Winters in the World by Eleanor Parker review a dive into the Anglo-Saxon year

 Posted on May 24, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  588 words  |  Valentine Belue

History booksReviewAn magical exploration of the weather literature left behind by the poets, scientists and historians of Anglo-Saxon Britain If the airless, sultry, stuck summer left you longing for autumn or, indeed, for anything other than never-ending broil, you could do no better than plunge into the Anglo-Saxon year. Here, the seasons are properly seasonal, with wispy autumn smoke, blustery spring mornings and a summer that is lush, green and gently generative. [Read More]

Former Guinea dictator Moussa Dadis Camara recaptured after armed prison escape | Guinea

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  2 minutes  |  379 words  |  Aldo Pusey

The ObserverGuinea This article is more than 2 months oldFormer Guinea dictator Moussa Dadis Camara recaptured after armed prison escapeThis article is more than 2 months oldFormer junta leader back in jail hours after commando raid his lawyer says was an abduction The former head of Guinea’s 2008 military junta has been recaptured and returned to prison hours after an apparent jailbreak led by a heavily armed commando, the army and his lawyer said. [Read More]

From Bacteria to Bach and Back by Daniel C Dennett review consciousness explained?

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  7 minutes  |  1427 words  |  Aldo Pusey

Book of the dayScience and nature booksReviewThere is no ‘hard problem’ and consciousness is no more mysterious than gravity, Dennett claims in this study of the evolution of mindsDon’t be fooled by the title; there is little about bacteria, only a brief digression about Bach, and no “back” in philosopher Daniel Dennett’s latest Big Bravura Book about consciousness. But, as he confesses, he is an Author who Adores Alliteration. And Capitals. [Read More]

Galicia coast holiday guide: the best beaches, bars, restaurants and hotels

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  10 minutes  |  2112 words  |  Kary Bruening

Holiday guidesSpain holidaysWhite sandy beaches, epic Atlantic scenery and supreme seafood combine to great effect on Spain’s most beautiful coastline Lush green valleys and rugged mountains, sheer cliffs and wild, frothing, slate-grey seas. Bagpipes, baroque cathedrals and the smell of grilled seafood. The architectural grace of Santiago de Compostela and the industrial churn of Vigo. Galicia, the north-west corner of Spain, is a diverse region, but amid the variety there are two constants: first, it’s one of the best places to eat seafood in the world; and, second, its wild landscape, seemingly more Scottish than Spanish, is the most beautiful on the Iberian peninsula. [Read More]

Israelis and Palestinians are facing their moment of greatest danger since 1948 | Yuval Noah Harari

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  7 minutes  |  1352 words  |  Aldo Pusey

OpinionIsrael This article is more than 3 months oldIsraelis and Palestinians are facing their moment of greatest danger since 1948This article is more than 3 months oldYuval Noah HarariThere is still a slim chance of peace if wiser counsels prevail and other major powers intervene in a coalition of the willing Israel has just experienced the worst day in its history. More Israeli civilians have been slaughtered in a single day than all the civilians and soldiers Israel lost in the 1956 Sinai war, the 1967 six-day war and the 2006 second Lebanon war combined. [Read More]

Its already way beyond what humans can do: will AI wipe out architects?

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  11 minutes  |  2162 words  |  Kary Bruening

ArchitectureIt’s revolutionising building – but could AI kill off an entire profession? Perhaps not, finds our writer, as he enters a world where Corbusier-style marvels and 500-room hotels are just a click away A handful of little green blocks flashes up on the screen, filling a building site with a neat grid of uniform cubes. One second they form rows of towers, next they morph into low-rise courtyards, then they flip back into long slender slabs, before cycling through hundreds of other iterations, in a hypnotic high-speed ballet of bristling buildings. [Read More]

Lucy Worsley picks five books that explore hidden domestic lives

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  610 words  |  Kary Bruening

Further readingBooksFrom the evolution of plumbing to the freedoms of well-to-do women, the historian chooses books that shine a light on the nitty-gritty of life in the past “Who emptied the chamber pots?” ask our visitors at Hampton Court Palace. “Where did the servants sleep?” Answering these kinds of questions, about the nitty-gritty of life in the past, is bread and butter to people like me who work as curators in Britain’s historical buildings open to the public. [Read More]

Mona Lisa v the monstrous: the grotesque, shocking side of Leonardo da Vinci

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  8 minutes  |  1555 words  |  Jenniffer Sheldon

Possible sex worker … Quinten Massys’ An Old Woman (known as The Ugly Duchess) was copied from a now lost Leonardo work. Photograph: Quinten Massys/The National Gallery, LondonPossible sex worker … Quinten Massys’ An Old Woman (known as The Ugly Duchess) was copied from a now lost Leonardo work. Photograph: Quinten Massys/The National Gallery, LondonLeonardo da VinciThe Italian master didn’t just paint the conventionally beautiful. As a new National Gallery show reveals, he was also drawn to irregular, diseased and aged faces – all captured with mind-bending accuracy and compassion [Read More]

The End of Vandalism by Tom Drury a sad and funny small-town tale

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  2 minutes  |  242 words  |  Jenniffer Sheldon

FictionReviewThis reissued 1994 novel hunkers deep into the daily life of its fictional backwater of Grouse County in midwest AmericaTom Drury’s richly observant tale of the American midwest centres on policeman Dan Norman, photographer’s assistant Louise Darling and her husband, well-lubricated waster Charles “Tiny” Darling. Tiny leaves town after a bar room brawl, separates from Louise and heads for Colorado in search of a new life and another woman. Dan and Louise begin an unshowy but sweet romance, and Dan campaigns in the local sheriff elections. [Read More]

Yes, wearing a hat is eccentric but here's why I do it anyway

 Posted on May 23, 2024  |  3 minutes  |  584 words  |  Aldo Pusey

Men's fashionSporting a hat has become tantamount to wearing sunglasses indoors – marking you out as weird. And even David Beckham’s appearance in a flat cap isn’t helping those of us who can’t kick the headgear habit David Beckham spotted wearing an unusual item of clothing is a news story that has been with us since the mid-90s and, like war in the gulf or a new series of New Tricks, it keeps returning, despite no one having the stomach for it. [Read More]