Access to high-speed connections such as DSL and cable modems, represent a new dimension of digital divide. With the rapidity of technological change, very many people who thought yesterday have sufficient technological skills and now find themselves sidelined and  destabilized.

About a quarter of whites and a third of Asians have of broadband access at home, unlike the Mexicans who have the lowest rate.

Only one of out ten Mexican-Americans has a hi-speed connection at home.

There are different types of migration. The green countries are for economic purposes, but also for better living conditions. Gray regions are where most migrants are from due to their specific reasons. Red arrows à high skilled individuals going to countries for higher salaries/wages. There is also the idea of brain drain. Blue arrows represent the less qualified individuals going to countries for better living conditions. Many Hispanic people are migrating towards US. While North African populations are going to Europe whether it is legal or illegal but for a better life.

In most countries the gender differences are usually smaller than other gaps. In the case of the US, the difference in the rate of users among men and women is almost irrelevant, only around 2%

Changes in the number of subscriptions to various means of communication in recent years

The main refugee problem lies around the middle east; especially b/c of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Palestinian refugee camps are dispersed all around in neighbouring countries. Refugees are also in the poorer countries, esp sub-Saharan African countries in Africa due to issues like government instability, problems with ethnicity, climate change, droughts, desertification, poverty, etc. where people have no choice but to take refuge in neighbouring countries.These refugees are under the temporary protection of UNHCR.

As more people are leaving their country of origin to go work/study abroad or to have a better life, the country of origin is left with less qualified people causing the country to become weaker hence accentuating poverty, corruption in the government, etc. Human smuggling and trafficking ‘feeds on poverty’ and it creates ‘greater restrictions to legal immigration.’ Global rules are needed because people are doing whatever it takes to live a better life.

This chart represents the percentage of graduates planning on staying in US as opposed to returning to their country of origin.The countries’ percentage of doctoral grads that plan to stay in US are mostly from China, India, Iran, Nepal. The highest percentage of graduates from foreign countries planning to stay are mostly from east and south Asia of 79.2%. Consequences are that the countries of origin lack people with high skills; e.g. many doctors and nurses in Jamaica left to gain a higher wage/salary which is beneficial to the host country but not so much for the country of origin.

John Vidal

Sea ice in the Arctic has melted faster this year than ever recorded before, according to the US government's National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NS

ASA says new satellite measurements indicate unprecedented recent Greenland ice sheet surface melt. The images above show the extent of surface melt over Greenland’s ice sheet over just a four day period - from July 8 (left) and July 12 (right).