All posts tagged: programme

BBC ends “iconic” sports programme after five decades – and reveals why

BBC ends “iconic” sports programme after five decades – and reveals why

Published by Daniella Wilson

BBC has called time on “iconic” winter sports show Ski Sunday after nearly 50 years on our screens. The much-loved programme has brought all the biggest snow sports stories and athletes into British homes since its debut in 1978. Ski Sunday has been a central part of UK winter sports coverage over the past five decades and, alongside its unmistakable theme tune, included a combination of event highlights, interviews and features. However, the broadcaster announced in a statement on Tuesday afternoon that “following careful consideration, BBC Sport has decided to say farewell to Ski Sunday, ending a remarkable run over nearly five decades”. In explaining the decision, BBC Sport pointed toward “changing audience behaviours and the tough financial decisions needed to meet savings requirements” as the need to ensure it “delivers value for licence fee payers and serves audiences across platforms”. The statement also paid tribute to “the extraordinary people who have worked on the programme throughout its history, both on screen and behind the scenes”. Ski Sunday presenter Graham Bell at the 2014 Winter …

SRC SPARC programme to accelerate semiconductor technologies

SRC SPARC programme to accelerate semiconductor technologies

Published by skeptic

The Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) has launched the Semiconductor and Packaging Advanced Research Consortium (SPARC), an industry-led programme intended to speed up research into semiconductor technologies needed for the next generation of microelectronics. The initiative brings together SRC member companies and leading universities to tackle emerging technical challenges across semiconductor design, manufacturing, and advanced packaging. SPARC has already established its first research portfolio, with an industry-funded research council selecting 21 collaborative projects backed by more than $13m in funding. The projects cover areas including advanced transistor architectures, heterogeneous integration, analogue and mixed-signal systems, and manufacturing technologies, creating a research programme spanning much of the semiconductor innovation chain. The programme has also attracted strong interest from academia. Its first research solicitation received nearly 500 concept papers from researchers at 121 universities. The selected projects will focus on three priority areas: Analogue & Mixed-Signal Technologies, Advanced Packaging, and Manufacturing & Devices, with new projects expected to begin on 1 January 2027. Speaking on SPARC, David Henshall, SRC Senior Vice President, said: “SPARC reflects the evolution of how …

Syria opens Assad-era nuclear programme to UN probe | Nuclear Energy News

Syria opens Assad-era nuclear programme to UN probe | Nuclear Energy News

Published by Sam Flores

UN watchdog reports that it found large amounts of material at undisclosed sites in Syria. Published On 18 Aug 202618 Aug 2026 Syria has opened the way for the United Nations to probe the remains of a nuclear programme operated by ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. Syria’s government said on Tuesday that it was working with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as the UN watchdog reported it had found several tonnes of nuclear material at a site in Damascus. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Syria had reported the site to the IAEA last month. The material found was not dangerous and will remain in Syrian custody, subject to guarantees, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said. Since the fall of the Assad regime in late 2024, Syria’s authorities have committed to working with the IAEA to address the legacy of nuclear activities carried out during the decades of Assad family rule. The IAEA inspectors visited two sites, one in Deir ez-Zur and “a second location related to the nuclear material identified by Syria recently”, …

‘We stopped paying’: Readers slam BBC licence fee after latest round of programme cuts

‘We stopped paying’: Readers slam BBC licence fee after latest round of programme cuts

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Readers of The Independent are unconvinced by the BBC’s latest round of programme cuts, which saw Live at the Apollo axed after 22 years on air, alongside Blankety Blank and Celebrity Mastermind. The cull is part of new director-general Matt Brittin’s plan to strip £100m from the corporation’s content budget ahead of next year’s charter renewal – a process that has also seen the BBC trying to close the gap between the 94 per cent of adults who use its services and the 80 per cent who actually pay the licence fee. Many commenters were unconvinced. Some say they’ve already stopped watching and paying, switching to Netflix or Amazon Prime instead. Others found something to defend: several backed the BBC’s shift away from mainstream programming towards niche and highbrow content, while some argued the real problem is a handful of overpaid …

