Ashis Basu
@ashis.bsky.social
đ€ 886
đ„ 1730
đ 1279
Knowledge is Power. Share it.
pinned post!
Smoke and Ashes: Opiumâs Hidden Histories by
@amitav.bsky.social
a stellar review by
@rentravailer.bsky.social
âGhosh pays attention to the role that writers have played in our collective inheritance of the histories in Smoke and Ashes.â
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
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Nandini Das · Dark Propensities: Opium Inc.
Despite European and British efforts to emphasise the âtraditionalâ use of opium in both India and China, neither...
https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v47/n05/nandini-das/dark-propensities
8 months ago
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âThe discovery of the structure of DNA in the early 1950s is one of the most riveting dramas in the history of science, crammed with brilliant research, naked ambition, intense rivalry and outright deception.â
@carlzimmer.com
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/s...
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The DNA Helix Changed How We Thought About Ourselves
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/science/watson-dna-humanity.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
about 11 hours ago
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After Claudia Sheinbaum was assaulted this week, her opponents claimed she staged it. From their own experiences, the women I met know she didnât have to.
@monaeltahawy.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
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The president is groped in broad daylight, and Mexican women cry: MeToo, MeToo, MeToo | Mona Eltahawy
After Claudia Sheinbaum was assaulted this week, her opponents claimed she staged it. From their own experiences, the women I met know she didnât have to, says author Mona Eltahawy
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/08/mexico-president-assault-women-claudia-sheinbaum?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
about 20 hours ago
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Money talks â and his essay denouncing ânear-term emissions goalsâ at Cop30 mostly argues the case for letting the ultra-rich off the hook
@georgemonbiot.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
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I wish we could ignore Bill Gates on the climate crisis. But heâs a billionaire, so we canât | George Monbiot
Money talks â and his essay denouncing ânear-term emissions goalsâ at Cop30 mostly argues the case for letting the ultra-rich off the hook
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/08/bill-gates-climate-crisis-billionaire-essay-cop30?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
1 day ago
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Aparna Nair
2 days ago
1.This is not the only known example we know of ChatGPT cheering on a vulnerable young person to die by suicide, this time it is a recent Texas A&M grad 2. Every single university that has invited OpenAI into our midst should be asked to account for their choices.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/06/u...
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Exclusive: Research shows oil, gas and coal firmsâ unprecedented access to Cop26-29, blocking urgent climate action
@ninalakhani.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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How thousands of fossil fuel lobbyists got access to UN climate talks â and then kept drilling
Exclusive: Research shows oil, gas and coal firmsâ unprecedented access to Cop26-29, blocking urgent climate action
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/07/fossil-fuel-lobbyists-cop-un-climate?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
2 days ago
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Ashis Basu
The Guardian
2 days ago
Net zero is an insidious loophole that distracts from the scientific imperative to eliminate fossil fuels | Joëlle Gergis
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Net zero is an insidious loophole that distracts from the scientific imperative to eliminate fossil fuels | Joëlle Gergis
History tells us that polite incrementalism and political kowtowing will prevail at Cop30 â even as catastrophe unfolds around us
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/07/net-zero-distracts-from-scientific-imperative-to-eliminate-fossil-fuels-cop30?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=bsky_gu&utm_medium=&utm_source=Bluesky#Echobox=1762475064
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Ashis Basu
The Guardian
2 days ago
Single mothers in China find a new kind of partner â other single mothers
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Single mothers in China find a new kind of partner â other single mothers
Posts from women seeking like-minded parents to share a home and child-rearing responsibilities are appearing on social media
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/07/single-mothers-in-china-find-a-new-kind-of-partner-other-single-mothers?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=bsky_gu&utm_medium=&utm_source=Bluesky#Echobox=1762476057
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Critics of New York Cityâs mayor-elect have said his pledges of free bus service and universal childcare are unrealistic, but in Europe itâs a given
@ashifakassam.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
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Europeans recognize Zohran Mamdaniâs supposedly radical policies as ânormalâ
Critics of New York Cityâs mayor-elect have said his pledges of free bus service and universal childcare are unrealistic, but in Europe itâs a given
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/06/europe-zohran-mamdani-policies-normal?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
2 days ago
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Tesla shareholders approved a $1tn compensation plan for CEO Elon Musk on Thursday, awarding the worldâs richest man what would be the largest corporate payout in history if he meets the goals necessary to receive it.
