Tag Archives: United Kingdom

11Jul/23

Treat culture: why indulging in small, affordable pleasures can help you cope with tough times

Kokho Jason Sit, University of Portsmouth

Life today is stressful. Since the start of the pandemic, social media has been flooded with coping mechanisms and wellbeing trends to help people manage their emotions and worries about the state of the world. If you’ve tried therapy and “hot girl walks”, you may also have heard of the latest life hack: buying yourself a little treat.

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10Jul/23

China’s gallium and germanium controls: what they mean and what could happen next

Gavin D. J. Harper, University of Birmingham

From August, China is to restrict exports of gallium and germanium, two critical elements for making semiconductor chips. With China dominating the supply of both elements, exporters will now need special licences to get them out of the country. The move has the potential to harm a range of western tech manufacturers that use these elements to make their products.

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07Jul/23

How holidaying in developing countries affects local inequality

A few years ago, one of us (Alex) went for a vacation to the Dominican Republic. The motivation was similar to millions of other tourists every year: escape the daily routine, enjoy the sun and beaches, and gather some strength to face another cold winter.

Unfortunately, a few things weren’t very conducive to a happy break. The staff at the mammoth hotel were making as little as US$1 (£0.79) for a 12-hour shift. Worse, most of them lived in a shanty town nearby. They had no sewers and no reliable electricity.

The hotel also exploited its power over local farmers to procure food exceedingly cheaply. Schools were overcrowded and many children dropped out to work in businesses like these hotels and farms, perpetuating the cycle.

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06Jul/23

World’s oldest profession: still fighting

By Lauren Crosby Medlicott | Freelance Journalist

The policies:

Street Offences Act 1959, Section 1.

The Crime and Disorder Act, 1998.

Sexual Offences Act 2003, Section 53.

Modern Slavery Act 2015

The Impact:

Criminalised for kerb crawling and working together, British sex workers feel they are fighting a desperate battle with the law to provide for themselves and their families. Continue reading

30Jun/23

I’m one of the UK’s official climate change advisers – our new report says the country is no longer a world leader

Piers Forster, University of Leeds

The UK’s Climate Change Committee – the official independent advisory body of which I am interim chair – has spent the past three months poring over thousands of pages of government strategy documents to inform its latest annual progress report to parliament. And our confidence in the UK meeting its climate goals is now markedly less than it was in our previous assessment a year ago. Key opportunities have been missed.

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27Jun/23

Stephen Lawrence’s murder was covered up by Freemasons in the Metropolitan Police?

June 27, 2023 /Crime/ — The Metropolitan Police is not run by Freemasons. Freemasonry is a fraternal organization that is open to men of all faiths and backgrounds. There are a number of Freemasons who are also police officers, but they do not have any special influence over the running of the force.

There have been some allegations that Freemasons have used their influence to protect fellow members from prosecution, but there is no evidence to support these claims. The Metropolitan Police has a number of policies in place to prevent any form of discrimination, including discrimination on the basis of membership of a fraternal organization. Continue reading

27Jun/23

How streaming platforms make you more likely to watch certain programmes – new research

Neil Thurman, City, University of London

With the vast array of options of what to watch online, have you ever wondered why you picked that new comedy or that old documentary? Would you have chosen to watch them if they were on terrestrial TV? How much were you nudged to choose them by subtle prompts from the online streaming platforms?

Last year, when a new British streaming TV platform, ITVX, launched, it promised to be “led” by viewers who could “choose [from] thousands of hours of content.” Disney+ has made a similar promise: “Watch the way you want.”

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23Jun/23

Glastonbury weekend guide survival kit

23 June 2023 /Opinion/ – As a black African Londoner, I am incredibly excited to see Afrobeats headlining Glastonbury this year. It is a genre that has its roots in my community, and it is amazing to see it reach such a mainstream audience.

Afrobeats is a genre of music that originated in Nigeria in the early 1990s. It is a fusion of West African sounds, such as highlife and fuji, with American genres, such as hip hop and R&B. Afrobeats has become increasingly popular in recent years, and it is now one of the most popular genres of music in Africa. Continue reading