Details of a huge research project on the British landscape are being finalised. Co-ordinated by York University, the £13m study aims to look at how our green and pleasant land will be affected by challenges such as climate change and demand for biofuels. The focus will be on biodiversity, and how landscapes change in response to the creatures and plants they host. Farmers and ramblers will also contribute to the six-year scoping exercise, funded by the Natural Research Environment Council.
By 2050, the world will have an estimated 9bn citizens. How will Britain help feed them, while making sure those at home don’t go hungry? That will be the main question on the menu at a conference on food security in Nottingham on 4th-5th April. John Beddington, the government’s chief scientific adviser, will be among those serving up their wisdom.
Autism researcher Simon Baron-Cohen attempts to explain human cruelty with his new book Zero Degrees of Empathy (Allen Lane) published on 7th April. He argues that our actions towards others depend on where we sit on the empathy spectrum. Most controversially, he suggests rebranding evil as “empathy-starvation.”
April 12th is the 50th anniversary of human spaceflight. Oddly, London will be a major focus for festivities: the RSC will put on a new space-themed play and a statue of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin will be unveiled at Admiralty Arch. On the day itself, there will be a mass launching of rockets at noon, and devotees can don orange boiler suits in a 7am homage on the South Bank.
By 2050, the world will have an estimated 9bn citizens. How will Britain help feed them, while making sure those at home don’t go hungry? That will be the main question on the menu at a conference on food security in Nottingham on 4th-5th April. John Beddington, the government’s chief scientific adviser, will be among those serving up their wisdom.
Autism researcher Simon Baron-Cohen attempts to explain human cruelty with his new book Zero Degrees of Empathy (Allen Lane) published on 7th April. He argues that our actions towards others depend on where we sit on the empathy spectrum. Most controversially, he suggests rebranding evil as “empathy-starvation.”
April 12th is the 50th anniversary of human spaceflight. Oddly, London will be a major focus for festivities: the RSC will put on a new space-themed play and a statue of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin will be unveiled at Admiralty Arch. On the day itself, there will be a mass launching of rockets at noon, and devotees can don orange boiler suits in a 7am homage on the South Bank.
