The Daily Populous

After 3 Years Under ISIS, Mosul's Children Go Back To School

Authored by npr.org

The recess bell rings at the Akha elementary school in Mosul and children come thundering out of the classroom.

"None of us went to school when ISIS was here — we stayed at home," says Ali, who is in sixth grade.

Even basic math had a militaristic twist, using the image of bullets to teach children to count.

To make up for the lost years, the Iraqi government implemented a system where children could take makeup classes and then sit for exams.

If they passed, they moved into the grades they would have been in if school hadn't been interrupted.

Junior high and high school students were still sitting for exams while the elementary schools reopened at the beginning of October.

A caretaker at the school said two or three ISIS teachers had taught a few dozen children from ISIS families there. »

Hacking is inevitable, so it’s time to assume our data will be stolen

Authored by qz.com

Yahoo recently confessed that its data breach actually impacted 3 billion user accounts, three times what it disclosed in December.

The data stolen at Equifax was highly harmful for consumers, compounded by what Telang says was an incompetent response from the company.

“One firm having a lot of data can produce more insight than lots of firms that have less data.”. »

Christopher Columbus statues vandalized across New England

Authored by wtnh.com

(WTNH) — Across New England on Columbus Day, people are taking stances, vandalizing statues of Christopher Columbus.

A Columbus statue in Providence, R.I. was also vandalized.

Related Content: Christopher Columbus statue vandalized in New Haven. »

Sir Terry Pratchett's Self-Made Meteorite Sword Is the Closest We Get to Excalibur

Authored by gizmodo.com

Terry Pratchett may write a mean fantasy novel, but he also forges one heckuva sword.

In honor of being knighted last year, Sir Pratchett dug up 175 pounds of iron ore, sprinkled in some meteorites, and made himself a proper weapon.

Pratchett gathered the iron ore deposits himself from a field near his town, and worked with a friend who is an "expert on ancient metal-making techniques" to smelt it in a makeshift kiln in his own home. »

Margaret Thatcher gave MP knighthood despite knowing child sex abuse claims against him, inquiry hears

Authored by independent.co.uk

Margaret Thatcher decided to award a knighthood to a suspected child abuser MP despite being aware of the allegations against him, an inquiry has heard.

Despite persistent child abuse allegations against him during his career, he never faced trial.

His office reportedly told the the Rochdale Alternative Press newspaper that it had never received police reports of the alleged abuse. »