In The News

Ancient Greeks Introduced Wine to France, Cambridge Study Reveals

Andrew Hough October 29, 2009
Recent discoveries by Cambridge Professor Paul Cartledge support the theory that it was the Ancient Greeks, and not the Romans or a local group, that first popularized wine in France. Backed by archaeological evidence, Cartledge explains that Greeks intermarried with locals to ensure the survival of their settlement at modern-day Marseilles, and in doing so established trade networks in France...

Globalization: Diseases Spreading From Humans to Animals, Study Finds

October 29, 2009
For the first time since animal domestication 10,000 years ago, a disease has spread from humans to animals. A new study from the University of Edinburgh shows how a version of the staph infection started in humans, spread to chickens, and then spread throughout the global poultry industry. Diseases are a major threat to the poultry industry. One of the study’s authors suggests that the global...

Globalization Boosts Europe’s Gangsters

Leigh Phillips October 28, 2009
Reduced trade barriers and ease of transportation brought about by globalization are also helping transnational criminal networks succeed in the European Union. A new report from the EU’s criminal intelligence agency says drug dealing, human trafficking, and trade in counterfeit luxury goods are on the rise. Criminal organizations are taking advantage of trade liberalization and low-cost airlines...

Global Crime Networks Cooperate Better Than Police

October 13, 2009
Despite being one of the world's biggest international organizations, Interpol has struggled to rein in global crime syndicates. While police forces and intelligence organizations –both locally and internationally – hesitate to share information, fearing another's potential for corruption, criminals have capitalized on tech-savvy forms of global communication to build links across...

Globalization Putting A Premium On Overseas Studies

Joseph Yeh October 5, 2009
Most modern nations emphasize education as an engine of progress, and Taiwan is no exception – in fact, it is famous for the rigor of its system. Recently, however, the Ministry of Education (MOE) has encouraged students to leave their native classrooms for foreign schools. The Taiwanese government is expanding scholarship programs that support not just term-time study abroad, but internships and...

U.S. Eases Grip Over Web Body

Christopher Rhoads October 1, 2009
The World Wide Web might symbolize globalization for many, but control of the architecture remains largely local. Domain names are controlled by the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) that reports to the US Commerce Department. The premise behind such a structure was that one body controlling web address suffixes like “.com” would ensure ease of use and universal...

Challenges for China at Sixty – Part II

Frank Ching September 28, 2009
China, a significant beneficiary of globalization, is happy to go out into the world, but seems less willing to let the world come in, according to writer Frank Ching. In fact, China, which asserts that it does not interfere with the internal affairs of other countries, appears to do the exact opposite, especially with regard to issues surrounding alleged separatism in China. Notably vocal...