It’s reproduced everywhere, from endless photos to gift shop trinkets but, asks William Cook, have we missed the meaning behind one of the world’s most famous works of art? In the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, between the toilets and the gift shop, tourists are queueing up to take selfies in front ... Read More »
HPV vaccine ‘offers chance’ of wiping out cervical cancer in rich countries
Study shows vaccine has greatly reduced infections among girls and young women Elimination of cervical cancer in wealthy countries such as the UK may be possible within decades, say experts, following a major study showing the success of the HPV jab in protecting women. Human papilloma virus, which is ... Read More »
Himalayan glacier melting doubled since 2000, spy satellites show
Ice losses indicate ‘devastating’ future for region and 1 billion people who depend on it for water The melting of Himalayan glaciers has doubled since the turn of the century, with more than a quarter of all ice lost over the last four decades, scientists have revealed. The accelerating ... Read More »
Poor nations hosting most refugees worldwide, need more Western help: U.N.
Developing countries, not rich Western nations, are bearing the brunt of the world’s refugee crisis and are hosting most of the record 70.8 million displaced people who have fled war and persecution, the United Nations said on Wednesday. Half of the world’s forcibly displaced are children and the 2018 total ... Read More »
Mediterranean will be ‘sea of blood’ without rescue boats, UN warns
Refugee agency says risk of people dying attempting crossing is at its highest The risk of migrants and refugees becoming shipwrecked in the Mediterranean and dying at sea is the highest it has ever been due to a lack of NGO rescue ships and the conflict in Libya hastening ... Read More »
Climate change could make frozen Siberia habitable within decades, scientists reveal
Temperatures could rise by as much as 9.1C while mass-melting would see size of permafrost drop by quarter Climate change could make large swathes of Siberia habitable before the end of this century, a new study suggests. Winter temperatures could rise by as much as 9.1C while mass-melting would see the ... Read More »
World’s rivers ‘awash with dangerous levels of antibiotics’
Largest global study finds the drugs in two-thirds of test sites in 72 countries Hundreds of rivers around the world from the Thames to the Tigris are awash with dangerously high levels of antibiotics, the largest global study on the subject has found. Antibiotic pollution is one of the ... Read More »
Cambridge scientists create world’s first living organism with fully redesigned DNA
Researchers create altered synthetic genome, in move with potential medical benefits Scientists have created the world’s first living organism that has a fully synthetic and radically altered DNA code. The lab-made microbe, a strain of bacteria that is normally found in soil and the human gut, is similar to ... Read More »
Humanity must save insects to save ourselves, leading scientist warns
Insects are ‘the glue in nature’, says Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson, underpinning the food and water we rely on Humanity must save insects, if not for their sake, then for ourselves, a leading entomologist has warned. “Insects are the glue in nature and there is no doubt that both the [numbers] ... Read More »
Ancient tomb discovered in Egypt dating back 4,500 years
Cemetery near pyramids houses burial shafts of top officials Archaeologists have uncovered part of a cemetery thousands of years old near Egypt’s famed pyramids on the Giza plateau near Cairo. The cemetery houses burial shafts and tombs of top officials. The most significant artefact uncovered was a limestone statue of ... Read More »