In Pictures: See the Remarkable Recovery of California's Reservoirs

California's drought-stricken reservoirs have seen a remarkable recovery after a barrage of storms lashed the state last month. Officials say it’s a much-needed improvement after hovering at critically low levels for the past several years. Lake Oroville, California’s most beleaguered and second-largest reservoir, saw a huge boost after the climate change-fueled megadrought sucked away nearly all of its water supply. This is good news for California residents and farmers who rely on these reservoirs.

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New Housing Project In Georgina Moves Forward After Community Open House

Plans for a new housing development in Georgina took a step forward after York Region hosted a community open house that drew nearly 100 residents, business owners and community partners. The event, held Feb. 24, gave attendees a chance to learn more about the proposed Queensway South development and share feedback that will help shape the project as it moves into the design phase. The development will bring 86 new housing units to the area, including 32 community housing units, 18 transitional housing units and 36 emergency housing units. Plans also include about 743 square metres of dedicated community space intended to support local services, community organizations and programs for residents. Regional officials say the project is aimed at addressing growing housing needs while also strengthening local support services. The Queensway South development has received unanimous support from Georgina’s town council and backing from York Region’s Housing and Homelessness Committee and Regional Council. The Town of Georgina has committed $3 million toward the project. Additional funding is coming from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Housing Accelerator Fund and the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing’s Building Faster Fund. Officials say the project reflects collaboration between municipal, regional and federal partners working to expand housing options and improve community services. The open house also marked the start of community engagement that will continue as the project develops. A Community Liaison Committee will gather input from residents and stakeholders to help guide the design process. Construction is expected to begin in 2026. Once completed, the Queensway South development will provide new housing and community space for residents in Georgina and the wider York Region area. More information about the project, including how to apply to join the Community Liaison Committee, is available at york.ca/TheQueenswaySouth.

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Scientists Discover Living Marsupials Thought Extinct for 6,000 Years

For thousands of years, scientists believed these animals existed only in fossils. Now two small marsupials thought to have disappeared more than 6,000 years ago have been rediscovered deep in the rainforests of New Guinea. Researchers confirmed the existence of the pygmy long-fingered possum and the ring-tailed glider on the island’s Bird’s Head Peninsula in Indonesia’s Papua region. The findings were described in two studies published March 6 in the journal Records of the Australian Museum. The rediscovery makes the animals rare examples of what scientists call “Lazarus species,” creatures believed extinct that unexpectedly reappear. Finding even one such species is extremely unusual. “The chances of finding one Lazarus mammal species is ‘almost zero,’” said Tim Flannery, a zoologist at the Australian Museum who helped lead the research. Discovering two, he said, is “unprecedented and groundbreaking.” Other scientists reacted with similar excitement. “In a world awash with bad news, and no more so than for the environment, it is always joyous when species once thought extinct turn out not to be,” said Euan Ritchie, a wildlife ecologist at Deakin University in Australia who was not involved in the research. Until now, the pygmy long-fingered possum and the ring-tailed glider were known only from fossil remains discovered in the region. Scientists suspected they might still survive because the remote forests where the fossils were found had never been thoroughly surveyed for marsupials. Working with members of the Tambrauw and Maybrat Indigenous communities, researchers were finally able to confirm the animals’ presence and photograph them in the wild. The pygmy long-fingered possum is a small striped marsupial about 36 centimetres long from nose to tail tip. Roughly half of that length is its tail. Its most unusual feature is a dramatically elongated finger on each hand. Researchers believe the possum uses that finger to hunt insects hidden inside rotting wood. According to Flannery, the animals listen for low-frequency sounds made by beetle larvae and then tear open the wood to retrieve them. The ring-tailed glider is equally mysterious. The nocturnal animal nests in holes in trees and uses its long tail to grip branches as it moves through the rainforest canopy. It feeds mainly on tree sap and leaves, and possibly fruit and insects. Tribal elders describe the animal’s body as roughly “the length of two open palms,” according to the study. The research also revealed that the ring-tailed glider represents an entirely new genus of marsupial. Scientists named it Tous, inspired by the name Indigenous communities use for the animal: “Tous wansai” or “Tous wan.” Researchers believe the species represents an ancient branch of the possum family tree that dates back millions of years. For local Indigenous groups, the animals have long held cultural meaning. Some communities believe the ring-tailed glider represents the spirits of their ancestors and treat the surrounding forest with deep respect. The old-growth rainforest where the animals live is considered sacred. Scientists are now working to learn more about the creatures’ populations and habitats. Early indications suggest both species may be vulnerable to habitat loss caused by logging and land clearing across parts of New Guinea. For now, researchers are keeping the animals’ exact locations secret to prevent wildlife traffickers from attempting to capture them. Flannery said the animals would likely struggle to survive outside their natural habitat anyway. “They would be incredibly difficult to keep in captivity because their diet is so highly specialized,” he said. “Advanced warning for anyone who’s thinking of keeping one as a pet: It won’t live long.” For scientists and conservationists, the rediscovery offers a rare moment of optimism. Two species once believed lost to time are alive again in one of the world’s most remote forests.

