Drinking water contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’ during pregnancy linked to an increased risk of childhood asthma – new study
MVelishchuk/Shutterstock Pfas, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of human-made chemicals found in everything from food packaging to firefighting foam. Often called “forever chemicals” due to their persistence in the environment, they can affect our health and disrupt our immune system. Pfas cross the placenta, so that when a woman is pregnant, she […]
Some countries in Asia are rationing energy – why they’ve been hit hardest by the crisis in the Gulf
The war in Iran has led to a global energy crisis. Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a major energy chokepoint that handles roughly 20% of the world’s oil, has been largely blocked by Iran since hostilities broke out in late February. This has, at times, caused oil prices to rise above US$100 a […]
How Nasa’s Artemis II mission rediscovered the majesty and mystery of the Moon
Nasa named this image of the Moon ‘edge of darkness’ because it shows the terminator (top of the image) – the boundary between day and night. Nasa On April 10, Artemis II – humanity’s first mission to the Moon in more than half a century – will draw to a close when the Orion capsule […]
Three reasons Donald Trump won’t pull the US out of Nato
President Donald Trump met Nato secretary general Mark Rutte on April 8 for what Rutte described as a “very frank, very open” discussion. The pair are reported to have discussed the US-Israeli war against Iran at which, according to White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt, Trump believes that Nato was “tested and they failed”. The president […]
Hungarian election exposes tensions at the heart of Donald Trump’s plans to boost the far-right in Europe
The world will be watching on April 12 when Hungarians head to the polls in parliamentary elections that will determine the country’s next prime minister. This may sound exaggerated, but these parliamentary elections are about much more than simply whether the incumbent prime minister, Viktor Orbán, will serve another term as Hungary’s leader. His main […]
My Undesirable Friends: Part I – an extraordinary portrait of young Russian journalists fighting to report the truth
Director Julia Loktev’s “undesirable” friends are women, mostly in their 20s or early 30s, who live in Moscow. They all work for TV Rain (Dozhd’) founded in 2010 as a lively, optimistic channel with cool programmes for a young audience, which also addressed more serious issues. The Russian authorities tolerated the existence of TV Rain […]
You Are the Führer’s Unrequited Love by Jean-Noël Orengo is a masterful take on Nazi memory, myth and moral reckoning
Writing a biographical novel about one of modern European history’s most skilled liars – whose fame rests almost entirely on his own self-crafted stories – is, to say the least, a difficult task. So it’s not surprising that Jean-Noël Orengo has approached this challenge by making his superb novel about Nazi architect and war criminal […]
Fashion Becomes Art: a deliciously decadent journey through the surrealist world of Elsa Schiaparelli
“Nobody has been able to pronounce my name properly … but everybody knows what it means,” Elsa Schiaparelli once said, with typical self-assuredness. A protagonist of surrealism, the Italian-born fashion designer was an extraordinary couturier who pushed the bounds of creativity, leaving her mark on Paris fashion and beyond. Dazzling, theatrical, witty and avant garde, […]
Why is Israel continuing to attack Lebanon, despite the ceasefire? Expert Q&A
The ceasefire in the Middle East is on shaky ground. Israel continued its bombardment of Lebanon on Wednesday, claiming its activities there are not part of the deal with Iran. These attacks killed at least 254 people across Lebanon and injured over 800 more in what was Israel’s largest offensive of the war so far. […]
The pseudoscientific attractiveness scale that grew out of incel forums and is now making money for looksmaxxing influencers
If you have teenagers in your life, they’ll probably have heard of the PSL scale. Or at least the language associated with it. Chad. Stacy. Normie. Subhuman. The PSL scale is a pseudoscientific attractiveness rating system used by looksmaxxers, men in a part of the manosphere who sometimes use extreme methods to change their appearance. […]