The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, emphasized that the international community has failed to uphold the fundamental principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights concerning persons with disabilities — that all people are born equal."In all regions, people with disabilities face discrimination and neglect; they are delayed and suppressed; underestimated and marginalized," he said on Monday. "Women and girls are particularly targeted and ignored." The High Commissioner further stressed that for today's online communities, cyberbullying "often means that no place feels safe."Responding to this warning, the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Heba Hagrass, highlighted that progress on disability rights has either stalled or regressed for 14% of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) standards. According to the 2024 Disability and Development Report, 30% of the targets showed insufficient change."Women and girls with disabilities face even greater challenges because they experience intersectional discrimination," Hagrass told the Assembly. Speaking as an independent expert, she noted that, like other special rapporteurs, she is not a UN staff member and does not receive payment for her work.The UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities told the Assembly that women and girls with disabilities face both gender discrimination. (Photo/Source: Pexels)"Women and girls with disabilities face both gender discrimination and disability-related discrimination," Hagrass continued. "They are underrepresented in education and employment and face a higher risk of violence and abuse — particularly forced sterilization, domestic violence, and sexual exploitation," Hagrass added.
Researchers have discovered that trees depicted in famous artworks follow the same mathematical rules as real-life trees. This pattern, known as fractals, is seen in natural branching structures and may explain why viewers easily recognize trees in art.Mathematical biologist Mitchell Newberry and researcher Jingyi Gao studied tree depictions in various artworks, including Matsumura Goshun’s Cherry Blossoms, Piet Mondrian’s The Gray Tree, and Gustav Klimt’s Tree of Life. They found that even highly abstract trees often align with natural branching patterns.Fractals are geometric patterns that repeat at different scales, seen in snowflakes, lightning, and blood vessels. Newberry and Gao analyzed the branch diameter scaling exponent in the artworks, discovering that trees in art typically match real trees’ scaling values (between 1.5 and 3). Surprisingly, the Indian mosque carving showed greater resemblance to real trees than the seemingly naturalistic Cherry Blossoms.Shown here is one of the artfully carved windows of the Sidi Saiyyed Mosque in Ahmedabad, India, which depicts a tree. Frank Bienewald/LightRocket/Getty ImagesThe study highlights that understanding fractal patterns may have enabled artists to create recognizable trees despite abstract forms. Although artists like Mondrian may not have known fractal mathematics, they appeared to intuitively follow these natural patterns.This research connects art with science, emphasizing the universal beauty of natural patterns. As Richard Taylor from the University of Oregon noted, this integration highlights why fractal designs — whether in art or nature — offer significant aesthetic and psychological benefits.
Many people believe that whale watching requires traveling to Australia, the United States, or Japan. However, Southeast Asian waters are also home to a rich variety of marine mammals.As one of the world's marine biodiversity hotspots, Southeast Asian seas are inhabited by over 3,000 fish species and 600 coral species, attracting a wide range of marine mammals as well.Marcus Chua, a mammal expert from the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum at the National University of Singapore, noted that the presence of marine mammals indicates a thriving ecosystem capable of supporting large predators (like whales) or large herbivores (like dugongs).Humans are highly dependent on the ocean, yet the marine ecosystems around us have severely deteriorated. (Photo/Source: Pexels)Louisa Ponnampalam, co-founder of Malaysia’s MareCet Marine Mammal Research and Conservation Organization, warned that the disappearance of marine mammals would signal that their habitat is no longer suitable for survival. "If these species can no longer survive, it means that our surrounding marine ecosystems have deteriorated severely. Whether we realize it or not, humans are highly dependent on the ocean," she said.Between October and January, humpback whales migrate to the waters of the Philippines and Thailand in search of warmer seas for mating and breeding. These massive creatures can grow up to 18.3 meters in length and weigh as much as 36,280 kilograms — roughly the combined weight of three to five buses.
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