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Gen Z Is Volunteering, But it Might Not Be in The Way You Think

If you picture volunteering as teenagers picking up litter or sorting cans at a food drive, you might be missing most of the story. A new survey suggests young people are helping their communities in large numbers. They are simply doing it differently than previous generations. About eight in 10 Americans between the ages of 12 and 25 say they have taken part in some form of community service or volunteering, according to a survey conducted by The Allstate Foundation and Gallup. But much of that service happens outside traditional nonprofit structures. Many young people describe helping others as something woven into everyday life rather than a formal activity scheduled through an organization. “When we typically think of service it can be very narrow. Of, like, kids picking up litter or engaging in food drives,” said Zoë Jenkins, 22, who oversees recruitment for the youth engagement nonprofit Civics Unplugged. “That all definitely counts as service. But I think for me, how I think about it is just people helping other people. And that’s, I think, a really broad bucket.” Among the young people who volunteer, about two-thirds said helping others or making a difference was a major motivation. Roughly six in 10 said contributing to their community was a key reason, while about half said they wanted to support causes they care deeply about. The findings come as many nonprofits try to rebuild volunteer networks that shrank during the COVID-19 pandemic and now face an aging volunteer base. Younger generations appear eager to help, but they often struggle to find opportunities that fit into busy schedules or that they even know about. About half of respondents who said they had never volunteered told Gallup that a lack of time and not knowing where to find opportunities kept them from participating. Even so, many are still stepping in to help in smaller ways. Around seven in 10 young people reported helping someone with a task at least a few times in the past week. Researchers say that suggests many young people see service less as a formal obligation and more as an everyday habit. Greg Weatherford II, director of youth empowerment initiatives at The Allstate Foundation, said service can take many forms. “We so applaud the young people that build complex nonprofits that solve complex issues,” he said. “Equally important is the young person that’s taking time to write a letter to a classmate who may just be needing to have some extra encouragement as they get ready to take their school test or just navigate a new semester.” The survey found that donating goods is the most common type of service. About half of respondents said they had donated or organized donations of food, clothing or other items. These efforts can be easier for young people to organize quickly, especially through social media, and do not require transportation or complicated scheduling. Fundraising and awareness campaigns were also common. About three in 10 young adults who volunteer said they had raised money for a cause, while roughly two in 10 said they had helped raise awareness. “Young people are perhaps more aware than ever of the power of money,” Jenkins said. The survey also found that many young volunteers want more control over how they participate. About half said their service experiences allow them to make decisions, help plan activities or take on leadership roles at least sometimes. But young people are less often involved in setting goals or designing how projects are carried out. That gap has prompted some nonprofits to rethink how they engage younger volunteers. Jenkins said many organizations still offer the same limited activities, such as litter cleanups or canned food drives, regardless of volunteers’ ages. She believes service opportunities should evolve as young people grow older and gain new skills. Storytelling and advocacy are two examples she points to, where young people can use their voices and networks to advance causes they care about. “It’s not that young people don’t care," Jenkins said. "We’re not necessarily providing the right opportunities that actually let young people feel like they’re showing up as their full selves.” Some nonprofits are already adapting. The American Red Cross says it has seen a surge in youth involvement since the pandemic. From 2024 to 2025, the organization reported a 25% increase in volunteers from Generation Z, making it the fastest-growing age group in its volunteer base. Much of that growth comes from more than 1,400 youth-led clubs, many based in high schools. Students help decide how their clubs will participate in Red Cross activities, ranging from disaster preparedness education to blood drives and fundraising campaigns. Matt Bertram, the organization’s vice president of volunteer services, said flexibility is key. “There's lots of folks who want to do traditional volunteering. There's lots of folks who want to do a one-time project. And there's lots of folks who want to maybe do something through a club or school or through their service organization,” he said. “If we can continue to work hard to put all those people together, that’s how we’ll build that workforce of the future.”

