Next slide please: data visualisation expert on what’s wrong with the UK government’s coronavirus charts: “If you can’t convince them, confuse them.” If you watched the UK government’s COVID-19 briefing to announce and England-wide lockdown, you might have been reminded of this quote by Harry S Truman. Following slide after slide of maps and charts, …
UK government’s tiered COVID-19 alert systems are all flawed, warns disaster expert: Alexey_Erofejchev/Shutterstock.com Alert systems need to be clear and easy for everyone to understand. Yet, to date, the UK’s national alert system has created confusion and been largely ignored. Now, a second local alert level system has been introduced in England. I’m not convinced …
Governments set the rules – so they shouldn’t blame us for not behaving better: Bad food: it's addictive and cheaper. Ekaterina Markelova/Shutterstock Under some estimates, airplane emissions could be down by almost 40% in 2020 because of COVID-19 lockdowns. We’ve been told not to fly so much for years by campaigners, researchers, even governments – …
South Africa in the news: Government’s focus now on economic recovery: Ramaphosa: President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa cannot continue with business as usual. Ramaphosa was reacting to the latest GDP figures which show a 51% economic contraction in the second quarter …: “South Africa” – BingNews Transformation not exclusion is the pillar of CSA: …
South Africa in the news: FT Health: Holding governments to account for Covid-19 response: with concerns over opaque or allegedly inappropriate health procurement practices in countries from Bolivia to South Africa. The Good Law Project has launched actions querying other awards including …: “South Africa” – BingNews Debt can only be solved by higher electricity …
A levels: government’s U-turn has left universities in the lurch: ESB Professional/Shutterstock The UK government has performed a U-turn on A level exam grades, awarding students in England the marks given by teacher assessment where they are higher than the moderated grades adjusted by what the government now admits was a flawed algorithm. While this …
Four reasons the UK government’s obesity strategy may not work for everyone: One of the government's strategies is to promote increased physical activity. Kletr/ Shutterstock COVID-19 has affected a disproportionate number of people with obesity in the UK. As such, the government has seen the pandemic as a “wake-up call” to the health risks of …
Why some governments fear even teens on TikTok: Tik Tok's popularity has raised eyebrows in some countries Daniel Constante/Shutterstock In Egypt, teenager Menna Abdel Aziz used social media to ask for protection after a sexual assault. She was arrested on a variety of charges, including misusing social media and corrupting family values. Two young women, …
South Africa in the news: South Africa: Survey Shows Government’s Schools Policy Is Opposed By a Large Majority: Sixty percent of adults say that schools ‘should not reopen this year’. This was a key finding from a survey conducted by researchers from the University of Johannesburg (UJ) and Human Sciences …: “South Africa” – BingNews …
Why the press is right to be suspicious of the UK government’s new lobby arrangements: Boris Johnson’s government is committed to introducing “a culture of transparency and openness”. At least, that’s what a government spokesperson said on July 3 when announcing that the regular Downing Street press briefings will become a daily fixture. Who could …
Interpreting the South African government’s mixed messages on nuclear power: South Africa can't afford new nuclear infrastructure with state funds in these times of budget shortfalls and ballooning debt. GettyImages On 14 June the South African Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy issued a controversial statement initiating a process that could lead to the construction …
Why we need to know more about the UK government’s COVID-19 data project – and the companies working on it: The UK’s coronavirus contact tracing app has been kicked into the long grass, with the government now saying it isn’t a priority and may not be ready until winter. The app – which has so …
South Africa in the news: SA and Namibia among few African governments to condemn US police brutality: Africa Day on May 25 was marked by the tragedy of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of racist police officers in the US. For many it underscores the fact that the scourge of racism, and the …: …
Feeling alert? Where the UK government’s new coronavirus campaign went wrong: The UK is in the process of acclimatising to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s “conditional plan” to ease lockdown measures. This includes allowing people in England to spend more time outdoors and replacing the message to “stay home, protect the NHS, save lives” with the …
UK government’s fracking ‘ban’ has a convenient loophole: With a general election underway, Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister, recently announced that fracking has been halted in the UK – but a closer look at this moratorium covers reveals a loophole. The suspension applies in the north of England, but the smallprint reveals that similar …
Breastfeeding can help tackle climate crisis but it’s on governments, not mums to save the world: shutterstock/SeventyFour In the midst of debates about how to best tackle the climate crisis, breastfeeding was recently highlighted as a significant way women can help to make a difference. But while there is no doubt of the important role …
Databases adopt open licenses, JavaScript gets faster on Android, governments use more OSS, and more news: In this edition of our open source news roundup, we take a look at database vendors going all in with open source, Facebook and Uber’s latest open source releases, City of London’s homebuilding app, and more! read more: Opensource.com ScottNesbitt …
Nigeria must wake up to the changing role of state governments: Nigeria needs to review existing structures to drive growth. xtock/Shutterstock There have been sustained efforts to diversify Nigeria’s economy since the country returned to democratic civilian rule in 1999. Successive governments have made foreign direct investment a priority to achieve this aim. Originally, the …