CELEBRATED former slave Harriet Tubman will replace the late president Andrew Jackson on the $US20 banknote, the first time an African-American has appeared on US currency, a Treasury official said. The Treasury is expected to announce the change later Wednesday along with a long-awaited redesign of the $10 note, which is also expected to feature depictions of women on one side. Plans made last year to remove first Treasury secretary Alexander Hamilton -- the inspiration for a hit Broadway musical -- from the $10 note were dropped, however, in the face of popular opposition.US Senator Jeanne Shaheen cheered the choice of Tubman on Twitter. “If this is true, great news! Tubman on $20 is the right call. The redesign needs to happen as soon as possible. Women have waited long enough.” Tubman, who went from slavery to helping run the legendary Underground Railroad that helped thousands of slaves flee to freedom in the 19th century, was the most popular candidate in a poll of 600...
SCIENTISTS have discovered a trio of Earth-like planets that are the best bet so far for finding life outside our solar system. The three orbit an ultracool dwarf star a mere 39 light years away, and are likely comparable in size and temperature to Earth and Venus, they reported in a study, published in Nature . “This is the first opportunity to find chemical traces of life outside our solar system,” said lead author Michael Gillon, an astrophysicist at the University of Liege in Belgium. All three planets had the “winning combination” of being similar in size to Earth, “potentially habitable” and close enough so their atmospheres can be analysed with current technology, he told AFP . Star gazers will need to use the Hubble telescope to gather more information on the new planets. Picture: Supplied. Source: News Limited The find opens up a whole new “hunting ground” for habitable planets, he added. Gallon and colleagues calibrated a 60-centimetre tele...
The Canadian government will introduce legislation next year that would make the sale of marijuana legal, its health minister has said. If enacted, the move would make Canada one of the largest Western countries to allow widespread use of the drug. Health Minister Jane Philpott pledged on Wednesday to keep marijuana "out of the hands of children and profits out of the hands of criminals". Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pushed for legalisation during his campaign. The announcement coincided with 20 April - an unofficial holiday among cannabis advocates. Hundreds of marijuana users demonstrated outside Parliament in Ottawa on Wednesday. Medical use of marijuana is already legal in Canada. Some have argued that legal marijuana would reduce stress on Canada's criminal justice system. "We will work with law enforcement partners to encourage appropriate and proportionate criminal justice measures," Ms Philpott said. "We know it is impossible to ar...
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