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
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Tesla shareholders approve $1tn pay package for Elon Musk
Chants of âElonâ erupt after compensation plan approved despite opposition from several high-profile investors
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/nov/06/tesla-1tn-pay-package-elon-musk?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
3 days ago
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Ian Austen
4 days ago
I spent just over a week following Canada's prime minister around parts of Asia. I found exactly one pay phone -- and it's kind of a cheat at that. That photo has yet to be developed. But I did find this call box in the former city centre of Kuala Lumpur. (Leica M Monochrom, 50mm f1.2 Noctilux ASPH)
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Ian Austen
4 days ago
First Baptist Church in Chatham, Ontario. In 1858, the American abolitionist John Brown came here to plan a guerrilla war against slavery in the U.S. and to recruit people to his cause. Their unsuccessful attempt to seize an armory led to Brown's hanging. (Leica M Monochrom, 35mm f1.4 SummiluxASPH)
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Andrew Jacobs (he/him)
3 days ago
I know I don't have the Will to Power gene or whatever, but I will never understand *willingly* working until you are 87! I love my job but I would retire now if I had Pelosi Money!
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Elizabeth Kolbert
8 days ago
This:
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Ashis Basu
Elizabeth Kolbert
4 days ago
Thanks to
@jackiefmogensen.bsky.social
and
@motherjones.com
for a fun interview!
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How to make people want to read about climate change
Pulitzer winner Elizabeth Kolbert's new book is a master class in writing about the natural world.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/11/elizabeth-kolbert-interview-climate-change-book/
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Moustafa Bayoumi
4 days ago
My take: Zohran Mamdani refused to compromise on his values â and was rewarded for it!
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
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Mamdani refused to compromise on his values â and was rewarded for it | Moustafa Bayoumi
His win is a huge victory for all New Yorkers, but it is also meaningful far beyond the five boroughs of this city
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/05/zohran-mamdani-values-new-york-city-mayor
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âThe real reason Mamdani has won is that he is the candidate who best understood what the people of New York want and need at this moment.â
@moustafabayoumi.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
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Mamdani refused to compromise on his values â and was rewarded for it | Moustafa Bayoumi
His win is a huge victory for all New Yorkers, but it is also meaningful far beyond the five boroughs of this city
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/05/zohran-mamdani-values-new-york-city-mayor?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
3 days ago
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Results from the 14-year-long study showed cognitive decline was delayed by an average of three years in people who walked 3,000 to 5,000 steps a day, and by seven years in those who managed 5,000 to 7,000 steps daily.
@iansample.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
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Walking 3,000 or more steps a day may slow progression of Alzheimerâs, study says
Scientists find even modest amounts of exercise appear to delay brain changes and cognitive decline in patients
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/nov/03/walking-3000-steps-day-may-slow-progression-alzheimers?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
6 days ago
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Ashis Basu
The Guardian
7 days ago
NHS hospitals to test AI tool that helps diagnose and treat prostate cancer
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NHS hospitals to test AI tool that helps diagnose and treat prostate cancer
Three-year study will test biopsy analysis tool shown in trials to identify men likely to benefit from certain drugs A tool that uses artificial intelligence to help diagnose men with prostate cancer and guide decisions about treatment is to be tested in NHS hospitals, researchers have announced. The ÂŁ1.9m Vanguard Path study, funded by Prostate Cancer UK and led by researchers at the University of Oxford, is expected to last three years and will test an AI tool called the ArteraAI Prostate Biopsy Assay. In total, biopsies from more than 4,000 men will be used. Continue reading...
