11 h. ago Ancient preserved heads give up their secrets as Māori tattoos see resurgence

New research examines how traditional artists worked as revitalisation efforts see tā moko – Māori tattooing – become more visible in New ZealandIn New Zealand’s national museum, master Māori tattoo artists painstakingly apply ink to the faces of eight men and women as a large crowd watches on.Thin lines spiral over the men’s cheeks, dipping towards the jaw and up over the forehead, while lines curl around the women’s chins – each mark telling the story of its wearer’s identity, lineage and experience. Surrounding them are their families, who sing and grip their hands as they lay still under the needle and weight of the sacred – and usually private – ceremony. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Publisher of famous Soviet newspaper Pravda falls to his death from a seventh

The secretive head of Pravda publishing house, Vyacheslav Leontyev, 87, plunged 70ft from his home in western Moscow .

Events

1 week ago Newspaper chief falls to death from window in 'strange' Russian incident

The secretive head of Pravda publishing house, Vyacheslav Leontyev, 87, plunged 70ft from his home in western Moscow.

Events

1 week ago Britain's strictest headteacher accuses Bridget Phillipson of 'having no idea what children need' and being 'unworthy' of Education Secretary role

Katharine Birbalsingh, known as Britain's strictest headteacher, lashed out at Bridget Phillipson for imposing her will on schools without any experience on the ground.

Society

2 w. ago Labour seeks mobile phones ban in schools as ministers accused of ‘passing buck’

Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said head teachers ‘are already empowered’ to bring in a ban if they see fit.

Politics

2 w. ago The GP online booking farce: Surgeries are told patients must be able to book online from today to end infuriating '8am scramble'...but STILL can't get an appointment

In what could be a headache for Health Secretary Wes Streeting, patients have taken to social media to complain about being unable to book appointments.

Science

2 w. ago GPs ordered to offer online booking from today in bid to end the '8am scramble'

In what could be a headache for Health Secretary Wes Streeting, patients have taken to social media to complain about being unable to book appointments.

Politics

2 w. ago ‘His buildings were always ready for their closeup’: how Terry Farrell’s postmodern exuberance conquered the world

From the ziggurats of the MI6 HQ to TV-am’s eggcups and a Hong Kong tower that featured on a banknote, Farrell strived to make uplifting architecture• ‘Nonconformist’ architect of MI6 building dies – news• Spies, eggcups and penthouses: Farrell’s best buildings – galleryTerry Farrell made his mark on London. All his buildings had a certain postmodernist swagger, but one of his most conspicuous (ironically, in view of its function) was the headquarters of the UK’s Secret Intelligence Service, better known as MI6, on the site of the former Vauxhall pleasure gardens.Completed in 1994, MI6 showed Farrell, who has died aged 87, in his postmodern pomp, energetically juggling historicist motifs to conjure a flamboyant, flesh-coloured fortress, replete with ziggurats and crenellations, dominating its Thames-side locale. Deyan Sudjic described MI6 as “an epitaph for the architecture of the 80s”, and its styling that which “could be interpreted equally plausibly as a Mayan temple or a piece o...

Politics

2 w. ago Your car has a ‘secret’ button that stops you being blinded by bright headlights as nights get darker

MOTORISTS have been blown away after discovering what the secret button on a rear view mirror really does. Some cars have a special function that helps prevent drivers being blinded by bright headlights when it's dark outside - which can be extremely useful as we approach winter nights. Motoring expert Graham Conway from Select Car Leasing explained that...

Politics

2 w. ago ‘It’s incredibly exciting’: ancient canoe unearthed after Hurricane Ian stormed through Florida

The latest find is likely from the 16th century and could have originated as far away as the CaribbeanFlorida already claims to be the world capital of golf, shark bites and lightning strikes. Now a remarkable discovery following a devastating hurricane has enhanced its position as a global leader in another distinctive field: ancient canoes – some even prehistoric.State archeologists have just completed a painstaking preservation of an ancient wooden canoe discovered by a resident of Fort Myers during the cleanup from Hurricane Ian in 2022. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago Drivers can use 'secret' car feature to reduce glare from headlights as daylight hours shorten

Recent data revealed that half of all drivers asked believe headlights are 'too bright'.

Transport

3 w. ago ‘Don’t trust Trump’: how UK health experts are fighting back against a war on medicine

Ministers and medical groups have acted quickly to limit fallout after US president made unproven link between paracetamol and autismWes Streeting, the UK health secretary, was in a government car heading back into central London from a flag-raising to mark the UK’s recognition of Palestine when he saw the news. “He was aghast,” an aide said. Streeting was reading on his phone that Donald Trump had just warned women not to take Tylenol – known outside the US as paracetamol – during pregnancy.The US president had alleged without evidence that the common painkiller caused autism in children. “Don’t take Tylenol,” Trump said about a drug also known as acetaminophen. Continue reading...

Science

3 w. ago Eddy Current Suppression Ring’s electrifying return proves they never really went away

Fifteen years after their last headline show in Melbourne, the cult favourites played a packed out Federation Square on Friday – and demonstrated the definition of timeless It’s Saturday night in August and I’m standing in a packed bandroom at Singing Bird Studios in Frankston, waiting for the return of Eddy Current Suppression Ring. It’s been a long wait. Apart from a couple of festival appearances in 2016, the beloved garage rock band’s last proper headline show was 2010.But earlier this year, smoke signals: a secret set in a Prahran skate shop. A surprise single, Swimming Hole, and a new EP. A one-off at Melbourne’s The Night Cat that instantly sold out. Then the announcement of a free all-ages show at Federation Square on grand final eve, flanked by a couple of small gigs in Anglesea and Frankston. The chat groups go into overdrive. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago ‘Something is working’: UN climate chief optimistic about green transition

Exclusive: Simon Stiell believes economic benefits will compel countries to speed up climate actionCleaning up industry and the global economy will produce massive economic dividends for countries that grasp the opportunity – as the example of China has shown, the UN climate chief has said, before a crunch summit of world leaders this week.In a last-ditch call to heads of government summoned to New York by the UN secretary general this week, Simon Stiell, the executive secretary of the UN framework convention on climate change, said governments would almost certainly fail to come up with the climate commitments needed to fulfil the Paris agreement before a deadline this month, but they could still reset their economies to reap the advantages of low-carbon growth. Continue reading...

Politics