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A red-lipped batfish: is there anything creepier? | Helen Sullivan

We’ve all been there. We’ve all felt like a badly made-up, odd-limbed, irritable floor-dwelling mess As you contemplate the wonders of evolution, and how a creature can be born with something weird and new, and that thing can either help it get ahead or not hurt its chances, and it can then reproduce and make another one like it, spare a thought for the red-lipped batfish. A real animal, it has the kind of mouth that, as a kid, you may have made from Babybel cheese wax, to go with your red wax fake nails. It has a beard of white whiskers. It has fins that bend backwards, like a person’s arms at yoga when they are about to do upward dog. Before your eyes, it sprouts a new limb from its nostril. Its nose – technically a snout – is long, at the top of its head, and hook-shaped. It cannot swim, only crawl. Its crawl is more like a waddle. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/XIEneCv via IFTTT
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‘The job starts straight away’: Adrian Ramsay on his first 100 days as Green MP

Co-leader has had to prioritise the most urgent constituency cases until finally assembling his full team When Adrian Ramsay confounded more than a century of Conservative hegemony in rural East Anglia to win Waveney Valley for the Greens on a wave of local enthusiasm , he might have expected to enjoy a pleasant political honeymoon. Pledging to work constructively with the new government, Ramsay’s first significant parliamentary intervention at the inaugural PMQs 20 days into his new job was an innocuous inquiry about how Keir Starmer would show leadership at the forthcoming Cop16 conference on nature. It was met with the football-loving prime minister’s rhetorical equivalent of a two-footed tackle. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/t9xOjDs via IFTTT

The moment I knew: he hid his emotions – but after a week apart he said ‘I missed you’

In the 1960s, Marilyn Hewish and Dean bonded over stars, shells and science fiction movies. She didn’t expect declarations of love – then he returned from a trip away Find more stories from The moment I knew series Dean and I met in 1967 at the University of Adelaide when we were 18 years old and in the second year of our science degrees. We worked back to back in the biochemistry laboratory. I soon discovered to my delight that he was on top of the subject and could answer my questions. I remember thinking: “This man is smart, and useful.” Soon I would “accidentally” come across him at the cafeteria, library and bookshop. Eventually he asked me out but we only dated for a few months. There was no drama. We drifted apart. He told me later he found me too frivolous; I found him too serious. Fast forward two years and we were both studying for our honours. We began running into each other late at night in the library and we fell back into comfortable conversation. My mother noticed

Fabio Wardley stuns Frazer Clarke with first-round KO to retain British title

Heavyweight rematch ends with devastating knockout Ben Whittaker bout ends early after freak injury Fabio Wardley produced a first-round knockout in his rematch against Frazer Clarke to defend his British heavyweight title in spectacular fashion. The pair had gone the full 12 rounds in their initial fight at London’s O2 Arena in March that had ended in a draw. It proved a far shorter affair – around two and a half minutes – in Riyadh on the Artur Beterbiev v Dmitry Bivol undercard. Wardley caught and hurt Clarke with a looping overhand right hand, then sent him to the canvas with a violent follow-up barrage. A dazed Clarke gamely tried to get to his feet but the referee waved the contest off. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/8rpudjK via IFTTT

Fears for future of ski tourism as resorts adapt to thawing snow season

While some embrace technological innovations, others are forced to close as global heating causes lack of snowfall Sitting at his window in Västerås, central Sweden, Thomas Ohlander is wondering when the winter season might start for his outdoor adventure business, Do The North . “To schedule a trip we have to be sure of snow,” he says, “And that start date is going backwards at a crazy speed.” Each year, Ohlander’s local ice-skating club has recorded the first date on which its members managed to get out on the frozen lakes. In 1988, that date was 4 November; this year the prediction is 4 December. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/ul54Hz3 via IFTTT

Trump intensifies nativist message with sweeping proposal to deport migrants

Republican nominee holds rally in Aurora, Colorado and exploits swirl of local rumors to push anti-immigrant plan Donald Trump intensified his politics of nativism and xenophobia on Friday by announcing a sweeping plan to deport Venezuelans he claimed have “infected” a once peaceful city in Colorado. The Republican presidential nominee held a campaign rally in Aurora on a stage adorned with posters displaying mugshots of people in prison-orange uniforms with descriptions including “illegal immigrant gang members from Venezuela”. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/CUsihZN via IFTTT

Lonely Planet review - Laura Dern and Liam Hemsworth heat up beach-read travel romance

A novelist meets a financier two decades her junior at a writers’ retreat in Morocco, in this welcome addition to a flurry of age-gap romances released this summer Be it a quirk of timing or the invisible hand of trend cycles, Hollywood seems ready to reconsider the idea of the “older woman”. A wave of age-gap romances have brought the traditionally objectified mommy-age lover into the mainstream this year, including Anne Hathaway’s tryst with a boybander in The Idea of You ; Carol Kane’s free-spirited grandmother involved with a decades-younger widower in Between the Temples ; and Nicole Kidman’s transgressive dalliances in both A Family Affair (with Zac Efron’s movie star) and the forthcoming Babygirl (with Harris Dickinson’s intern). And that’s not to mention the weirder, psychosexual French version – a 50ish lawyer seducing her gangly teenage stepson – in Catherine Breillat’s Last Summer . Now Lonely Planet, a Netflix film from Susannah Grant, writer of Erin Brockovich and mos

