Esther Tanquintic-Misa

The State Assembly of New York on Tuesday has passed a legislation legalising medical marijuana in the area. But will it also sail through the Senate this time? This is the fifth time, in a span of 7 years, the assembly has passed a medical marijuana bill.

A looming El Niño has been seen to most likely affect Australian weather temperaments this winter. According to the latest seasonal outlooks by the Bureau of Meteorology, Australians ought to prepare for a drier, warmer winter this year.

It seems Canada may well include in its list of official exports other items apart from natural resources. A new report from the Conference Board of Canada said cosmetics and pet food are now also two of the country's biggest exports. The other three are high-tech imaging devices, synthetic rubber and sodium chlorate.

Good news for minimum wage earners in Alberta, Canada's fourth-most populous province. Effective September, the minimum wage per hour will increase to $10.20. The prevailing rate is $9.95 per hour.

Pope Francis has unwittingly renewed discussions and debate on celibacy among Roman Catholic priests during a talk with reporters aboard his plane on Monday night to return to Rome.

South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co is now the greenest automaker in the United States, unseating Honda Motor Co of Japan, based on the latest Automaker Rankings report released by the Union of Concerned Scientists' (UCS).

Quebec Health Minister Gaétan Barrette on Tuesday ordered all hospitals in the Canadian province to review and strengthen their respective security procedures after a newborn was abducted from a hospital in Trois-Rivières. The baby girl has since been returned to her parents three hours after being kidnapped, thanks to Facebook and the gallantry of four young people.

A study by the University of Wisconsin-Madison has revealed that buried fossils in 15,000 year-old soil could contain high carbon content. Moreover, when disturbed through "erosion, agriculture, deforestation, mining and other human activities," they will become large contributors to further exacerbate global warming and climate change.

Women who aspire to become mums in the future should refrain from eating unhealthy junk food and sugary snacks. A study released by the University of Adelaide said this type of diet is linked with an increased risk of giving birth prematurely.

A study released by University of Canterbury on Tuesday said nightlife in the 2011 quake stricken Christchurch in New Zealand has bounce back as much as 95 per cent to pre-earthquake levels.

Papua New Guinea has reached a milestone on Monday as it sent its first ever liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Japan.

The American Red Cross has urged families and communities in the U.S. to review and renew their emergency kits and evacuation plans in light of the forthcoming hurricane season which officially starts on June 1st.

Guy Lawrence, new chief executive of Rogers Communications Inc., strongly believed Canada won't be able to support a fourth national wireless carrier because of the gigantic costs involved in maintaining and operating all of them.

A strong 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck Greece and Turkey on Saturday. A total of 266 were injured, mostly from Turkey, caused by panic as people rushed to get out of buildings.

Hurricane Amanda has reached Category 4 strength on Sunday, becoming the strongest ever recorded during the month of May. Experts, however, said despite its massive strength, it does not pose any threat to any populated areas.

Bludgeoned by declining transaction mail volumes, Canada Post on Thursday reported a before-tax loss of $27 million for the first quarter of 2014.

Two months after a WTO ruling said that had China violated international trade rules regarding its imposed measures on rare earths exports, the country plans to increase the export taxes of its precious metals and minerals this year, 2014.

China and Russia had just sealed a $400 billion gas deal which experts said could put Australian exports of LNG (liquefied natural gas) in peril.

At least 31 people died in China after two sports utility vehicles crashed into the shoppers at a market in Urumqi, capital of restive Xinjiang region, and then threw explosives.

U.S. marijuana cannabis growers in Colorado and Washington state, despite operating legally, won't be allowed to use federal irrigation water services.

A study newly released by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center has disclosed that a whopping 70 per cent of Americans have the human papillomavirus (HPV) which are typically transmitted through sexual contact.

China's very own glaciers off in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau have shrunk by 15 per cent in the last 30 years because of global warming.

NOAA's latest monthly climate has disclosed that April 2014 has tied with April 2010 as the warmest month on record.

The death toll in Tuesday's train derailment in Russia has been updated by the Health Ministry as six people dead and 29 injured.

A research newly released on Monday has disclosed that the growing number of forest fires in the Northern Hemisphere not only boosted the world's temperatures but also aggravated the accelerated melting of the ice glaciers in Greenland.

Air Canada has received its very first 251-seat Boeing 787 Dreamliner over the weekend. Air Canada has ordered a total of 37 of the new passenger jets. It will be used to open a route between Toronto and Haneda airport in Tokyo starting July.

Auckland has modified its tourism targets by 20 per cent through 2021 because the city's visitor economy was booming, Mayor Len Brown said.

The U.S.' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has scrambled to reopen and review the policies and procedures it used to combat and manage the deadly 2003 SARS after the third patient in the country got infected with the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) through person-to-person contact.

Antarctica is reportedly thawing fast at a whopping 159 billion tons of melted ice annually, according to a new study.