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Texas Couple Celebrates Engagement Where Love First Took Flight: Airport Chili's

Romance can strike almost anywhere. Even next to a plate of fajitas at an airport Chili’s. Travelers passing through Chicago O’Hare International Airport recently witnessed a surprise proposal inside the Chili’s restaurant in the terminal. What started as a typical airport stop quickly turned into a moment that had passengers and staff cheering. Videos shared on TikTok show the couple approaching the restaurant as an instrumental version of Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love” plays softly in the background. Then, in front of diners and airport employees, the man dropped to one knee. People nearby quickly pulled out their phones to record the moment. Staff members paused their work, and travelers gathered around to see what would happen next. When the bride-to-be said yes, the restaurant erupted in cheers. The proposal included another unexpected touch. One of the screens inside the restaurant displayed a montage of photos and videos featuring the couple, playing as the big moment unfolded. For a place usually filled with travelers watching departure boards and grabbing quick meals between flights, the restaurant briefly turned into something else entirely. A crowd of strangers became an instant audience for a moment the couple will likely remember long after their flight home. And for a few minutes inside a busy airport terminal, love managed to land right on time.

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Now Boarding: Goose Airlines Takes Off For Spring

If you look up this time of year, you might spot a familiar sight in the sky. A V-shaped formation of honking geese heading north. Think of it as the busiest airline you’ll never book a ticket on. Every spring, millions of migrating geese launch what could be called the most reliable seasonal flight schedule in nature. Their journey north usually begins in late February and continues into May as birds leave their winter homes and return to breeding grounds across North America. The reason for the annual trip is simple. Food. “When geese migrate, they're following their food,” said Mitch Weegman, an avian ecologist at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. Winter conditions make survival difficult in northern regions. “Because it's cold, sometimes ice prevents the access to drinking water for these birds, and snow is preventing access to food,” Weegman said. “So they're getting kicked out of these places.” While geese could stay in their southern wintering areas year-round, that would create another challenge. Competition. “Any one environment can only support so many different species,” Weegman said. As temperatures rise and daylight stretches longer, conditions improve in the north. Snow melts, fresh vegetation appears and the birds begin moving again. “They are following the green wave, as we call it,” said Andrea Kölzsch, an assistant professor of ecology at Radboud University in the Netherlands. Across North America, migrating geese follow four main flight corridors known as flyways. The Pacific flyway runs between Alaska and California. The Central flyway stretches from western and northern Canada down to Arizona and Texas. The Mississippi flyway connects northern Canada to Louisiana. And the Atlantic flyway carries birds from eastern Canada to Florida. Before takeoff, geese prepare the only way endurance athletes know how. They eat. A lot. “They bulk up” on crops like corn, beans and wheat, Weegman said. The birds build up fat and protein reserves that fuel long flights. But there is a limit. “They have to kind of find a balance,” Kölzsch said. Too much weight can slow them down in the air. The passengers on these flights often include entire extended families. Parents, siblings and offspring frequently travel together, along with what Weegman calls “loose family associates.” Not every goose migrates, though. Over the past 30 to 40 years, some Canada geese have adapted to stay year-round in places where they once spent only summers. These resident birds tend to be larger and more aggressive than other species. “You can imagine how they win these interactions with foxes, coyotes, other birds,” Weegman said. “They're serious competitors.” For birds that do migrate, the trip length varies. Some faster species can reach their destinations in just a few days. Others take weeks or even months to complete the journey. Snow geese and Ross’s geese often stop frequently along the way. Meanwhile, black brant and Atlantic brant geese are capable of flying roughly 1,600 kilometres without stopping. To travel efficiently, geese rely on smart aerodynamics. That famous V-shaped formation helps birds conserve energy in flight. “The bird in front flies, and the one flying behind it can profit from the air currents that the wings of the first bird is producing,” Kölzsch said. Leading the formation is demanding work. The bird at the front breaks the wind, creating lift for those behind it. To share the load, geese regularly switch positions during the journey. If a bird gets tired, sick or encounters rough weather, another goose can move forward to take the lead. And the flights are rarely quiet. “There's a lot of continued conversation, or decision making, throughout the year, not only in the air, and that leads to lots of individuals being able to take over the lead position,” Weegman said. During layovers, geese rest and refuel before continuing north. But changing climate conditions are making the trip more unpredictable. Storms are becoming more frequent and intense, sometimes forcing birds to move along faster than planned. Eventually the travelers reach their summer breeding grounds. By then, many geese have already chosen a partner. Once they pair up, they usually stay together for life. Most return to the same nesting sites they used the year before. By early to mid-summer, goslings hatch and begin growing quickly. They do not have long to prepare. By August or September, the young birds will be making their first major flight south for the winter, following their parents along the same ancient routes. And with that, another season of Goose Airlines is officially underway.