Stage set for battle of the dynasties as Rodrigo Duterte eyes return to politics in the Philippines

Former president to run for mayor of Davao amid fight for power against formidable Marcos family Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte, 79, returned to politics this week when he registered to run as mayor in his family’s stronghold, Davao city. It leaves little doubt: two of the country’s most powerful political families, the Dutertes and the Marcoses, are set for an epic struggle for power. For the Dutertes, it could prove a battle for their survival. Rodrigo Duterte is facing an investigation by the international criminal court for crimes against humanity over his brutal war on drugs, and the family needs political clout and powerful friends. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Sk7jgBh via IFTTT

Sumba’s sandalwood ponies

The small, resilient horses are more than just working animals – they are cultural symbols On the parched plains of Sumba, a remote island in Indonesia’s eastern archipelago, a breed of hardy ponies plays a vital role in the lives of the local people. Known as sandalwood ponies, these small, resilient horses are more than just working animals – they are cultural symbols, markers of status, and increasingly, a draw for tourists eager to experience the island’s untouched landscapes and traditions. Gerson swimming horses, West Sumba regency, Nusa Tenggara Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/nZ5Q8KA via IFTTT

‘I make architects’ dreams come true’: Hanif Kara, the magician who makes impossible buildings stay up

He has had a hand in some of the 21st-century’s most daring structures – including Zaha Hadid’s Phaeno science centre. We meet the Uganda-born engineer, who has just won architecture’s prestigious Soane medal From the wayward columns of Will Alsop , to the gravity-defying curves of Zaha Hadid , there has always been someone in the background making architects’ improbable visions stand up. More often than not, in the case of the 21st-century’s most unlikely structures, that person has been Hanif Kara. The Uganda-born engineer has just been announced as the 2024 recipient of the Soane medal , an illustrious gong that has so far been awarded to architects and their theorists, but never before to an engineer. As the mathematical brains that so many have relied on, and a professor who has inspired generations of designers, Kara’s contribution to architecture is eminently worthy of recognition. It’s no exaggeration to say that, without him, many of the most daring buildings of the last tw

Juno and the Paycock review – Mark Rylance delights as a drunken fantasist Dubliner

Gielgud theatre, London Rylance is entertainingly Chaplinesque as a dissolute husband in Seán O’Casey’s 1924 tragicomedy, but Succession’s J Smith-Cameron is its heart and soul as the long-suffering wife A volley of gunshots at the start signifies the violent backdrop to Seán O’Casey’s 1924 tragicomedy, which takes place during the Irish civil war of 1922-23. But it is a distant sound, and musical hall-style comedy and drunken shenanigans take prominence in this production. The second in O’Casey’s Dublin trilogy, Juno and the Paycock dramatises tenement life for the Boyles, whose breadwinner, Jack (Mark Rylance), prefers drink to work while his wife, Juno ( J Smith-Cameron ), is left to earn their keep. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/rfblyAQ via IFTTT

Donald Trump makes a theatrical return to Butler, scene of assassination attempt

Thousands attend Pennsylvania rally to see Republican candidate, while Elon Musk warns of ‘last election’ if supporters don’t turn out to vote Donald Trump has returned to the site where he narrowly escaped assassination in July, pushing the emotional buttons of his supporters and suggesting that his political opponents “maybe even tried to kill me” to stop him regaining the White House. The Republican presidential nominee – and perennial showman – mounted an unabashedly sentimental spectacle in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. He was joined by billionaire Elon Musk, who made the baseless claim that if Trump’s supporters fail to turn out, “this will be the last election”. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/BQNy1wd via IFTTT

Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv’s military claims downing of Russian fighter plane over Donetsk region

Bomber reportedly shot down near city of Kostiantynivka as Russian forces claim capture of another eastern Ukrainian village. What we know on day 956 See all our Russia-Ukraine war coverage Ukrainian forces said they shot down a Russian warplane in Ukraine’s east on Saturday . The bomber was downed near the city of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk region, the head of its military administration, Serhiy Horbunov, was quoted as saying by Ukraine’s public broadcaster, Suspilne. Photos showed charred remains of an aircraft after it landed on a house that caught fire. Ukraine said five civilians were killed by Russian shelling in the country’s south and east while Russian forces claimed to have made gains in Ukraine’s east . A 65-year-old woman and an 86-year-old man were killed in the city of Toretsk and the village of Velyka Novosilka, prosecutors in the Donetsk region said. In the Zaporizhzhia region, two men aged 44 and 46 were killed by Russian shelling in the village of Mala Tokmachka,

