The advent of big data was supposed to usher in a more precise and rational world. Instead, it might be leading us into the swamp of “alternative facts.” Data may not lie, but they can be interpreted in ways that have the same effect. Consider President Donald Trump’s persistent claim that millions voted fraudulently in the 2016 election. In …

  It’s time to put the Korea reunification trade back on the table, but only after ditching the German blueprint. With China suspending coal imports from North Korea, Pyongyang may have lost between a third and two-fifths of its export income. One gauge of whether investors perceive the embargo to be harsh enough to destabilize the despotic Kim Jong Un …

  Frankfurt / DPA Afram Shamoun, who for decades practiced medicine in Damascus, is now lying on a doctor’s couch in Frankfurt pretending to be a patient with knee problems. The 59-year-old is taking part in a course that prepares doctors qualified in other countries to take the exam to be able to practise in Germany. Today they’re going over …