Kate planned carol service with Lady Gabriella Windsor
PA Media The Princess of Wales enlisted the help of recently-widowed Lady Gabriella Windsor in planning her Westminster Abbey carol service this year. Lady Gabriella, whose husband Thomas Kingston took his own life in February, helped select which musical performances featured at the annual Together at Christmas event. The second cousin of King Charles enjoyed […]
The secret tricks in our microwave meals
Getty Images At their worst, they’re not worth the power used to heat them – let alone the calories. Why? And what sets the good ones apart? BBC Future takes a look. On the label it simply said “Value Vegetable Lasagne”. But from the picture on the box, I could see that the manufacturer was […]
Sheffield United women: Blades reveal plan to go full-time
Sheffield United are aiming to make their women’s team fully professional. The Blades have announced a raft of enhancements to the women’s side of the club, including several full-time contracts. They will also introduce a Professional Game Academy and keep home matches at Bramall Lane. The men’s team is celebrating promotion back to the Premier […]
Wind-mapping space laser is losing power
ESA Artwork: “Aeolus has absolutely proved the principle,” says Dr Florence Rabier Europe’s Aeolus satellite was launched last year to gather data to improve weather forecasts, and its observations have unquestionably proved their worth. But the space laser is now degrading and has already lost half its power. Engineers plan to switch Aeolus to its […]
The comfort food that took over the world
Getty Images Every year, tens of billions of instant ramen noodles are enjoyed – a simple meal that only needs the addition of boiling water. Veronique Greenwood looks at the invention of a food revolution. There was a time in my life when I ate a bowl of instant ramen every single day. When you’re […]
Facebook testing ‘downvote’ button
Getty Images Facebook is testing a new “downvote” button that will let people hide comments and provide feedback about them. However, the social network denied that the new feature was a “dislike” button, which many Facebook users have requested. The downvote button is being tried out by a small number of US users. The company […]
Charli XCX, Beyonce, The Cure and more
Getty Images Charli XCX scored her second UK number 1 album with Brat, which was released in June to rave reviews When Charli XCX recorded her sixth album, Brat, she thought her prickly, abrasive dance anthems were “not going to appeal to a lot of people”. In the end, the record topped the charts and […]
The hidden goop and gunge in what we eat
(Getty Images) Many of our foods contain ingredients that seem like they come from dystopian science fiction, says Veronique Greenwood. Why are they there? In dystopian fiction, future food is often something else in disguise. Normal-looking burgers, cakes, or other foods are secretly moulded algae or vat-protein of some ilk, the idea being that we’ve […]
Russia accused of global net hack attacks
EPA Russia has been accused of carrying out cyber-attacks across the globe State-sponsored Russian hackers are actively seeking to hijack essential internet hardware, US and UK intelligence agencies say. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the FBI and the US Department of Homeland Security issued a joint alert warning of a global campaign. The […]
The rarely-seen robots that package what we eat
The robots actually in factories don’t have hands…they’re more unusual (SPL) From pancakes to jelly beans, a new breed of intelligent robots are preparing our food, discovers Veronique Greenwood, and it can be a dazzling sight. Last July, while touring a jelly bean factory, I came upon a startling sight. Over a conveyor belt, a […]