How to plug the UK into desert sunshine
National Grid/Statnett High power cables have to be handled carefully If you wanted to build a gigantic new solar farm, you would probably choose the desert over Dartmoor. Many have dreamed of exploiting the desert sun, but one of the challenges has always been how to export that electricity. A total of four cables are […]
Survivors to remain trapped at least two more weeks
Getty Images Drilling into the mine is extremely difficult Chinese rescue teams say it might be more than two weeks until they can save a group of miners trapped hundreds of metres underground. They have been trapped since an explosion closed the entrance tunnel to the Hushan gold mine in Shandong province on 10 January. […]
The computer pioneer who built modern China
Emmanuel Lafont (Credit: Emmanuel Lafont) Isolated from the rest of the world, one woman pushed computing from a geeky obsession into a transformative industry. In April 1960, China’s first home-grown electronic digital general purpose computer – the Model 107 – went live. Xia Peisu, the machine’s engineer and designer, had just made history. After decades […]
Slave markets found on Instagram and other apps
BBC News Arabic’s undercover investigation exposes the buying and selling of domestic workers in the Gulf Drive around the streets of Kuwait and you won’t see these women. They are behind closed doors, deprived of their basic rights, unable to leave and at risk of being sold to the highest bidder. But pick up a […]
County Championship: Warwickshire CEO proposes crowd pilot games in April
“We can stagger people’s entrances. We’ve split Edgbaston into three segments now with three separate entrances. We can bring people in in a controlled manner in an hour or so. “We’ve got contactless payments. We’ve built an app that allows people to get food and drink to their seats so people haven’t got to stand […]
The powerful political graphics sparking change
Andy McArthur (Credit: Andy McArthur) How the new graphic iconography of memes, placards and posters is changing the way we communicate and protest Design Museum (Credit: Design Museum) When the now iconic ‘Hope’ Obama poster by Shepard Fairey went viral, it kick-started a new phase in the visual language of politics. So how are graphics […]
Carla Rudd: Young women now have chance of full-time cricket career, says wicketkeeper
Record-breaking wicketkeeper Carla Rudd believes emerging female cricketers finally have the opportunity to build full-time careers in the game. Rudd has given up top-level cricket at the age of 28 to focus on her new role as director of sport at The Leys School in Cambridge. But the Southern Vipers stalwart, who amassed 75 dismissals […]
Calls for Scotland to follow English travel rules
Getty Images Travel agents believe Scots will travel to English airports if the rules remain unchanged Travel agents, airlines and tour operators want clarity from the Scottish government on travel rules as England prepares to open up. The Scottish government has responsibility for quarantine rules north of the border. But it has not yet said […]
Gregg Wallace accusers criticise his response to allegations
BBC/Shine TV Two of Gregg Wallace’s accusers have criticised his response to allegations of historical misconduct, after he said they had come from a “handful of middle-class women of a certain age”. One of his accusers said the comments showed he “clearly hasn’t learnt his lesson”, while another said he wrongly “seems to be saying […]
Pubs deluged with beer garden bookings
Getty Images England’s pubs have been deluged by people eager to book space from when beer gardens reopen on 12 April, industry group UK Hospitality has said. From that date, pubs are expected to be able to serve customers sitting outdoors. One Leeds pub reported that it had taken in 700 bookings in just five […]