An amusing aside in reporting on this Covid pandemic. The leading health publication (HSJ, or Health Services Journal), has a top writer called James Illman. See his article. NOTE: For our section Strange as it Seems, we’re interested in other names that are either particularly suitable or particularly ill-fitting. We know of a South African […]
The Syrian regime has been elected to a leading role in the World Health Organisation (WHO). In May, the war-torn country’s rulers won a seat on the WHO Executive Board. Throughout the course of the Syrian civil war, the Syrian regime has displaced half the country’s population. It has depopulated whole cities and villages by bombing hospitals […]
Scientists have found recordings of their unique song, dating back almost 20 years. Scientists have discovered an entirely new population of pygmy blue whales in the Indian Ocean, which have managed to evade detection for decades despite their enormous size. Researchers uncovered the secretive cetaceans by analyzing acoustic data collected by an underwater nuclear bomb detection array, […]
By Health Day News Fill up that mug: Having one or more cups of caffeinated coffee a day may reduce your risk of heart failure, new research suggests. There was one caveat, however: Decaffeinated coffee doesn’t appear to provide the same protection as caffeine-rich blends. “The association between caffeine and heart failure risk reduction was […]
A U.S. Army soldier takes a nap — which the Pentagon now recommends to combat sleep deprivation — while another holds position on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. Photo by Spc. Ken Scar/U.S. Army. March 3 (UPI) — A new Defense Department report called sleep deprivation a serious detriment to readiness, adding that most service members lack adequate […]
The world has just seen astonishingly-detailed clear pictures from the surface of Mars, courtesy of an American rover called Perseverance [affectionately abbreviated to Percy]. However when BBC Newsnight proudly showed them [on February 24 2021], as a marvel of human achievement, it also linked up with a scientist in Britain. Except the picture of him […]
As he led Saddam Hussein to the gallows, Dr Mowaffak al Rubaie says he was filled not with hatred but with contempt. “I was not looking for revenge for the three times his security thugs had imprisoned and tortured me,” Dr Rubaie says. “I was hoping to see him show some remorse for the terrible […]
Like Lazarus, he has returned from the grave. Or so said Colonel Ron Black’s friends when they heard he was alive and well.
Originally published in the Sunday Times, Sunday August 31, 1986 WARNING: Holidays can damage your health. Psychologists believe that many of the millions of Britons returning to work this week wouldhave been better off staying at the office instead of taking theirannual break. Increasing evidence that holidays can cause harmful stress ratherthan provide welcome rest and […]
Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., this week tested robotic dogs on a security patrol operation. Photo from U.S. Air Force The US Air Force has unveiled an addition to its war effort: computerized, four-legged robot dogs to be used for security patrols. The Philadelphia-based technology company Ghost Robotics worked with the base’s 325th Security Squadron […]