All posts tagged: future

What the sudden demise of the UK’s department of science means for the future of research

What the sudden demise of the UK’s department of science means for the future of research

Published by skeptic

The obituaries were being written before the body was cold. Within hours of Prime Minister Andy Burnham confirming that Whitehall’s responsibilities for science and technology would be absorbed into a new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (DBIST), Sir Paul Nurse, president of the Royal Society, was on Radio 4 warning that “science isn’t a slave to business”. The trade association TechUK declared it “the wrong change at the wrong time”. You might imagine that something ancient, ineffable and essential to British science had been ripped away. In fact, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) was only born in February 2023 – a surprise late tweak to the machinery of government under Rishi Sunak’s faltering premiership. Science has never enjoyed a settled home in Whitehall. For most of the period from 1995 to 2023, it sat precisely where Burnham has put it now: inside a business super-department. Notably, the single most important protection UK science secured in that era – a ring-fenced budget through the George Osborne austerity years – was won …

Game of Thrones legend’s BBC comedy gets future confirmed

Game of Thrones legend’s BBC comedy gets future confirmed

Published by Daniella Wilson

The BBC has confirmed that it has cancelled comedy series The Power of Parker after two seasons, with no plans for a third despite season 2 ending on a big cliffhanger. News of the show’s cancellation was first reported by The Sun, with a source telling the publication: “Losing any series will feel like a crime for its fans. But for the two million who watched The Power Of Parker, its axe with so many loose ends is a major felony. “The ratings just didn’t deliver enough bang for buck and it was decided the series would be chopped to make way for new formats.” A spokesperson for the BBC confirmed in a statement to: “There are no plans for a third series of The Power of Parker. We’d like to thank Paul Coleman, Sian Gibson and the team at Boffola Pictures for bringing the show to our screens.” Diane Parker (Rosie Cavaliero), Martin Parker (Conleth Hill) and Kath (Sian Gibson) in The Power of Parker BBC/Boffola Pictures/Lookout Point/Jack Barnes The Power of Parker first debuted …

Advancing multicore fiber technologies for future applications

Advancing multicore fiber technologies for future applications

Published by skeptic

The MATCH project is a European doctoral training network advancing multicore fiber technologies through collaboration between 14 academic and industrial partners. As artificial intelligence, cloud computing, video streaming, 5G networks, and the Internet of Things continue to accelerate digital transformation, global data traffic is growing at an unprecedented rate. To support this growth, future communication infrastructures must provide significantly greater transmission capacity while reducing energy consumption and optimising network resources. One of the most promising solutions is multicore fiber (MCF) technology. By integrating multiple optical cores within a single fiber, MCFs enable parallel transmission channels that can dramatically increase communication capacity while maintaining compatibility with existing optical network infrastructures. In addition to telecommunications, MCFs are opening new possibilities in distributed sensing applications, including environmental monitoring, fire detection, seismic activity monitoring, and structural health assessment. Technology for the next generation of networks Conventional single-mode fibers have enabled decades of growth in global communications. However, with traffic volumes continuing to increase, entirely new approaches are needed to scale network capacity in a sustainable manner. Space-Division Multiplexing (SDM) …

Solar sailing towards a sustainable future in Earth orbit

Solar sailing towards a sustainable future in Earth orbit

Published by skeptic

Harnessing sunlight to tackle space debris: A new paradigm for sustainable, multi-target orbital cleanup missions ‘There’s a problem brewing overhead.’ Few phrases capture the urgency of the space debris issue as effectively as this statement from the European Space Agency.  Earth orbit, once an expansive and relatively empty domain, has become increasingly congested over the past decades. Today, more than 40,000 tracked objects larger than ten centimetres share orbital space with operational satellites, accompanied by hundreds of thousands of smaller fragments. These objects travel at orbital velocities of around 7 km/s, roughly 25,000 km/h, meaning that even a tiny fragment can cause catastrophic damage upon impact. The consequences are already visible. Active satellites, including the International Space Station, must periodically perform avoidance manoeuvres to reduce the risk of collisions. Yet the growing density of debris introduces a far greater concern: the possibility of a cascading series of collisions, known as the Kessler Syndrome. If left unchecked, such a cascade could severely limit access to key orbital regions that modern society increasingly depends on, from GPS-based …

