From Scandinavia to the Alps, Europeans endured sweltering conditions on Saturday as a heatwave linked to dozens of deaths spread eastwards, with record-breaking temperatures breaching 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in some spots. Denmark logged its highest-ever temperature after Britain, France, Switzerland and Germany had all experienced record heat in June and the weather system began rolling towards Poland. Scientists said the heatwave would have been virtually impossible without man-made climate change, which has made this week’s night-time temperatures 100 times more likely than they would have been even two decades ago.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/27/europe/germany-record-temperatures-heatwave-intl
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Saturday he would resign within weeks and the country will hold early presidential and parliamentary elections, following 18 months of anti-government protests. The announcement by Vucic, who has been in power as president or prime minister for 12 years, came amid persistent anti-corruption demonstrations led by students and triggered by the collapse of an awning at a railway station in the northern city of Novi Sad in November 2024, in which 16 people died. Protesters, opposition and rights groups allege the railway station disaster was a sign of broader government mismanagement of construction projects and corruption.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/27/europe/vucic-serbian-president-resignation-latam-intl
For as long as there have been tests in schools, students have found ways to cheat, whether it is peeking over a classmate’s shoulder or scribbling notes on a palm or crib sheet. But as technology evolves and pressure builds for a top grade, students are now turning to AI-powered smart glasses to get an upper hand. And in East Asia’s test-obsessed societies, where a single exam could impact the trajectory of a student’s future career and social status, educators are scrambling to get ahead of the problem. Twice last month, people in South Korea taking an exam to assess their English language skills - the results of which are often used to make hiring decisions - were caught using smart glasses.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/26/asia/ai-glasses-cheating-exams-intl-hnk
A papyrus scroll that was burned and carbonized when Mount Vesuvius erupted almost 2,000 years ago has been virtually unrolled and partially deciphered with the help of artificial intelligence. The scroll — named PHerc. 1667 — is one of hundreds from the ancient Roman town of Herculaneum, which was buried under volcanic debris when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, according to the Vesuvius Challenge, an initiative focused on decoding the texts of the Herculaneum scrolls without needing to physically unroll them. Preserved under mud and ash in a villa believed to have once been owned by the father-in-law of Julius Caesar, the scrolls were discovered by an Italian farmer in the 18th century. The collection is the only large-scale library known to have survived from classical antiquity.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/26/science/papyrus-scroll-vesuvius-ai-scli-intl
This week in travel news: tourists are coping with extreme heat, one of the world’s most popular vacation destinations is tripling its tourist tax, and a gold bar is up for grabs in Finland. Japan has broken its tourism record every year since the pandemic. As more and more people take the country’s famous Shinkansen high-speed trains, Japan’s rail system has rolled out a fancy new product: private rooms. Starting this October, some travelers going from Tokyo to cities like Kyoto and Osaka will have the option to purchase a ticket for the “Supreme Class.” These are private cabins with lockable doors that guarantee privacy on board, and the largest rooms even have small sofas. Travelers in these cars can adjust the lighting and air conditioning to their own preferences, too.
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/27/travel/japan-trains-private-rooms-tourist-tax-intl-hnk