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Young People are Embracing 'Grandma Hobbies' Like Blacksmithing And Needlepoint

At 23, Emma MacTaggart noticed something about her downtime. It barely existed. And when it did, it usually ended with a glowing phone screen. MacTaggart was working long hours in investment banking, and when the workday finally ended, scrolling often filled the gap. So she and her roommates decided to try something different. They went looking for a hobby that would keep their hands busy and their phones out of reach. They landed on needlepoint. The craft was something MacTaggart had briefly learned from relatives as a child, but had not touched in years. It did not take long before the group got pulled in. “It was a really therapeutic way to kind of distract yourself from either work or stress, but also just do something with your hands instead of doomscrolling,” she said. “We became completely obsessed.” MacTaggart is part of a growing wave of young people turning to tactile hobbies as a break from constant digital life. Knitting, gardening and needlepoint are often labeled online as “grandma hobbies,” a tongue in cheek reference to the generations who traditionally practiced them. But the label has not scared younger hobbyists away. In fact, it seems to be part of the appeal. Beyond the familiar crafts, activities like pottery, origami and even blacksmithing have gained attention among Gen Z and millennials online. Many of these hobbies saw renewed interest during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when people suddenly had more time at home. What started as a lockdown pastime has continued to grow. MacTaggart leaned into that momentum. Now 26, she runs a needlepoint business called What’s the Stitch and manages social media accounts under the same name. What began as a personal hobby turned into a storefront selling canvases, accessories and digital designs. Her creations often include cheeky humor and occasional profanity, a twist on a craft known for being prim and traditional. “It is such a historically buttoned up craft, so it’s fun to put a young spin on it,” she said. Psychologists say the appeal of hobbies goes far beyond nostalgia. Jaime Kurtz, a professor of psychology at James Madison University who studies happiness, said hands-on activities can ease anxiety and stress while giving people a sense of accomplishment. “Hobbies are really important, and a lot of us have lost them, or we just don’t prioritize them enough, or we think we’re too busy,” Kurtz said. “But just finding little bits of time to carve out to do these kinds of things is a really wise use of time.” For some people, the draw is the chance to slow down. Clara Sherman co-founded the company So Bam Fun to introduce mahjong to a younger crowd. When she plays with friends, she said the game creates a calm focus that is hard to find elsewhere. “You kind of feel like you’re existing in this little bubble of just myself, my friends and this game we’re all enjoying together,” Sherman said. “It just really does allow you to shut off the rest of the world.” Not every hobbyist sees technology as the enemy. Some are blending traditional activities with digital tools. Isaiah Scott, a 22-year-old birdwatcher, artist and content creator in Savannah, Georgia, uses the app eBird to track sightings. The platform allows birders to log observations while contributing to research and conservation efforts. Scott said his generation’s reputation for being glued to phones misses part of the picture. “It’s easy to say his generation is ‘glued to their phones,’ Scott said, but that access to technology also ‘opens so many doors to get involved in hobbies that may have been forgotten about or (are) just difficult to get into otherwise.’” Birdwatching, he explained, feels a lot like the Pokémon games he grew up playing. “It feels like a video game, but in real life.” Traveling to different places feels like unlocking new levels, and spotting species adds to the score. Scott has logged about 800 species so far. The hobby also pushed him into conservation work. Scott founded the nonprofit Rookery and Roots Conservancy and recently purchased a 16 hectare property in Rincon, Georgia, to protect wildlife habitat. Support from his online audience helped make the purchase possible. Social media has also helped turn traditional crafts into full-time careers. Anna Weare works as a blacksmith and farrier and shares videos online under the name AnvilAnna. While she already had steady clients before posting online, her audience has expanded worldwide. The interest, she said, may reflect frustration with disposable goods and factory production. “People, now more than ever, are realizing that things made in factories or mass produced, they wear out so quickly,” Weare said. Demand for her handmade one-piece spurs is so high that customers now face a waitlist of about a year. “People want longevity, and this craft has been around for so long for a reason.” Community is another part of the draw. Kristie Landing created Verse & Sip, a platform for poets and paper craft enthusiasts. Her videos feature letter writing, wax seals, origami and carefully folded correspondence. Her followers often ask about tools and paper, but many are simply looking for connection. Landing recently launched a pen pal matching service after viewers began asking for someone to exchange letters with. She also runs the Verse & Sip Mail Club, sending an original poem and tea each month to subscribers around the world. She hopes the content slows people down for a moment. “I am trying to create slower moments on platforms that are based on really quick, short attention span kind of videos,” she said. “These kind of stop you in the scroll.” Many hobbyists say their crafts are not passing trends but part of a conscious shift toward slower, hands-on activities. MacTaggart, for one, has embraced the “grandma hobby” nickname completely. “I joke with my friends that I have been a grandma my whole life,” she said, “so it’s only fitting that this is now my career.”

