Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com. How was popcorn discovered? – Kendra, age 11, Penn Yan, New York You have to wonder how people originally figured out how to eat some foods that are beloved today. The cassava plant is toxic if not carefully processed through multiple steps. Yogurt is basically old milk that’s been around for a while and contaminated with bacteria. And who discovered that popcorn could be a toasty, tasty treat? These kinds of food mysteries are pretty…
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Anglian Water Services Ltd has been ordered to pay over £50,000 for failing, without reasonable excuse, to comply with a requirement to provide records by the Environment Agency. The order includes a £25,000 fine, £190 victim surcharge and £25,000 in costs. Sentencing took place today (5 July 2024) at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court after the water company was convicted on 24 May 2024. This is the first conviction of its kind by the Environment Agency against a water company and sets a precedent for the regulation of non-compliant companies. Since launching the investigation into Anglian Water Service Ltd’s compliance, the Environment…
Nairobi, 5 July – In a new landmark initiative, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Kenya and the national airline, Kenya Airways (KQ), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) announcing a strategic partnership aimed at tackling trafficking in persons, and promoting regular migration pathways. “This partnership demonstrates the commitment of both organizations to protect travelers and migrants and reduce their potential exposure to exploitation by traffickers,” said Ms. Dimanche Sharon, IOM Chief of Mission Kenya. “By joining forces with Kenya Airways, we are enhancing IOM’s outreach and impact, ensuring that migration is safe and works for all.” IOM…
You might have heard that artificial intelligence is going to revolutionize everything, save the world and give everyone superhuman powers. Alternatively, you might have heard that it will take your job, make you lazy and stupid, and make the world a cyberpunk dystopia. Consider another way to look at AI: as an assistive technology – something that helps you function. With that view, also consider a community of experts in giving and receiving assistance: the disability community. Many disabled people use technology extensively, both dedicated assistive technologies such as wheelchairs and general-use technologies such as smart home devices. Equally, many…
The 650 United Kingdom House of Commons seats are elected by first past the post (FPTP), in which the candidate with the most votes wins the seat. At Thursday’s general election, Labour won a landslide. After declarations from 645 of the 650 seats, Labour had won 411 seats (up 210 since the 2019 election), the Conservatives 119 (down 249), the Liberal Democrats 71 (up 63), the Scottish National Party (SNP) nine (down 38), independents six (up six), the far-right Reform four (up four), the Greens four (up three) and the Welsh nationalist Plaid Cymru four (up two). Vote shares for…
In the first quarter of 2024, house prices in the EU increased by 0.4% and rents by 0.9% compared with the fourth quarter of 2023. Compared with the first quarter of 2023, house prices in the EU went up by 1.3%, while rents increased by 3.0%. This information comes from data on house prices and rents published by Eurostat today. This article presents findings from the more detailed Statistics Explained article on housing price statistics. House prices and rents in the EU followed a similar pattern between 2010 and the second quarter of 2011 but are now evolving differently. While…
Here are key takeways about how people around the world see Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the country he leads: Confidence in the Ukrainian president is mixed across the 35 countries we surveyed. A median of 40% have confidence in him to do the right thing regarding world affairs, while 46% do not. Confidence in Zelenskyy has declined significantly over the past year in some countries where trend data is available. In a handful of places, about a fifth or more of the public do not express an opinion on Zelenskyy. This includes 45% of adults in India. People in…
Investigation finds 2,607 U.S. employees owed overtime back wages SAN JOSE, CA – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation found that Intuit — a Silicon Valley-based multinational provider of payroll and financial software applications — deprived more than 2,500 employees of more than $555,000 in overtime pay by not keeping accurate pay records and failing to pay for some work hours, including time spent on required training. The department’s Wage and Hour Division determined that Intuit’s failure led the Mountain View-based employer to pay incorrect amounts for overtime worked, a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The company’s violation affected employees…
But Farage’s party’s string of second-place finishes, particularly across traditionally Labour seats which fell to Boris Johnson’s Conservatives in 2019, will give the incoming government the heebie-jeebies. If Starmer fails to bring about the change and improve voters’ lives as he promises, who will Reform voters punish? Farage was explicit about who he’ll be gunning for in the next election, which must be held by 2029. “We’re coming for Labour — be in no doubt about that,” he said in his victory speech in Clacton leisure center. “This is the first steps in something which is going to stun all…
Amazon has secured a A$2 billion contract with the Australian Signals Directorate – the agency responsible for foreign signals intelligence and information security. A local subsidiary of Amazon Web Services will build a Top Secret Cloud to provide secure data storage for military intelligence. The deal will securely manage top secret data vital to Australia’s national security. This contract is expected to last over a decade. It will build three secure data centres at undisclosed locations in Australia. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated this project will “bolster our defence and national intelligence community to ensure they can deliver world-leading protection…