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Graphic Truth: The Cities That Watch You

For facial recognition technology to work in the public sphere, you need two things: really good software and lots of cameras. Much has been made of China's use – and export – of facial recognition technology for security and policing purposes, but when it comes to Big Brother-style surveillance of public spaces, plenty of European and American cities have a huge number of eyes in the sky too. As these cities deploy facial recognition software with increasing frequency, the ethical and legal battles are only just beginning.

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Iran war threatens water access in Middle East
Natalie Johnson, Eileen Zhang

As missiles fly and oil prices soar, the Iran war is exposing another major resource vulnerability in the Middle East: water. Fresh water has been a scarce commodity in a region defined by a dry climate and low rainfall, but attacks on the region’s desalination plants, which convert seawater into drinking water, threaten to open a new front.