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A Sleepy Jaguar is Still Getting Used to the Time Change, and it's Lounging at the Oakland Zoo

A sleepy jaguar was spotted lounging at a California zoo in footage posted on Monday, March 9. Footage taken at Oakland Zoo shows jaguar Lucha lolling about in his enclosure. “Take notes from Lucha,” the zoo wrote on X. “It’s time to head back to bed and celebrate National Napping Day.” Monday was National Napping Day, a day to recover after daylight saving time, according to reports. 📸 Oakland Zoo via Storyful

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Scientists Just Discovered Signs Of Ancient Life In an Unexpected Location

While hiking through Morocco’s rugged Dadès Valley, paleontologist Rowan Martindale noticed something odd etched into the rock beneath her feet. The patterns were small ridges and wrinkles layered across a beautifully rippled rock surface. To most hikers they might have looked like little more than texture in the stone. To Martindale, a paleoecologist and geobiologist at the University of Texas at Austin, they looked like something far more intriguing. "As we're walking up these turbidites, I'm looking around and this beautifully rippled bedding plane caught my eye," Martindale said. "I said, 'Stéphane, you need to get back here. These are wrinkle structures!'" Martindale and colleague Stéphane Bodin of Aarhus University had been exploring the Central High Atlas Mountains to study ancient reef ecosystems that once existed there when the region was covered by ocean water. The rocks they were crossing were layers of turbidites, sediments formed by underwater debris flows that sweep down the seafloor. Ripple patterns are common in those deposits. But the wrinkles Martindale spotted looked different. Wrinkle structures are tiny ridges and pits that form when microbial communities grow across sandy seafloors. These mats of algae and microorganisms can leave delicate textures in the sediment beneath them. But those textures rarely survive in younger rocks. Once animals evolved and began burrowing through ocean sediments, they started disturbing and destroying these fragile microbial patterns. For that reason, wrinkle structures are usually found only in rocks older than about 540 million years. When they do appear, they are typically discovered in shallow waters where sunlight allows photosynthetic algae to thrive. The Moroccan wrinkles seemed to break all those rules. The rocks containing them formed roughly 180 million years ago, long after animals had begun churning up the seafloor. Even more puzzling, the turbidites where they appeared formed at depths of at least 180 meters below the ocean surface, far beyond the reach of sunlight. In other words, the wrinkles should not have existed there at all. Recognizing how unusual the discovery was, Martindale and her team set out to confirm what they had found. "Let's go through every single piece of evidence that we can find to be sure that these are wrinkle structures in turbidites," Martindale said, noting that such structures "shouldn't be in this deep-water setting." The team carefully examined the surrounding rock layers and confirmed that the sediments had indeed formed from turbidite flows. Next, they searched for signs that the textures were biological rather than geological. Chemical tests revealed a key clue. The sediment beneath the wrinkles contained elevated levels of carbon, a signal often linked to biological activity. Researchers also compared the rocks to modern environments in the deep ocean. Footage from remotely operated submersibles shows that microbial mats can grow far below the reach of sunlight. But instead of relying on photosynthesis, these deep-sea microbes survive through chemosynthesis, a process that generates energy from chemical reactions. By combining their field observations with chemical evidence and modern ocean data, the researchers concluded the Moroccan structures were formed by chemosynthetic microbial mats. Turbidite flows may have helped create the right conditions. These underwater debris flows can deliver nutrients and organic material into deeper waters while also lowering oxygen levels in nearby sediments. Those conditions can support communities of chemosynthetic bacteria. During calm periods between debris flows, microbial mats could spread across the seafloor, forming the wrinkled textures observed in the rocks. Most would eventually be wiped away by the next sediment flow. Occasionally, however, the mat would be buried quickly enough to be preserved in the geological record. The discovery could reshape how scientists search for evidence of ancient life. Martindale hopes future laboratory experiments will help researchers understand how wrinkle structures form in these deeper environments. She also believes the finding may prompt geologists to revisit places that were previously dismissed as unlikely habitats for microbial life. "Wrinkle structures are really important pieces of evidence in the early evolution of life," Martindale said. By assuming they only form in shallow, sunlit environments, she added, scientists may be overlooking key clues hidden in deeper parts of the ancient ocean. And those overlooked wrinkles, quietly preserved in stone, may hold a much larger story about how life once thrived far below the sunlight.

