Data Vis Dispatch, June 2: Extreme weather, gambling, and the Swiss Alps

Health is dominating today's news, with reports focusing on the Ebola outbreak, local blood shortages in Germany, higher cancer survival rates in Hong Kong, and a boom in the autism therapy industry.

In the U.S., voter registrations show a shift in the two-party system. Following mass layoffs and departures of U.S. diplomats, more than half of the countries are now without a U.S. ambassador. Meanwhile, Trump's social media posts appear to be getting longer.

In recent years, Europeans have been less inclined to visit the U.S.

State-based conflicts have grown in recent years, with the war in the Middle East affecting sea trade and Russian airlines being forced to ground jets due to Western sanctions. Additionally, the standoff between China and Vietnam in the South China Sea has led to an increase in Chinese presence near Vietnamese outposts.

As extreme weather becomes more frequent, high temperatures were recorded in Europe last week. Shrinking glaciers in the Swiss Alps and rising global coffee prices are among the effects of such extreme climate events.

The topic of wealth raises the issue of inequality, with California's billionaires able to hide some of their wealth from income tax. Meanwhile, large sums of money are expected to be raised through SpaceX's initial public offering.

Sports play a significant role in gambling, with gambling ads frequently appearing during sporting events. Additionally, the prediction market platform Kalshi has seen sports trading dominate trading activity. Meanwhile, Polymarket has observed increased trading activity following disputes.

Deep-sea mining raises security concerns and environmental threats. Additionally, the use of air guns has a significant impact on marine life, disrupting the habitats of Rice's whales. Meanwhile, shark attacks along South Africa’s coast pose a threat to swimmers.

And finally, we end this Dispatch with a selection of other interesting topics: Japan's declining population, subway trips in New York City, and municipality vote results in the Colombian presidential election.