Tag Archives: Belgium

2024: The year of democratic elections

Jan. 2, 2024 /Politics/ — 2024 is shaping up to be a bumper year for elections! Here are some noteworthy examples beyond the UK and USA: Continue reading

25Jul/23

Women storm climate leadership

By Alister Doyle | Climate Correspondent

July 25, 2023 /Environment/ — Since it was set up in 1988, the U.N.’s prestigious panel of climate scientists has been led by men – a Swede, an Anglo-American, an Indian and a South Korean.

That 35-year all-male run may end this week when governments pick a new chair for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) at a meeting in Nairobi from July 25-28. Continue reading

30May/23

InnoVEX 2023 Gathers Startups From 22 Countries Demonstrating Endless Possibilities

The InnoVEX exhibit for startups at COMPUTEX 2023 will be held at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Hall 2 from May 30 to June 2. As a global platform for startups, InnoVEX 2023 will integrate 5G, AIoT, healthcare technology, metaverse and XR, electric vehicles and smart mobility, green technology, and other innovative solutions. A total of 400 participating startup teams from 22 countries and 8 pavilion countries, including France, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Japan, Brazil, and Israel, will showcase diverse creativity. Continue reading

13May/23

The ‘gay world cup’: why LGBTQ+ audiences love Eurovision

Matt Weaver, University of Portsmouth

In 1956, seven European countries – Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland and West Germany – gathered in Lugano, Switzerland for the first ever Eurovision Song Contest. The competition was only broadcast in select countries, meaning only a small number of viewers watched Swiss entry Lys Assia win the grand prize with the song Refrain.

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24Apr/23

FRANK ZAPPA’S INCREDIBLY RARE RECORDINGS, BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN PLANNED FOR A POTENTIAL SEQUEL TO HIS ICONIC “HOT RATS” ALBUM, HAVE BEEN UNEARTHED FROM THE VAULT AND COMPILED AS NEW COLLECTION, “FUNKY NOTHINGNESS”

In 1969, after The Mothers of Invention disbanded, Frank Zappa released his groundbreaking solo debut, Hot Rats. Fusing jazz and rock, the innovative album became one of the artist’s bestselling releases, thanks to classic tracks like “Peaches En Regalia” and “Willie the Pimp.” Over the following year, in between various projects (including producing Captain Beefheart’s debut, Trout Mask Replica, and emceeing Belgium’s Festival Actuel, where Zappa met British drummer Aynsley Dunbar), he assembled a core group to lay down tracks at Los Angeles’ recently opened Record Plant. Continue reading

13Mar/23

Uncovering the secret religious and spiritual lives of sex workers

Daisy Matthews, Nottingham Trent University and Jane Pilcher, Nottingham Trent University

Tanya* is telling me just how important her Methodist Christianity is to her. We’re chatting over a video call, and I can see Tanya’s living room in the background. This also happens to be her workspace because Tanya, who is 50, is a full-time phone and cam sex worker. For Tanya, earning her living through sex work does not conflict with her religious beliefs at all. Tanya tells me that she had a client who talked to her about his enjoyment of wearing women’s clothing. He confided in her because they both shared the same religious identity.

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05Feb/23

A Black history primer on African Americans’ fight for equality – 5 essential reads

Howard Manly, The Conversation

As the father of Black history, Carter G. Woodson had a simple goal – to legitimize the study of African American history and culture.

To that end, in 1912, shortly after becoming the second African American after W.E.B. Du Bois to earn a Ph.D. at Harvard, Woodson founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915.

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19Nov/22

Bodyswaps and Meta Immersive Learning partner to launch grant

Bodyswaps has today announced an exciting partnership with Meta Immersive Learning to empower 100 higher and further education institutions with access to virtual reality hardware and software across the UK, North America, France and Belgium. Continue reading

15Nov/22

Facial recognition: An ethical policing tool?

By Samuel Woodhams | Digital rights researcher and journalist

Facial recognition technology made headlines again last month as researchers at the University of Cambridge, UK said that the UK police’s use of the technology was unethical and potentially unlawful. The report from the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy urged police to stop using live facial recognition (LFR) in public spaces and said trials by the Metropolitan Police and South Wales Police failed to meet the “minimum legal and ethical standards.” Continue reading
23Oct/22

Why is 13 considered unlucky? Explaining the power of its bad reputation

Many elevators do not have a floor numbered 13 because of common superstitions about the number.
Luis Alvarez/DigitalVision via Getty Images

Barry Markovsky, University of South Carolina Continue reading