Ecological doom-loops: why ecosystem collapses may occur much sooner than expected – new research: Anna Kucherova / Shutterstock Across the world, rainforests are becoming savanna or farmland, savanna is drying out and turning into desert, and icy tundra is thawing. Indeed, scientific studies have now recorded “regime shifts” like these in more than 20 different …
Succession is as much about technology as it is about money, power and family: Warning: the following article contains spoilers. Technology is key to Succession’s tale of the Roy family media dynasty, with the drama playing out on screens within the show and in the homes of the viewers beyond it. The final series is …
South Africa has changed its electoral law, but a much more serious overhaul is needed: Hundreds of people stand in line to vote in South Africa's first democratic election in April 1994. Brooks Kraft LLC/Sygma via Getty Images South African president Cyril Ramaphosa recently signed into law a change to the country’s electoral act to …
Male video game characters speak twice as much as females, largest study of its kind reveals: lightningreturns Video games are played by nearly three billion people worldwide and make more money annually than the film industry. Around 50% of gamers are female but gaming has chronic problems with gender bias. Female players have recounted receiving …
Drought recedes in Britain after a wet spring – but much of Europe is parched: Be careful what you wish for. Britain’s seesaw rainfall patterns that began last winter have continued, with an on-off pattern of dry and then wet months for many areas. In the south of England, last year’s drought was still affecting …
The hidden danger of asbestos in UK schools: ‘I don’t think they realise how much risk it poses to students’: A Department for Education survey suggests more than 80% of state schools in England still have asbestos on their premises. Lucy M Ryan/Shutterstock Being diagnosed came as a complete shock. You do not imagine that …
The Taliban is not playing straight with the west over easing of sanctions – and women and girls are paying much of the price: The economic and political isolation of Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover in August 2021 has worsened a humanitarian crisis in the country. The World Food Program has projected that between November …
The Archers’ electric vehicle row shows why rural areas may oppose chargers – but they also have so much to gain: Muse Studio/Shutterstock Long-running BBC radio soap opera The Archers might conjure images of an idyllic country life, but its storylines frequently highlight real tensions in British society. The series, set in the fictional village …
Climate doomism is bad storytelling – hope is much more effective at triggering action: IrDesign90/Shutterstock When news about the climate is published, like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s latest report, frightening headlines like “final warning” or “now or never” are often the norm. Some activists call this approach “climate doomism”, and are quick to …
Wild Isles: starling murmuration in BBC documentary reveals as much about people as it does about birds: Starlings flock to Brighton Pier. SamuelJB/Shutterstock I’m sitting on the sofa, watching starlings. There are thousands of them circling above and around me, swirling into spectacular, ever-shifting shapes. They curve and loop in a hypnotic dance, merging at …
China could be harvesting TikTok data, but much of the user information is already out in the open: Experts have been considering whether TikTok is worse in terms of privacy or security than other, US-based apps. Shutterstock / Primakov The social media app TikTok has been a focus for concerns that the Chinese government could …
Why government budgets are exercises in distributing life and death as much as fiscal calculations: Sacrificial dilemmas are popular among philosophers. Should you divert a train from five people strapped to the tracks to a side-track with only one person strapped to it? What if that one person were a renowned cancer researcher? What if …
Traditional wrestling in Senegal – much more than a sport, it keeps culture alive: Senegalese wrestlers in action. Getty Images Traditional wrestling plays an important role in much of Senegalese society and is one of the country’s national sports. Traditional wrestling is mostly practised in rural areas where it’s not just a sport, it has …
Female football players are at much higher risk of career-ending ACL injuries – the science on why: Beth Mead dribbling the ball v Germany in the Women European Championship Final 2022. photographyjp/Shutterstock Women’s football is riding high. Not only are fans celebrating the success of the England team at the Arnold Clark Cup and Euro …
To clean up England’s rivers we need to know how much sewage is dumped – but water firms won’t tell us: A sewer overflow maintained by United Utilities that flows into the River Tame in Greater Manchester. Jamie Woodward, Author provided UK environment secretary Thérèse Coffey has demanded that water companies share plans for how …
Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons play – how silence and body language can communicate as much as words: When we talk to each other, there’s what we say out loud, what we wish we could say, and what we’re saying without saying anything at all. The words we use and how we use them were …
Much Ado About Nothing: National Youth Theatre gives Shakespeare the Love Island treatment: “What’s your type on paper?” is frequently asked by contestants on the popular reality dating show Love Island. “Rich, that’s certaine” responds Benedick, a contestant on “Nothing Island”, who appears to know exactly what he likes. “Wise, or I’ll none”, “virtuous”, “fair”, …
How much immunity do we get from a COVID infection? Large study offers new clues: SmartPhotoLab/Shutterstock After a COVID infection, whether it’s a first, second, or even a third, many of us wonder how long we might be protected against a reinfection, and whether we’ll be susceptible to new variants. Also, if we do catch …