Topic: University of Toronto

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College rankings: Which countries have the best education systems?

A new higher education ranking focuses on evaluating quality by countries as a whole, rather than specific academic institutions. Here are some of the findings:

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College rankings: Which countries have the best education systems?

A new higher education ranking focuses on evaluating quality by countries as a whole, rather than specific academic institutions. Here are some of the findings:
Human ancestors used fire a million years ago, finds study

Ash and a charred bone unearthed in South Africa indicates that, even a million years ago, humanity's forebears had harnessed fire.
Could free-floating 'nomad' planets carry seeds of life in the universe?

A 'nomad' planet of the right mass, with the right atmosphere, and some source of heat – perhaps radioactive decay or tectonic activity – could allow for life either on the surface or underground.
Tax VOX
What tax reform would mean at the state level

Congress could go a long way towards fixing the federal system without destroying state revenue codes—but only if reform is done carefully.
Ancient tulip-like creature had bizarre gut

The animal was a filter feeder, with a tulip-shaped body and a stem that anchored it to the seafloor.
Is Canada's oil more ethical than Saudi Arabia's?

To boost support for a US pipeline for its oil sands crude, Canada claims it's more ethical than the Middle East. Is there such a thing as ethical oil?
Tatooine for real? Scientists confirm planet orbiting two suns.

Tatooine is the mythical home of Luke Skywalker. Now, scientists have identified a planet in a binary system 200 light-years away, although the planet is more like Saturn in mass and makeup.
Brown dwarf star wracked by most violent weather seen on another world

Brown dwarf: Over a period of several hours, the star exhibited the largest brightness variations ever seen on a cool brown dwarf.
Chapter & Verse
Interview with Jay Bahadur on "The Pirates of Somalia"

Jay Bahadur chewed khat, fielded lies, and made his way through the intricacies of Somali clan politics as he gathered information for "The Pirates of Somalia."
Regime change in Syria and Iran will come only if people unite as in Libya

The citizenry in Iran and Syria must take up their own collective responsibility and shake off fear to depose their dictators, as the people did in Libya. Democracy promotion from outside simply isn't practical or effective.
Mexican crime journalist killed in home invasion

The murder of Mexican crime journalist Miguel Angel Lopez Velasco and his family in Veracruz is just the latest in a rash of violence against reporters in Mexico this month.
Iran's Green Movement has actually achieved its goal

Where does Iran’s opposition stand two years later? The price of speaking out has been high. Even so, the movement has achieved its goal by gaining moral high ground, revealing the true face of the Islamic regime, and draining away much of its political legitimacy.
How attack on Google's Gmail skirted US security roadblocks

FBI will investigate Google charges that several hundred Gmail accounts were hacked by perpetrators in China. With the attack, hackers found 'a way around a roadblock,' one expert says.
Could uprisings in Egypt and the Arab world produce a 'Muslim Gandhi'?

Far from being utopian, the Gandhian emphasis on an ethical politics based on nonviolence and mutual respect may be the most practical path to achieve democracy in a region exhausted from the seemingly endless repression and bloodshed that has resulted from the belief that violence is the real source of power.
Other Earths? A new estimate raises the odds of finding them.

Researchers predict finding many Earth-sized planets around sun-like stars, right in our own galaxy. But don't pack your bags just yet – you might not want to live on them.
Gliese 581g: 'Goldilocks' planet might not exist after all

Gliese 581g, a newly discovered, first-of-its-kind planet thought to exist in its star's habitable zone, might just be 'noise,' astronomers say.
Plane that flies by flapping its wings makes historic first flight

The human-powered Snowbird is the world's first ornithopter, a bird-like aircraft first envisioned by Leonardo da Vinci in 1485.
UAE's BlackBerry ban: Why is Canada silent?

The UAE's BlackBerry ban drew condemnation from freedom monitors and the US government, but nothing from Canada, BlackBerry's home country. 'Maybe it’s summer and they’re away,' says one watchdog.
G20 summit: less-developed nations still struggle to shape agenda

As competing agendas descend upon Toronto for this weekend’s G20 summit, the so-called BRIC countries expect to get an equal voice, but less-developed countries remain concerned about being heard.
G20 summit dilemma: Stimulate economic growth or rein in deficits?

The chief question at this weekend's G20 summit will be how to keep the world economy growing. The Europeans are cutting government spending, ignoring President Obama's call for more stimulus.
Gulf oil spill: Will Obama bring it up at the G8, G20 meetings?

Several nations that will be represented at the G8 and G20 have deepwater drilling off their shorelines. So they have an interest in hearing any remarks from Obama about the Gulf oil spill.
G-20 summit: financial reform is needed. But how fast?

As G-20 summit to focus on a split over approach: Will reining in spending cut debt, or stall jobs and growth?
Beyond Iran sanctions: Iran's failing legitimacy

Sanctions on Iran should be a secondary issue for the International community. The priority should be challenging the moral and political legitimacy of violence by the Iranian state against its own citizens.
Scientists finally figure out what that mysterious bug-eyed ancient creature was all about

Neither shrimp nor vertebrate, Nectocaris pteryx was actually a type of mollusk.
More Americans on the move: why that's a good thing

More Americans moved last year than in 2008, according to the Census Bureau, suggesting that the economy is improving. But the mobility rate is still at historic lows.