September 2026
All columns and Brief analyses.
10 results
Sulawesi teeth point to habitual areca use as early as 25,000 years ago
Rounded grooves in teeth from two Sulawesi caves match repeated sucking and gnawing of whole areca nuts. The older jaw is dated to between 16,000 and 25,000 years ago; chemical traces and a laboratory test support the interpretation. SBS News independently corroborates the psychoactive-nut and pain-relief account. The authors call it the earliest archaeological evidence of habitual psychoactive-plant use.
Thousands march as Israel opens its embassy in Ljubljana
Israel opened its first resident embassy in Ljubljana during Foreign Minister Gideon Saar's visit, which Slovenia's government presented as a reset in political and economic relations after 16 years. The same day, thousands of protesters marched from near the embassy to the Israeli delegation's reception, demanding an end to diplomatic and economic ties. The opening exposed both the bilateral rapprochement and domestic opposition to it.
Timed pink noise enlarged slow waves and cerebrospinal-fluid flow during sleep
An MIT team timed quiet pink-noise bursts to the peaks of sleeping participants' slow brain waves. In fourteen healthy volunteers, the sounds increased both electrical-wave amplitude and cerebrospinal-fluid waves without waking them. Earth.com independently corroborates the timed intervention and larger fluid waves. The experiment establishes a way to alter the flow during sleep, not a treatment benefit for insomnia or dementia.
TRI-611 degraded resistant ALK fusion proteins in preclinical models
A compound called TRI-611 routed the target protein into cellular degradation machinery in lung cancer cells carrying ALK fusions, fused forms of the ALK kinase. In the Nature study, it crossed into the brain, reduced wild-type and resistant ALK forms, and produced regression in subcutaneous and intracranial tumour models. The results come from cell lines and patient-derived preclinical models, not evidence of safety or treatment benefit in people.
Türkiye's central bank holds at 37 per cent as energy risk persists
Türkiye's central bank kept its one-week repo rate at 37 per cent and the upper and lower bounds of its rate corridor at 40 per cent and 35.5 per cent. Although the committee saw signs that underlying inflation was slowing, it called elevated energy prices amid geopolitical developments an upside risk. The decision repeated that tight policy would remain until price stability was achieved.
UK charges man with assisting GRU Volunteer Corps and preparing sabotage
British prosecutors charged Joshua Cammidge, a 31-year-old from Swindon, on allegations that he materially aided a foreign intelligence service and prepared an act of sabotage. The two counts arise under separate provisions of the National Security Act 2023 and allege contact with the GRU Volunteer Corps, a group the prosecution describes as controlled by Russia's military intelligence agency. Cammidge is due at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday 10 September; a court has not yet determined whether the allegations are true.
US existing-home sales fall to a 3.98 million pace in August
US existing-home sales fell 2 per cent in August and 1.2 per cent from a year earlier, reaching an annual pace of 3.98 million. National Association of Realtors data marked a third consecutive monthly decline. Associated Press reported that rising mortgage rates and home prices weighed on buyers, taking sales to their slowest pace in more than a year.
US producer prices rise 0.4 per cent in August as energy jumps 4.2 per cent
US final-demand prices rose 0.4 per cent in August and 5.4 per cent from a year earlier. Goods prices increased 1.1 per cent and services 0.1 per cent. A 24.1 per cent rise in diesel helped lift energy prices 4.2 per cent, while the measure excluding food, energy and trade services rose 0.3 per cent on the month.
US Treasury raises its long-dated bond buyback to 6 billion dollars
The US Treasury raised the ceiling for a long-dated government-debt buyback to 6 billion dollars and set a 4 billion dollar floor for future operations. The 10-year yield rose to 4.85 per cent after the announcement. Although the operation is three times the usual size, its scale sat at the lower end of the market's expectation of 6 billion dollars to 10 billion dollars.
Xi Jinping heads to India for the BRICS summit after seven years
Chinese President Xi Jinping will travel to New Delhi for the 18th BRICS Summit on 12-13 September at Narendra Modi's invitation. Announced by China's foreign ministry and corroborated by Indian reporting, the trip will be Xi's first visit to India in about seven years; he and Modi are expected to meet during the summit.