Marguerite Ward

Controversial Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi, 63, will be India's next prime minister.  The former chief minister of India's western state, Gujarat, and member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Modi ran on a platform heavily focused on economic growth…

Let's face it: Americans have a bad reputation when it comes to knowing a thing or two about the world around them.  One year ago, on an international test designed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Americans scored well…

While the U.S. wrangles with whether we are ready for a female president ahead of the 2016 election, other countries have already answered the question with a decisive yes. From South Korea to Chile, likely and unlikely nations are led by women. As…

Election officials are now in the process of counting the more than 7 million votes of Afghanistan’s presidential election. As the United States scales back its military presence, President Karzai leaves office after 13 years in power and the…

One-quarter of the world's population – its young people – are now getting the attention they deserve. While the Arab Spring, the Iranian Green Revolution and the Occupy Movement put young adults in the political spotlight, many questions about the…

Australia consistently ranks high on the list of the world's happiest countries, which may or may not be related to the fact that the country has over 10,000 surfable beaches. Yes 10,000. Some have been deemed the world's best getaway spots.…

North Korea's former dictator, Kim Jong-il, loved patriotism, authoritarian rule and bottles upon bottles of Hennessy. The Supreme Leader allegedly spent roughly $1 million a year on the cognac, ordering cases of bottles that, in North Korea, cost…

In the aftermath of Russia's swift annexation of Crimea, McDonald's will be shutting down its restaurants in the region. The closures mean Crimeans will no longer have access to their favorite McDonald's meals, and it also means sudden unemployment…

Legos are tools capable of "destroying" children's souls" — the work of Satan himself, according to one Polish priest. In his latest presentation geared toward parents, Father Slawomir Kostrzewa warned that toys like Lego Monster Fighters and…

An investigative report published by the Associated Press will make even the most trusting of U.S. visionaries uncomfortable. It revealed that U.S. government secretly tried to spark political unrest against Cuba's communist government by creating a…

Miley Cyrus and Justin Timberlake have become entangled in growing Western-Russian tensions over Crimea. The two were thrust into the international arena of head-to-head sanctions after lawyers realized that a venue where both stars were set to…

One determined woman has emerged successfully from an intolerant political climate that has blanketed Turkey in repression. Waging a decisively simple campaign against the destruction of a local park, 75-year-old Kiymet Peker set the tone for her…

On April 1, humans learned that they had made their first successful communication with dolphins. Despite its peculiar timing, this scientific breakthrough is no joke. Researchers testing a human-to-dolphin translator reported that last August, they…

An 8.2-magnitude earthquake struck the northern coast of Chile Tuesday night, triggering landslides, fires, a small tsunami, destruction of homes and power outages. Reports say six people have been killed, either from being crushed by debris or from…

Life, liberty and a high-speed Internet connection? When we consider the wider spectrum of human rights, the right to an Internet connection might not seem that important, but it's rapidly becoming viewed as an important part of expressing one's…

In Denmark, studying pays off. Encouraging its citizens to finish secondary school, the country pays its students to go to school. Danes between the ages of 18 and 20 are eligible for a monthly grant (yes, it doesn't have to be paid back) to finish…

In the smog-filled city of Zhengzhou, one travel company offered bags of mountain air to residents in a stunt. Giving them a taste of fresh, breathable air, the company hoped to lure oxygen-deprived citizens of the Henan province's capital city to…

No, it's neither mirage nor Photoshop: There really is a large movie theater in the desert. Abandoned and largely untouched, a secret cinema stands in the brutally hot, barren sands of Egypt's Sinai Desert. The rumor is that a rich, cannabis-loving…

The United Nations isn't buying Tokyo's claim that its whaling hunting program is for "scientific research" as previously claimed. In a statement that was not well received, the UN's International Court of Justice ruled on Monday that Japan must…