Wednesday 24th April 2024

Love Anyway

You know that the price of life is death, that the price of love is loss, and still you watch the golden afternoon light fall on a face you love, knowing that the light will soon fade, knowing that…Continued here

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasa’s Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to “search for potential evidence of past life”, according to the official mission objectives.

Jezero Crater was chosen as the landing site largely because it contains the remnants of ancient muds and other sediments deposited where a river discharged into a lake more than 3 billion years ago. We don’t know if there was life in that lake, but if there was, Perseverance might find evidence of it.

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Why is the London Stock Exchange losing out to the US - and can it stem the flow?

London Stock Exchange (LSE), which can trace its heritage to the coffee houses of the 17th century, is failing. The volume of shares traded is sharply declining, and some UK companies are swiftly moving to the US market.

Listing in a stock exchange is meant to raise long-term equity capital for companies by offering shares to the public and institutions. However, the gap between what companies are valued at on the UK and US stock exchanges is seen as suppressing the market value of UK-listed companies, and prompting them to look for better playing grounds.

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Scotland's hate crime law: the problem with using public order laws to govern online speech

Scotland’s new hate crime law came into force on April 1, sparking immediate controversy over its potential effects on freedom of speech and expression, especially online. The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act expands on current laws about crimes that have the possibility to stir up hatred, in Scotland only.

A “hate crime” itself is not its own specific offence under existing laws, or the new law. But if you are found to commit another crime (for example, assault) and it is proven that this was based on hostility against someone’s protected characteristic (usually race, religion, disability or sexual orientation) you can be given a harsher sentence.

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Why Germany ditched nuclear before coal - and why it won't go back

One year ago, Germany took its last three nuclear power stations offline. When it comes to energy, few events have baffled outsiders more.

In the face of climate change, calls to expedite the transition away from fossil fuels, and an energy crisis precipitated by Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Berlin’s move to quit nuclear before carbon-intensive energy sources like coal has attracted significant criticism. (Greta Thunberg prominently labelled it “a mistake”.)

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Sticking your neck out for the PWHL: A call to mandate neck guards in women's hockey

The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) has gained immense popularity since its inception in 2023. It has boasted a number of sold out games and has set audience attendance records in Toronto, Ottawa, Montréal, Detroit and Minnesota.

Despite this, the league is still lacking in safety measures. Currently, the PWHL doesn’t mandate the usage of neck laceration protectors (also known as neck guards), although they do strongly recommend them.

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International student resentment brews but allowing fewer students into Canada isn't the answer

Canada has prided itself on being a welcoming haven for students from around the world. But beneath the surface of this inclusive narrative, a troubling resentment is brewing.

A wave of anti-immigrant rhetoric has cast a shadow over international students, turning their pursuit of knowledge and cultural exchange into a complex challenge. The surge in hate crimes against South Asians in Waterloo Region aligns with the significant increase in the number of international students in Canada, especially those from India.

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From Gallipoli to Gaza: remembering the Anzacs not as a 'coming of age' tale but as a lesson for the future

When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also to mark a defining event for national identity.

The battle of Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire, the story goes, was where the young nation passed its first test of courage and determination.

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The high and mighty Himalayas: A biodiversity hotbed facing significant challenges

Post-doctoral fellow, Département des Sciences Fondamentales, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)

The Himalayas are home to a vast diversity of species, consisting of 10,000 vascular plants, 979 birds and 300 mammals, including the snow leopard, the red panda, the Himalayan tahr and the Himalayan monal.

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Why the term 'DEI' is being weaponized as a racist dog whistle

A bridge in Baltimore collapsing, a door falling off an airplane and antisemitism — what do they have in common? In recent months, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) has been blamed for all three.

This may seem a little baffling. In fact, when I tell this to friends who don’t keep up with these issues, they’re stunned. How, they want to know, is DEI being blamed for these issues? And why would anyone do so?

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