The World: Latest Stories

“Leonardo was curious to know everything there was to know about everything you could know about creation, including how we fit into it,” Isaacson says.

A Japanese immigrant named Gijiu Kitazawa started his seed company in 1917 in San Jose, California. A century later, it's still in business — but it wasn't always easy.

For two days, chefs who are HIV-positive set up a pop-up restaurant in Toronto to dispel ignorance about people with the disease. The idea was hatched after a survey found that nearly half of Canadians would not eat a meal prepared by someone who's HIV-positive.

Taylor Mac isn’t your typical drag performer. For one thing, Taylor made a 24-hour revue of American pop music that goes all the way back to the Revolutionary War.

The author was at the end of her summer break when Hurricane Katrina struck her hometown of Delisle, Mississippi.

Turkish shoppers at the popular store, Zara, were recently surprised when some of the clothing came with tags that read, "I made this item you are going to buy, but I didn't get paid for it."

Annie Baker writes plays that are full of awkward silences. Is that why some people love them, while others walk out?

The Social Credit System will be implemented in 2020.

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping would focus on stopping "the lethal flow of poisonous drugs in our countries and our communities." Much of that trading is facilitated through the dark web.

Like you’re crashing a party you weren't invited to.

Robert Mugabe has run Zimbabwe for 37 years. He's 93 and his young wife, Grace, is now positioning herself as successor. She’s known as “Gucci Grace.”

As identity politics continues to play out in Catalonia — between Catalans who want independence from Spain and a government that wants to keep it part of Spain — we hear from the band Txarango.

South Korea sent a provocative message to Japan and the US by inviting a former "comfort woman" to a state dinner with President Donald Trump.

In 2000, American poet Jennifer Kronovet began taking Yiddish classes for just one reason: to translate Yiddish poetry into English.

The regulations come at a complicated time for would-be travelers to Cuba. In September, the State Department issued an advisory against travel there in light of apparent acoustic assaults against staffers from the US Embassy in Havana.

Is there a way to prevent mass shootings like the one in Sutherland Springs, Texas? Let's start by treating violence like a disease, says Dr. Gary Slutkin.

Climate change isn’t expected to feature during President Donald Trump’s trip to China. But his meeting with President Xi Jinping does hold symbolic significance as a summit of old and new leadership on climate change.

Trump administration deciding fate of those allowed in years ago due to war, natural disasters.

On Saturday night Saudi Arabia defended its capital by blowing an incoming missile out of the sky. The missile came from neighboring Yemen. But Saudi media blame Iran.

The power plant is being built just 12 miles from the border from Lithuania.

Saad Hariri, who became prime minister for the second time less than a year ago in a government of national unity, cited the dominance of Lebanon by Iran and its ally Hezbollah and threats to his life as being behind his decision to resign.

Ahmet Ustunel lost his sight because of eye cancer when he was a child, but that never kept him away from the water.

Sam Hyde has been accused of being behind mass shootings in California, Florida and now Texas. Not by authorities, but by people on social media.

A former employee raised the alarm about bots and spam accounts originating in Russia and Ukraine, but says nothing happened.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman presided over a royal purge of potential rivals this past weekend. But as he accrues more power for himself, observers wonder whether Saudi Arabia's conservative establishment is ready for this amount of change, this quickly.

First, it was the Panama Papers. Now, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Frederik Obermaier and his colleague reveal the Paradise Papers, an exposé of the offshore activities of some of the world's wealthiest people and companies.

A Syrian mother in Massachusetts worried her young daughter was losing her formal Arabic — fusha. So, she came up with a plan that involved cartoons dubbed in Arabic.

Around 130 million years ago, two neutron stars — those strange, compacted cores of dead stars — collided. Scientists recently detected the signals from that collision, in the form of gravitational waves and electromagnetic signals.

The fierce debate over oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is decades old. Now, the possibility is closer to reality, due to a rider on budget measures passed by the US House and Senate.

Russia, the European Space Agency, Japan and China are all interested in lunar missions. For the Trump administration, “it could be a very smart international or geopolitical tool if they do it correctly,” says science journalist Loren Grush.

Record-breaking Atlantic hurricanes from Texas to Ireland and massive firestorms in California linked to record drought raise the question of whether the Earth has moved into a more dangerous phase of global warming.

Tropical forests have historically absorbed excess carbon dioxide, but new research indicates that these areas have become a net source of CO2.

What is it like for immigrants who have won the green card lottery?

Gold mining is a key source of income in Mongolia, but it can often be a dirty business. An effort by small, independent miners to switch to a non-toxic processing method is improving the outlook for their health and the local environment.

Muslims use the Arabic phrase meaning "God is greatest" in prayer and when expressing gratitude, congratulations or appreciation.

Argentina is believed to have one of the highest rates of femicide — the killing of women simply because of their gender. The #NiUnaMenos campaign started there to highlight violence against women. But this past year, one of its greatest champions became a victim of femicide herself.

New Zealand may create a new visa category for Pacific Islander climate refugees.

In 1974, Africa's top performers shared a stage in Zaire with James Brown, B.B. King and other global stars. But only now are the African groups being heard. Hugh Masekela and Stewart Levine organized the '74 concert and helped compile the double-CD "Zaire 74: The African Performers."

Young Adult novelist and YouTube star, John Green opens up about himself.

It was intended to benefit undocumented Irish immigrants.

An artist finally lets the Clinton victory confetti fly.

Republican lawmakers offered some details Thursday of their proposal to rewrite the US tax code. Author T.R. Reid says America has much to learn from the ways other nations use their tax systems to address inequality.

The wildlife in the Galápagos Islands is unafraid of humans, but is tourism and the selfie culture damaging the very sights people come to see?

A terror attack carried out by an Uzbek citizen in New York this week is reviving false media narratives about Uzbekistan and Central Asia as breeding grounds violent extremism.

The many faces and voices of the legendary sketch comedian.

Disney live-action just announced a new take on the 1994 classic, "The Lion King." It's not expected to be released in the US until July 2019, but the unveiling of the all-star cast has created a lot of excitement for fans. For South African entertainment reporter Tinashe Venge, the rebirth of "The Lion King" is a dream come true.

“The magic of being able to interact with creatures who'd been running away from you for almost a year was something real special, and that comes out very strongly in this film,” Dr. Goodall says.

About 600 asylum-seekers in an Australian offshore detention camp on Papua New Guinea are hunkering down and refusing to leave. The power has been cut off, there's no air conditioning and food is running out.

President Donald Trump cut US funding to any international organization that administers or even discusses abortion with its patients. A Kenyan health group is traveling across the US to tell Americans how that rule affects the country.

Donald Trump has lashed out in many directions after Tuesday's deadly attack in New York City. He even called the US judicial process an international "laughing stock."