saturn’s innermost ring and the planet itself this week.

We feature a unique selection of music on The World. These are the artists we featured this week.