Applications open for EUMaster4HPC programme in high-performance computing

Applications open for EUMaster4HPC programme in high-performance computing

Published by skeptic

The EUMaster4HPC programme has entered a new phase, with the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) launching the next stage of its pan-European Master of Science (MSc) initiative dedicated to high-performance computing (HPC). Backed by almost €10m in funding over six years, the programme aims to equip several hundred students with the advanced technical skills needed to support Europe’s growing demand for HPC specialists. The initiative also expands its focus to include artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing, reflecting the evolving needs of industry and research. Applications for the next intake are now open until 15 August 2026, offering graduates the opportunity to study across multiple European countries while gaining practical experience at leading supercomputing centres and industrial organisations. Building Europe’s HPC workforce The EUMaster4HPC programme is the first Master’s degree designed specifically to deliver a coordinated, pan-European education in high-performance computing. Supported by EuroHPC JU, it brings together universities, research institutions, supercomputing centres and industry partners to develop the next generation of specialists capable of supporting Europe’s digital transformation. As HPC becomes increasingly important for …

Training next-generation innovators at the Maastricht Science Programme

Training next-generation innovators at the Maastricht Science Programme

Published by skeptic

The most pressing scientific and societal challenges of this century rarely stay inside the boundaries of a single discipline. At Maastricht University, the Maastricht Science Programme trains future innovators who can move fluidly across fields rather than retreating into one Ask a roomful of scientists what the defining problems of the next decade will look like, and a pattern soon emerges: very few of them sit neatly inside one discipline. Climate change is simultaneously a problem of chemistry, physics, economics, and human behaviour. Emerging infectious disease moves at the intersection of biology, data science and public policy. Personalised medicine depends as much on computation as on cell biology, and artificial intelligence (AI) is now reshaping how almost all of the above are studied in the first place. Modern science, in other words, rarely advances within the limits of a single field. The Maastricht Science Programme (MSP) at Maastricht University has built its educational philosophy around a simple premise: the researchers capable of solving tomorrow’s problems will need to think comfortably across disciplinary boundaries, integrating ideas, …

Singapore rolls out initiatives, including orientation programme, to better integrate new foreign professionals

Singapore rolls out initiatives, including orientation programme, to better integrate new foreign professionals

Published by Sam Flores

“Through a series of engagements with diverse participants, the AfA-IFP gathered insights on how the integration of foreign professionals could be strengthened,” said MCCY, SBF and SNEF.  “Participants represented a broad range of organisations and professionals across different firm sizes, seniority levels, roles and backgrounds, ensuring that the initiatives were informed by diverse workplace experiences and perspectives.” During the engagements, employers acknowledged the importance of fostering inclusive workplace practices but noted varying levels of readiness and capability to do so. The TACs also saw opportunities to better support member firms, especially smaller ones. Local employees highlighted the importance of respecting and adapting to local customs and social norms, while foreign professionals welcomed early practical support to help them better integrate with their colleagues and the local community. “AfA-IFP members recognised that while some firms implemented inclusive workplace practices, there was a need to scale and systematise them across the entire corporate landscape,” said MCCY, SBF and SNEF. As of June, more than 50 firms have taken part in the AfA-IFP pilot initiatives, with involvement from …

Who is eligible for the MenB vaccine? New one-off programme to protect vulnerable to be rolled out

Who is eligible for the MenB vaccine? New one-off programme to protect vulnerable to be rolled out

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the Well Enough newsletter with Harry Bullmore for tips on living a healthier, happier and longer life Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Around one million people who are at “highest risk” of meningitis B are to be offered a vaccine. Year 13 pupils and those under 25 embarking on university or residential further education this autumn will be offered a meningitis B (MenB) vaccine, the government has announced. The initiative follows a series of outbreaks, most notably a cluster in Kent earlier this year that tragically claimed the lives of two teenagers. The one-off programme will provide two doses of the vaccine to eligible individuals. Young people aged 17 to 18 in Year 13, along with those under 25 starting university or other residential further education this autumn, will be targeted. The first dose will be available from 20 July, with the second administered in August. Full protection requires two doses, given at least 28 days apart. Here are your questions answered about …

Cuts to US ocean programme will hinder monitoring of El Niño and AMOC

Cuts to US ocean programme will hinder monitoring of El Niño and AMOC

Published by skeptic

One of the Ocean Observatories Initiative’s mooring spheres being lifted out of the sea Rebecca Travis / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution In the winter of 2013-2014, the strong winds of the jet stream shifted north, allowing a mass of warm water dubbed “the blob” to swell across more than 1500 kilometres of the north Pacific Ocean. Floating instruments moored to the seabed off Alaska, Washington and Oregon alerted scientists and the fishing industry to the arrival of this water, which was up to 4°C hotter than normal. They were part of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI), five mooring arrays off the US west and east coasts and Greenland. Announcing $220 million in funding for the programme in 2023, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) said the OOI was needed to monitor “critical organs of the Earth”. But last month the NSF announced that these arrays would be largely removed from the water following funding cuts by the administration of US President Donald Trump. As a planet-warming El Niño climate phase warmed the water further in …