Global news and current affairs from a European perspective. Best downloaded on Friday mornings (GMT) Articles in this issue: Politics this week Business this week KAL's cartoon Space exploration: Brave new worlds Colombia and the FARC: Ending a half-century of war Monetary policy: When 2% is not enough Turkey and the West: Don’t lose the plot The desire for children: Wanted On Taiwan, obesity, Labour, China, Alaska, Ultimate Frisbee, economics, jazz: Letters to the Editor Demography and desire: The empty crib In vitro fertilisation: An arm and a leg for a fertilised egg Immigration economics: Wage war Alaskan agriculture: Growing farmers An American mystery: Down in the valley, up on the ridge Lexington: Clinton Republicans Colombia’s peace accord: Unlearning war Chile’s pensions: The perils of not saving Kashmir: Vale of tears Communists in the Philippines: Rebels in their dotage Karachi: Slammer dunk Leafy Singapore…: Move over, Merlion …and sooty South Korea: Bad air days Learning English in Japan: Talk like a gaijin Sexual abuse of children: A horror confronted Banyan: A spot of localist bother The war in Syria: Smoke and chaos The Brotherhood returns: The ballot and the Book Religion in Zimbabwe: Tithing troubles The Central African Republic: Nostalgia for a nightmare Mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo: The richest, riskiest tin mine on Earth Turkey’s anger at the West: Al-Malarkey Sarkozy returns: The revenant Croatian stagnation: Pining for the partisans An earthquake in Italy: Beauty and tragedy War and peace in Ukraine: Fighting for position Scottish education: Not so bonny Brexit and immigration: Raising the drawbridge Olympic success: The brass behind the gold Football iconography: Put out more flags Television subtitles: Read my lips Political comedy: Laugh or cry? Bagehot: The 2016 vintage School reform: After freedom, what? Remaking the sky: A sudden light Satellites: The small and the many Earth observation: Anywhere and everywhere Launchers: Getting a lift The role of robots: Construction and destruction Human space flight: The orphans of Apollo Brain scan: Space chips Linux and AWS: Cloud chronicles Viacom: In the name of the father Cement manufacturers: Cracks in the surface Football: Winging it Direct selling in China: Rebirth of a sales firm Schumpeter: Mafia management Central banking: The Jackson four India’s central bank: Reserve player American business investment: Econundrum Drought insurance in Africa: ARC’s covenant Rising LIBOR: SECular shift Hedge funds: Law of averages Free exchange: Believing is seeing The Mundell-Fleming trilemma: Two out of three ain’t bad Hunting for aliens: Proximate goals How to find exoplanets: Round and round the mulberry bush Oceanography: Deep waters Keeping ships clean: Foul play Medical batteries: Dark arts Karl Marx: False consciousness Congo’s uranium: Rich pickings Public transport in London: More than just getting from A to B New fiction: Out of Africa Hollywood and the Middle East: War games Johnson: Rue the rules Donald Henderson: Man versus virus Interactive indicators Output, prices and jobs Trade, exchange rates, budget balances and interest rates The Economist commodity-price index Youth unemployment Markets