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Cancer Death Rate In Britain Drops By Almost A Third Since The 1980s

Cancer still claims more lives in Britain than any other disease. But the odds of dying from it are far lower than they were a generation ago. The rate of people dying from cancer in the United Kingdom has fallen by almost one third since the late 1980s, according to a new analysis from Cancer Research UK. Today, about 247 people out of every 100,000 die from cancer each year. That marks a 29% drop from the peak in 1989, when the death rate reached about 355 per 100,000. Researchers say the decline reflects decades of progress in prevention, screening and treatment. “These figures represent decades of crucial scientific breakthroughs,” said Dr Sam Godfrey, science engagement lead at Cancer Research UK. “From vaccines that prevent cancer to kinder, more targeted treatments. Because of this, thousands more people today can make memories, reach milestones and spend precious time with their loved ones.” The downward trend has continued in recent years. Over the past decade alone, the overall cancer death rate has fallen by 11%. Some cancers have seen particularly sharp improvements. Deaths from ovarian cancer dropped by 19% between the periods 2012–2014 and 2022–2024. Stomach cancer deaths fell by 34%, while lung cancer deaths declined by 22%. Other major cancers also showed progress. Death rates for bowel cancer decreased by 6%, breast cancer by 14%, cervical cancer by 11% and leukaemia by 9%. Oesophageal cancer deaths dropped by 12%. Despite the overall progress, some cancer death rates have risen in the past decade. These include kidney cancer, which increased by 5%, liver cancer by 14%, eye cancer by 26% and gallbladder cancer by 29%. Rates for thyroid cancer, pancreatic cancer and melanoma have remained relatively stable. Cancer still causes about one in four deaths in Britain, making it the country’s biggest killer. Survival rates also trail behind several European countries, including Romania and Poland. But health experts say public health policies and medical advances have played a major role in reducing mortality. Smoking bans, early detection programmes and improved treatments have all contributed to the long-term drop in deaths. Screening programmes in particular have made a difference. The NHS cervical screening programme has helped drive a dramatic decline in cervical cancer deaths, which have fallen by about 75% since the 1970s. Vaccination has also played a role. The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, introduced in the UK in 2008 and offered to schoolchildren, is helping prevent cervical cancers before they develop. About 6.5 million people have received the vaccine since it was introduced. Advances in treatment have also improved outcomes. In prostate cancer, for example, death rates have fallen by 11% over the past decade. One contributing factor is the drug abiraterone, developed by scientists funded by Cancer Research UK, which blocks testosterone from fueling prostate tumors. Godfrey said Britain remains a global leader in cancer research, but continued progress will depend on sustained investment and support for clinical trials. “It’s essential that the government makes it easier and faster to set up clinical trials, as well as providing NHS staff with the time and space to carry out life-saving research,” he said. Even as the risk of dying from cancer falls, the number of diagnoses is rising. Because the UK population is growing and ageing, more people are developing the disease. On average, one person in Britain is diagnosed with cancer every 75 seconds. That means the total number of deaths from cancer continues to increase even as individual survival rates improve. The pressure on health services remains significant. Last year, an analysis found that three quarters of NHS hospital trusts were failing to meet key cancer care targets. In response, the government recently pledged £2 billion to improve cancer services. Officials say the funding will help deliver faster diagnoses, quicker treatment and better support for patients. Under the national cancer plan, ministers say all three NHS waiting-time targets for cancer care should be met by 2029. For researchers, the long-term trend still tells a hopeful story. Decades of prevention efforts, vaccines, early detection and more precise treatments are steadily shifting the odds for millions of people facing cancer.

