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‘Impossible’ discovery found on remote island off African coast: A ‘lost part of the world’

Researchers have found rocks on a small island between Madagascar and the eastern coast of Africa, a discovery that has been described as mysterious for one very important reason — they shouldn’t be there.

The rocks in question, quartzite, were discovered by researchers at Columbia University, thanks to a grant from the National Geographic Society. They had heard about them from a number of different media reports, but were finally able to confirm the presence of the quartzite, which is usually found in areas that have high temperatures and pressures, for themselves.

“This is contrary to plate tectonics,” said Cornelia Class, a geochemist at Columbia University, in a blog post. “Quartzite bodies do not belong on volcanic islands.”

An Indian Billionaire Just Gave Shares Worth $7.5 Billion to Charity

With the latest move, Premji, who turned a small maker of vegetable oil into a software behemoth, has donated $21 billion of his fortune to charity. Premji’s philanthropy may prompt the rich in a nation where ultra-high net worth population is expected to surge 39 percent by 2023 donate more to charity, and help pull millions out of poverty.


Azim Premji, the billionaire chairman of Indian conglomerate Wipro Ltd., will gift an extra $7.5 billion of the company’s shares to support philanthropic activities, making it the most generous donation in the nation’s history.

Firefighters are warning that lives could be at risk in New York’s $25 billion megadevelopment

  • New York City firefighters are worried they don’t have enough capacity to serve Hudson Yards, a $25 billion, 18-million-square-foot megadevelopment that opens Friday.
  • By 2024, when the development is scheduled to be complete, it could have more than 125,000 daily residents, visitors, and office workers.
  • Unless the city builds a new fire station in the neighborhood, these lives could be at stake, the president of New York’s firefighters union told Business Insider.

New York’s largest private real-estate development, the 18-million-square-foot Hudson Yards, can expect a flood of locals, tourists, and office workers at its grand opening on Friday.

For the first time, members of the public will be able to climb aboard Vessel, a 150-foot-tall honeycomb-shaped art installation in the public square; dine at the complex’s high-end restaurants, including Momofuku and D&D London; and browse its luxury retail stores.

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