What Trump’s Speech Could Mean For Future Elections

What Trump’s Speech Could Mean For Future Elections

Published by Daniella Wilson

President Trump’s obsession with alleged election corruption featured heavily in his latest speech to the nation. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the president’s remarks, and more. During his address, Trump claimed that American elections are in danger of being influenced by forces abroad—but the president has yet to produce any evidence supporting this, Anne Applebaum, a staff writer at The Atlantic, said last night. What’s more, the United States has a “series of institutions that have been created going back decades, actually, that are designed to prevent foreign interference and other interference,” she continued. But “the Trump administration has pretty systematically dismantled them.” Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Applebaum; Laura Barrón-López, a White House correspondent for MS NOW; Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Carl Hulse, a chief Washington correspondent at The New York Times. Watch the full episode here. Source link

David Attenborough’s plea for future – ‘what happens next is up to us’

David Attenborough’s plea for future – ‘what happens next is up to us’

Published by Sam Flores

Sir David Attenborough issued a poignant plea to save Earth’s future (stock image) (Image: Getty) David Attenborough issued a heartfelt plea encouraging people to “make the right choices” to ensure “a rich, thriving, sustainable future” here on Earth. It’s no secret we’re living in unprecedented times, with record-breaking heatwaves battering the planet and bringing about extreme weather changes and far-reaching consequences for all species. Mike Kendon, Met Office climate information scientist, surmised: “What we used to think of as extreme, we increasingly consider as normal.” Similarly, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said: “The State of the Global Climate is in a state of emergency. Planet Earth is being pushed beyond its limits. Every key climate indicator is flashing red. “Humanity has just endured the eleven hottest years on record. When history repeats itself eleven times, it is no longer a coincidence. It is a call to act.” These words of warning call back to comments Sir David Attenborough made in 2020. The acclaimed natural historian and broadcaster, with arguably one of the most instantly recognisable …

Apple Car Key Support Coming to Future GWM Tank SUVs

Apple Car Key Support Coming to Future GWM Tank SUVs

Published by skeptic

Apple’s Car Keys feature appears to be coming to TANK vehicles made by Chinese maker Great Wall Motor (GWM), based on code changes discovered by MacRumors in Apple’s Wallet app backend. GWM Tank is a dedicated off-road luxury SUV brand produced by the Chinese automaker. Car Keys allows an iPhone or Apple Watch with NFC capabilities to unlock a vehicle through the Wallet app. A digital version of a car key is stored in Wallet, and unlocking can be done simply by holding an Apple Watch or ‌iPhone‌ near a compatible vehicle’s NFC reader. What can be done with Car Keys may vary by car manufacturer, but at a minimum, Car Keys can be used to unlock your car, lock your car, and start your car, which are the features available with a physical key. Apple introduced Car Keys in 2022, and car manufacturers like BMW, Rivian, Kia, and Hyundai have all implemented support for Car Keys. Apple maintains a full list of vehicles that support Car Keys on its CarPlay model availability webpage. Popular …

What does Sadiq Khan’s peerage mean for his future as London Mayor?

What does Sadiq Khan’s peerage mean for his future as London Mayor?

Published by Sam Flores

There is no rule preventing Sir Sadiq from sitting in the House of Lords and remaining in the job he has held for a decade. Ben Houchen, who has been the Tory mayor of Tees Valley since 2017, has sat in the second chamber for three years. Conservative London Assembly member Shaun Bailey, who ran as mayor in 2021, is also a peer. In a fiery City Hall exchange with Lord Bailey in 2022, Sir Sadiq described it as “proof, if it was ever needed, that we should abolish the House of Lords”. Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan with his wife Saadiya Ahmad in the royal box at Wimbledon PA Will Sadiq Khan run as London Mayor again? Sir Sadiq’s team has indicted that he will stay on as mayor until at least his third term ends in 2028. Sir Sadiq has described his current job as “the best job, not just in politics but in the world”. However, it has come with some personal costs. Threats to his safety mean that since 2017 …

Democrats face test over future of party in Michigan Senate primary

Democrats face test over future of party in Michigan Senate primary

Published by Sam Flores

Democrats increasingly see Michigan’s Senate race as the first major test in the party’s fight over its identity as it looks beyond the midterms to the presidential race in 2028.  The primary battle between Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) and Abdul El-Sayed (D), who is backed by progressives including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), is already drawing warnings… Source link