Harris and Trump neck-and-neck in polls with early voting under way

More than 1.4 million have already voted in the presidential election, as battleground state polls show no clear frontrunner More than 1.4 million people have now voted in the presidential election, as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump continue to crisscross the country in the final stretch of a neck-and-neck campaign. Their vice-presidential picks, JD Vance and Tim Walz, also faced off this week in the only vice-presidential debate of this cycle. But initial polls suggested voters saw the debate as a draw , without clear impact on the race. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/5pefx89 via IFTTT

‘Time stopped here on 7 October’: life in kibbutz that endured unimaginable loss one year ago

Nir Oz, a ‘paradise’ now inhabited by just two people, sustained the most damage and bloodshed per capita in Hamas attack Post is no longer delivered to Nir Oz kibbutz; the lights in the mailroom are off, and the floor is gathering dust. Many of the metal boxes bearing each family’s name now have new labels: red and black stickers that say “killed” or “hostage”. Natan Bahat, 82, knew nothing would be waiting for him, but half-heartedly checked his postbox anyway. “Time stopped here on 7 October,” he said. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/sWRZmMJ via IFTTT

Executive resigns at Trump Media, Truth Social’s parent company

COO Andrew Northwall last month left the company that now owes almost 800,000 shares to an investor US politics – live updates The chief operating officer of Truth Social’s parent company has resigned, and the company must hand over almost 800,000 shares to one of its investors as part of a court ruling, according to a regulatory filing. Andrew Northwall, the former COO, resigned from Trump Media & Technology Group Corp late last month, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission filing, adding that the company plans to “transition his duties internally”. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/CgilzrY via IFTTT

Trump holds town hall event in North Carolina as Harris campaigns in Michigan – US elections live

Trump speaks in Fayetteville after Kamala Harris touts economic policies in critical swing state Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a hard-right congresswoman of Georgia, is once again facing criticism for peddling a baseless – and just plan bizarre – claim about the weather. “Yes they can control the weather,” Greene said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.” Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/gjDEFIQ via IFTTT

US dock workers agree on deal with port operators to end strike

International Longshoremen’s Association announces agreement for wage hike and immediate work resumption The US ports strike that shut down shipping on the east and Gulf coasts for three days came to an end on Thursday after dock workers and port operators reached an agreement for a wage hike. The International Longshoremen’s Association announced that the union agreed to a tentative deal with the United States Maritime Alliance on wages and will extend the contract through January 2025. Work would resume immediately, the union said. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/PpNcg4L via IFTTT

Today, with a £22bn pledge for carbon capture, Labour’s green revolution for Britain begins | Rachel Reeves

Revitalising the country’s industrial heartlands and creating decent, well-paid jobs is at the heart of our mission Rachel Reeves is the chancellor of the exchequer Three months ago, the British people voted for change. For a Britain that works for working people again, with an economy that is growing, an NHS that is fixed and more money in people’s pockets. I am determined to deliver that change. But I know it can only happen if we bring investment back to Britain. Investment that can reignite Britain’s industrial heartlands to create good jobs in the industries of the future – like wind power and solar. And this includes carbon capture and storage. That’s why today we have announced up to £21.7bn of funding over 25 years to launch this major new industry for our country in a new era for clean-energy investment and jobs. Rachel Reeves is chancellor of the exchequer Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Jkm2uRC via IFTTT

‘Something terrible has happened’: Israelis in Jaffa recall shock of terror attack

The assault, in which seven people were killed, happened minutes before Iran’s missile bombardment was launched Middle East crisis – live updates Debbie Kay, who lives in the seaside neighbourhood of Jaffa in Tel Aviv, was arguing with her teenage son on Tuesday evening about whether or not it was safe to leave the house. He was wanting to meet friends, while she was concerned about reports that Iran was about to launch ballistic missiles at Israel. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/h4Aj8Xe via IFTTT

Avocado bathrooms are back in UK as younger homeowners go green

Suppliers say gen Z and millennials are driving trend for 1970s-style fixtures as well as other bright colours Wild sage, lemon, peach, sorbet, mint, and avocado: not the makings of a bizarre fruit salad, but some of the forgotten shades of Britain’s bathrooms that were popular in the mid-20th century. The colourful suites disappeared from homes as whites and minimalist, neutral designs took over in the 1990s. But avocado-coloured bathrooms are back, and it is gen Z and millennials driving the trend. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/qB4GjRe via IFTTT

UK shop prices fall at fastest rate since 2021 despite rising fresh food inflation

Overall shop price deflation was 0.6% in September compared with 0.3% in August, says trade body Prices in UK shops are falling at the fastest rate since 2021 despite an increase in fresh food inflation as wet weather hit UK production while the cost of olive oil and sugary snacks continues to be affected by the climate crisis. Overall shop price deflation was 0.6% in September compared with 0.3% in August, according to the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) trade body. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/wJu6EUt via IFTTT
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