October 31, 2022

  Authoritarian regimes are significantly overstating their GDP (gross domestic product) growth, according to new research that uses satellite images of countries at night as a proxy for economic activity. The report estimates that autocracies exaggerate yearly GDP growth by about 35% relative to democracies. Rosier picture The research starts from a central premise: that all leaders, whether in democracies or dictatorships, want to boast of a booming economy. “Everyone would always want to paint a rosier picture,” report author Luis Martinez of the University of Chicago told VOA. “The crucial difference is that in a democracy you have a whole

  A tiny mountain-dwelling wren was the surprise winner Monday of New Zealand’s controversial bird of the year competition, which even had Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in a flap. The piwauwau rock wren punched above its 20-gram weight, flying under the radar to win the annual contest ahead of popular fellow native contenders, the little penguin and the kea. Fans of the wren set up a Facebook page to help the outsider soar up the final rankings when the fortnight-long poll closed Monday. “It’s not the size, it’s the underbird you vote for that counts,” wrote one supporter. The annual