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Jane Ferguson Launches Noosphere App to Revolutionize War Reporting and Empower Journalists

For years, Jane Ferguson reported from some of the world’s most dangerous places. Conflict zones across the Middle East, Africa and South Asia became her workplace during a 15-year career with PBS NewsHour and The New Yorker. But despite the awards and experience, one question followed her everywhere. “How do you cope in such a male-dominated industry?” Her answer is simple. “Women have been doing this work for over a century.” Ferguson says she has noticed more women reporting from conflict zones in recent years. While she has not conducted a formal study, she believes several factors have helped shift the balance. The constant demand for news, the rise of freelance journalism and broader progress on gender equality have all opened more doors. Yet she believes the biggest change is not just who is reporting from war zones, but how the stories are told. Traditional war coverage has often focused on combat and battlefield strategy. Ferguson says many female reporters have helped expand the lens, highlighting the people whose lives are reshaped by conflict. While some journalists still focus on the “bang bang” of war reporting, she says many women reporters emphasize the communities living through those moments. “We get so much rich imagery and storytelling now,” she said in 2023 after releasing her book No Ordinary Assignment. “I really believe that this acceleration of women into the field has been the leading contributor to enriching what the public gets to see. What do they see from war? They see children with their pets. They see families saying goodbye. I just think there's much more nuanced, imaginative thinking about how to tell these stories.” Ferguson sees that shift as a product of diversity in the newsroom and in the field. “It’s important for me to celebrate the additive qualities of female reporting beyond just having women out there because it’s the right thing to do,” she said. “[Journalism] organically begins to reflect who we are.” Now she is trying to reshape another part of the industry: how journalism reaches audiences. After years of reporting abroad, Ferguson grew frustrated watching the news industry struggle at home. Newsrooms were shrinking, trust in media was declining and the financial model supporting journalism was under pressure. The experience pushed her toward a new idea. She launched Noosphere, a video-first platform designed to connect audiences directly with reporters on the ground. The concept grew out of her own experience as a freelancer. While reporting from crisis zones, she often shared updates on social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Those posts reached large audiences, but they generated little income for the journalists producing them. According to a description on the Noosphere website, Ferguson saw a different path. “The answer, she realized, was in disintermediation,” the website says. “The world's best journalists could reach people, together, without a news organization. They could build a real community around them, fund their work, and keep telling stories that connect people around the world to our shared humanity.” Instead of subscribing to a publication, users subscribe directly to reporters. The platform focuses on video updates from journalists reporting in the field. Each reporter maintains editorial independence and can pursue stories without the direction of a traditional newsroom hierarchy. Subscriptions for readers currently range from about $15 to $20, according to the Columbia Journalism Review. The project is still in its early stages, but several established journalists have already joined the platform, including Hind Hassan, Matthew Cassel and Joyce Koh. Reporters receive half of the subscription revenue they bring to the platform. For Ferguson, the goal is not just to build another media outlet. She wants to reduce the barriers that have long shaped who gets to tell global stories. “My whole career, I had needed either a network or a newspaper to have a career and reach an audience,” Ferguson told NiemanLab in March 2025. “If that’s what it was like for me — an incredibly privileged, white, Western reporter — the gatekeeping was even worse for all the local reporters, producers, and fixers I worked with all over the world.” She believes technology offers a chance to rebuild how journalism works. “It occurred to me that, actually, technology is going to allow us to solve for a number of issues here,” she said. “When we build the new iteration of distribution of news, we’ll build it better and way more equitable.”

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