The cost of living crisis has been many years in the making – but politicians on both sides ignore this: Fears over the cost of living have reached new highs in the UK after power regulator Ofgem confirmed that the energy price cap will nearly double from October to cost the average household £3,549 a year. …
Neanderthals died out 40,000 years ago, but there has never been more of their DNA on Earth: Artist: Tom Björklund / Moesgård Museum, Author provided Neanderthals have served as a reflection of our own humanity since they were first discovered in 1856. What we think we know about them has been shaped and moulded to …
Angola’s MPLA has been in power for nearly 50 years. The big challenges they must fix: Angolan girls in front of a patriotic slogan on a wall. Photo by Eric Lafforgue/Art In All Of Us/Corbis via Getty Images Angolan president João Lourenço, who has been returned to power with a greatly reduced majority, faces the …
Energy crisis: why the UK will be at the mercy of international gas prices for years to come: The UK is expecting a long, cold winter and gas prices are unlikely to fall for some years to come. Jelena Stanojkovic / Shutterstock The UK is trying to ensure households and businesses have enough energy this …
Princess Diana: why her death 25 years ago has sparked so many conspiracy theories: A quarter of a century after the Paris car crash, conspiracy theories about Diana's death persist. Mark Reinstein / Shutterstock Diana, Princess of Wales, died 25 years ago after a car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris. Her …
We’ve been tracking birds in a small Nigerian forest for 18 years. What we found and why it matters: Little bee-eater (Merops pusillus) Frans Sellies/ Getty Images If you live in Europe, you can find almost any statistic you like about the birds in the environment. How many there are of a species, where you …
Inflation: why it’s very unlikely to get back below 2% for years to come: Only going up. Oleg Golovnev Inflation in the UK and eurozone is still getting worse. UK prices rose a whopping 10.1% in July compared to a year earlier, while those in the eurozone went up 8.9% – breaking longstanding records in …
We studied how COVID affects mental health and brain disorders up to two years after infection – here’s what we found: COVID has been linked with a higher rate of psychiatric and neurological disorders. SewCream/Shutterstock The occurrence of mental health conditions and neurological disorders among people recovering from COVID has been a concern since early …
South Africa’s Marikana 10 years on: survey shows knowledge of massacre is low: A woman at a protest in support of victims of the Marikana massacre outside the South African parliament. EFE-EPA/Nic Bothma To explore the patterns of collective memory in South Africa after nearly three decades of democracy, we set out to establish how …
Taiwan: the US has been strengthening support for years – now it needs a way to ease tensions with China: EPA-EFE/TAIWAN Presidential Palace The recent visit by the speaker of the US House of Representatives to Taiwan, Nancy Pelosi, was made against the wishes of the US government and despite threats from the People’s Republic …
Spare Rib: 50 years since the groundbreaking feminist magazine first hit the streets – its legacy still inspires women: Retro AD Archives/Alamy In the summer of 1972, the Women’s Liberation Movement was fighting hard, through rallies and marches, for social, sexual and reproductive liberation. The “second wave” of feminism was at its peak, gaining notoriety …
Marilyn Monroe: why are we still obsessed 60 years after her death?: For some, death can be a smart career move. Quite how smart a move depends a lot on who you are and how you die. As we approach the 60th anniversary of the death of Marilyn Monroe, we can learn a few lessons …
Basic water services in South Africa are in decay after years of progress: The quality of water services and infrastructure in South Africa has been on a downward trend. shutterstock Water is at the heart of health and well-being for people and nature. Access to it is a human rights issue recognised by international treaties …
Revealed: untold story of the CIA/Stasi double agent abandoned after 22 years of service: I was naked, tied to a hard chair with handcuffs. Three or four burly fellows in uniform are standing around me, one of them behind me with a truncheon… ‘Sie sind ein Verräter! [You are a traitor!],’ they snap. These are …
Congo peat swamps store three years of global carbon emissions – imminent oil drilling could release it: Professor Corneille Ewango of the University of Kisangani in a peat swamp along the Ikelemba River, Democratic Republic of Congo. Bart Crezee/University of Leeds, Author provided Democratic Republic of the Congo’s government is preparing to auction off a …
Ghana’s return to the IMF within three years underscores its deeper economic problems: Various political administrations have failed to prudently manage the economy Getty Images Ghana is again seeking assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to enable the country to meet its payments to the rest of the world and restore the health of …
Ancient salamander was hidden inside mystery rock for 50 years – new research: Marmorerpeton Brennan Stokkermans , Author provided In the fairy-tale landscape of the Isle of Skye off the north-west coast of Scotland, the skull of one of the most ancient salamanders ever discovered to date was excavated from Jurassic limestones. But it would …
100 years of popular music in Nigeria: what shaped four eras: Nigerian musician Fela Kuti and his band in Harlem, New York, 1989. Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images The global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the early months of 2020 shut down nearly all physical and social human activities. For musical practice this meant near death. …