Author: damazah@gmail.com

Following the closures of EC English and ILAC—Who is really paying the cost for “free” or “budget” study abroad programs?In September 2026, EC English, which operated language schools around the world including in Canada, announced that it would be ending operations across 25 schools in 7 countries.Furthermore, yesterday (September 18), it was announced that ILAC in Canada had also filed for bankruptcy protection and ceased operations.Seeing this news, as someone who has been involved in the study abroad industry for a long time, I have had many thoughts.First and foremost, I am thinking of those who were already studying abroad,…

The two elections took place on Sunday, a fortnight after the CDU saw its vote halved in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, where the AfD won a major victory.In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the CDU fell short of a 5% threshold to enter parliament, underperforming against what had already been projected to be the party’s worst ever result in the area. Merz earlier conceded that this result was “a disaster”.While the AfD won the most votes in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, it was far short of a majority and is unlikely to govern as other parties may refuse to work with it.Some branches of the party are…

You spend a considerable portion of Silent Hill: Townfall in a kind of foetal position, cowering behind objects that will be eerily familiar to anyone who lived in the UK during the 1990s. Cars seem to be modelled on the era’s boxy Volkswagen Golfs; logos adorning phone boxes should narrowly escape the attention of copyright lawyers at BT Group. (For millennials, the deja vu will likely intensify the horror, as if stepping back into a childhood nightmare.) Simon, the nerdy, unassuming star of the game, pokes his head around corners to catch a glimpse of the demonic entities that wish…

This is the question on the lips of many in Ogun State. The answer may not yet be yes, though the warning lights are unmistakably flashing. For a man who has already secured the ticket for the All Progressives Congress, the real battle for the ultimate prize has only just begun. Winning the nomination was one thing; convincing a complicated, politically sophisticated and fiercely competitive Ogun electorate to hand him the keys to Ogun State government house is another. Yayi has the machinery, the connections and the backing of powerful political figures. But none of those, on election day, is…

An international team of astronomers co-led by an IAS scholar has identified what appears to be a universal rule governing one of the most dramatic behaviors of black holes: the production of powerful jets. The researchers found that black holes can launch jets at the same critical stage of their feeding cycle, regardless of their size. That includes “stellar-mass” black holes about ten times the mass of our sun as well as supermassive black holes that are millions of times heavier. The work was carried out by Andrew Mummery, Martin A. and Helen Chooljian Member (2025-30) in the School of…

We love secondhand shopping here on the Filter – whether it’s Second Hand September or not. You can unearth one-off, affordable pieces, and feel good about not adding overconsumption to your list of things to worry about. So to inspire us, we asked you for your best-ever preloved finds, whether that’s furniture or fashion or more (and added a few of our own, too).“An Ercol daybed I bought on eBay for £50, in need of some TLC,” reader Fiona told us. “Stripped, re-webbed and with a new cushion, it is now a thing of beauty and very comfortable.”“The best thing…

Networks halt TV pool coverage of Trump following CNN banAfter President Trump’s snap decision to ban CNN from the White House, the four other networks that comprise the White House’s TV pool decided they would cease their pooled coverage of the president, Politico and other outlets are reporting.Alongside CNN, those four networks – NBC, ABC, CBS, and Fox News – have provided rotating video coverage of the president both in the White House and around the country, broadly sharing the footage they gather. They are a near-permanent fixture of the presidency.But they won’t be for the time being, it seems.In an…

Donald Trump has said that the US would appoint a new AI tsar and create an “AI Force” while offering a full-throated defense of the emerging industry in the face of a growing popular backlash. The US president’s announcement comes as leading industry figures have sounded the alarm that humans could lose control over the rapidly advancing technology without a slowdown in development. However, rather than announcing regulation as some have demanded, Trump has dismissed safety concerns as a “hoax.”Read full article Comments

The nation’s apex legislative institution has moved the 2026 constitutional alteration process to the 36 State Houses of Assembly, beginning the crucial concurrence stage with only the State Policing bill slated for deliberation. Sunday Aborisade reports. Nigeria’s latest attempt to alter the 1999 Constitution has entered a new phase, with the National Assembly transmitting an aspect of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (Sixth Alteration) Bill, 2026, to the 36 State Houses of Assembly for consideration. At least 24 states must approve the bill before the process can advance. While state police dominates the exercise, dozens of…

Two new large stick insect species have been identified by Australian researchers, in a discovery they say illustrates how little we still understand about insect diversity.The two species, both found in far north Queensland, are described in a study published in Austral Entomology.One, named Anchiale robusta, was hiding in plain sight: the stick insect has long been popular among enthusiasts and scientists, but analysis has only now revealed that its previous designation was a case of mistaken identity.“When we went out into the field, and we saw a whole bunch of different individuals that looked morphologically different, and they were…