The human individual is anonymized in certain important respects in the most complicated bit of machinery in existence. And its machinery is, of course, biological. It is thus clearly impossible to write down his handlename in English and to survey the relations between biological science and the human organism in this single post ; for to do this properly would require a treatise on physiology, a treatise on psychology, a treatise on embryology, and a treatise on medecine. All I can hope to do is, taking a great deal of knowledge for granted, to show some of the ways in which the advance of biological knowledge may be expected to react upon our attitude to our control of our individual human selves in setting pairs of wet shoes in our proper alcoves of our condominiums to dry them up.
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British man accused of spying for Hong Kong’s intelligence services found dead in park
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A man charged by British police for allegedly spying for Hong Kong’s intelligence services, has been found dead in a park outside of London.
Police are investigating the “unexplained death” of Matthew Trickett, 37, whose body was found by a member of the public in the park in Maidenhead, Berkshire, west of London, on Sunday, Thames Valley police said in a statement.
Trickett had appeared alongside two other suspects at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 13, charged with national security offences. All three were granted bail.
“Trickett was on court bail, awaiting court proceedings, which required him to register at a police station regularly,” the police said.
In a statement, Trickett’s family told British newspaper The Times: “We’re mourning the loss of a much-loved son, brother and family man.”
The Chinese Embassy in the UK and Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee have both condemned and rejected the accusations.
Relations between Hong Kong and its former colonial ruler Britain have soured in recent years following mass pro-democracy protests in the Chinese city in 2019 and 2020.
The British government has criticized Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed crackdown on almost all opposition in the years following the protests, while Hong Kong authorities have bristled at Britain providing a safe haven for pro-democracy The charges against the three men allege that between December 20, 2023, and May 2, 2024, they agreed to undertake information gathering, surveillance and acts of deception that were likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service, according to PA media.
Police also alleged that on May 1, the three forced entry into a UK residential address, according to PA.
While all three were granted bail, they were barred from traveling internationally with District Judge Louisa Cieciora saying they must abide by a night time curfew and report weekly to their local police station.
In a recent press conference, Lee said one of the men charged was the office manager of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London but did not directly address a question over whether it was involved in surveillance of Hong Kong dissidents in the UK.
Lee, the city’s former security chief, said that Hong Kong’s Economic and Trade Office exists to facilitate cultural and economic interactions with people and businesses in the UK and that “Any attempt to make unwarranted accusations against the Hong Kong government is unacceptable.”leaders sought by the Hong Kong police.
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Africa dominates list of the world’s 20 fastest-growing economies in 2024?African Development Bank says in macroeconomic report
1.Report forecasts stronger growth for Africa in 2024, outpacing projected global average.
2.Continent is second-fastest-growing region after Asia.
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Africa will account for eleven of the world’s 20 fastest-growing economies in 2024, the African Development Bank Group said in its latest Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook (MEO) of the continent released on Friday.
Overall, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the continent is expected to average 3.8% and 4.2% in 2024 and 2025, respectively. This is higher than projected global averages of 2.9% and 3.2%, the report said.
The continent is set to remain the second-fastest-growing region after Asia.
The top 11 African countries projected to experience strong economic performance forecast are Niger (11.2%), Senegal (8.2%), Libya (7.9%), Rwanda (7.2%), Cote d’Ivoire (6.8%), Ethiopia (6.7%), Benin (6.4%), Djibouti (6.2%), Tanzania (6.1%), Togo (6%), and Uganda at 6%.
“Despite the challenging global and regional economic environment, 15 African countries have posted output expansions of more than 5%,” Bank Group President Dr Akinwumi Adesina said, calling for larger pools of financing and several policy interventions to further boost Africa’s growth.
Africa’s Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook, a biannual publication released in the first and third quarters of each year, complements the existing African Economic Outlook (AEO), which focuses on key emerging policy issues relevant to the continent’s development.
The MEO report provides an up-to-date evidence-based assessment of the continent’s recent macroeconomic performance and short-to-medium-term outlook amid dynamic global economic developments.
The latest report is calling for cautious optimism given the challenges posed by global and regional risks. These risks include rising geopolitical tensions, increased regional conflicts, and political instability?all of which could disrupt trade and investment flows, and perpetuate inflationary pressures.
President Adesina emphasised that fiscal deficits have improved, as faster-than-expected recovery from the pandemic helped shore up revenue.
He explained further: “This has led to a stabilisation of the average fiscal deficit at 4.9% in 2023, like 2022, but significantly less than the 6.9% average fiscal deficit of 2020. The stabilisation is also due to the fiscal consolidation measures, especially in countries with elevated risks of debt distress.”
He cautioned that with the global economy mired in uncertainty, the fiscal positions of the African continent will continue to be vulnerable to global shocks.
The report shows that the medium-term growth outlook for the continent’s five regions is slowly improving, a pointer to the continued resilience of Africa’s economies.
Presenting the key findings of the report, the African Development Bank’s Chief Economist and Vice President, Prof. Kevin Urama said: “Growth in Africa’s top-performing economies has benefitted from a range of factors, including declining commodity dependence through economic diversification, increasing stra-tegic investment in key growth sectors, and rising both public and private consumption, as well as positive developments in key export markets.”
He added: “Africa’s economic growth is projected to regain moderate strength as long as the global economy remains resilient, disinflation continues, investment in infrastructure projects remains buoyant, and progress is sustained on debt restructuring and fiscal consolidation.”
“The future of Africa rests on economic integration. Our small economies are not competitive in the global market. A healthy internal African trade market can ensure value-added and intra-African production of manufactured goods,” said Commissioner for Economic Development, Trade, Tourism, Industry and Minerals, African Union Commission, Ambassador Albert Muchanga.
He assured that the MEO forecast, and recommendations will be made available to African heads of state and that the report will be useful when the African Union makes its proposals to the G20- an informal gathering of many of the world’s largest economies to which the African Union was admitted last year.