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/nov/03/nhs-hospitals-to-test-ai-tool-that-helps-diagnose-and-treat-prostate-cancer?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=bluesky&CMP=bsky_gu
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We absolutely have to expedite the process by which we build new housing,â he told me. âBut we canât do that unless we also address peopleâs immediate needs.â
@zohrankmamdani.bsky.social
to Roge Karma
www.theatlantic.com/economy/arch...
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Mamdani Has a Point About Rent Control
In an interview, the candidate argued that the policy is essential to get voters on board with pro-housing reforms.
https://www.theatlantic.com/economy/archive/2025/11/mamdani-housing-rent-control/684790/?gift=apxH5R6bxFb7BY7F-EpWnJ58CQcRJoHYYXXcFBHaPVM
6 days ago
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The Guardian
9 days ago
âWe must protect and we must understandâ: using shipwrecks to rebuild fishing populations
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âWe must protect and we must understandâ: using shipwrecks to rebuild fishing populations
Research by marine scientists in Thailand is revealing how shipwrecks can benefit the undersea environment
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/31/we-must-protect-and-we-must-understand-using-shipwrecks-to-rebuild-fishing-populations?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=bsky_gu&utm_medium=&utm_source=Bluesky#Echobox=1761912705
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The Guardian
9 days ago
Yotam Ottolenghi on the evolution of London restaurants
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Yotam Ottolenghi on the evolution of London restaurants
As soaring costs threaten his industry, the chef looks at how his favourite restaurateurs are innovating â plus two recipes inspired by Londonâs culinary scene
https://www.theguardian.com/food/2025/oct/31/more-alive-and-creative-than-ever-yotam-ottolenghi-on-londons-restaurant-scene?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=bsky_gu&utm_medium=&utm_source=Bluesky#Echobox=1761910184
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At 86, sheâs a literary seer and saint â and queen of the Canadian resistance. So what does the writer make of our dystopian world? An interview with
@margaretatwood.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/books/2025/n...
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âIt is the scariest of timesâ: Margaret Atwood on defying Trump, banned books â and her score-settling memoir
At 86, sheâs a literary seer and saint â and queen of the Canadian resistance. So what does the writer make of our dystopian world?
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/nov/01/margaret-atwood-interview-handmaids-tale-author-new-memoir?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
8 days ago
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A Somali Hospital Closed After U.S. Aid Cuts. âAfter the Trump administration stopped funding a medical center for women and children, a determined group of health care workers refused to let it shutter.â
@stephanienolen.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/17/h...
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A Somali Hospital Closed After U.S. Aid Cuts. Fired Employees Reopened It Without Pay.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/17/health/somalia-hospital-reopen-employees.html?unlocked_article_code=1.x08.mXS2.OCx8QMzQMByy&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
9 days ago
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Oliver Milman
17 days ago
Mosquitoes found in a warming Iceland for the first time
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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Mosquitoes found in Iceland for first time as climate crisis warms country
Three specimens discovered in what was previously one of the few places in the world without the insects
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/21/mosquitoes-found-iceland-first-time-climate-crisis-warms-country
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Ashis Basu
Oliver Milman
13 days ago
The two key coral species that form the Florida reef are now functionally extinct due to extreme ocean heat, scientists say
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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Two crucial Florida coral species left âfunctionally extinctâ by ocean heatwave
Climate crisis drives near-total collapse of staghorn and elkhorn corals that formed backbone to stateâs reefs
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/27/coral-florida-functionally-extinct-climate-crisis
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Oliver Milman
9 days ago
I spoke to Harrison Ford about the climate crisis and he said - - Trump's axing of climate policies âscares the shit out of meâ - of Trump: "I donât know of a greater criminal in historyâ - that the world is "teetering on the edge" due to the loss of nature
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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Harrison Ford says Trumpâs assault on climate policy âscares the shit out of meâ
Indiana Jones star calls US president one of historyâs greatest criminals for attacks on science and boosting of fossil fuels
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/31/harrison-ford-donald-trump-climate-crisis
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Oliver Milman
9 days ago
The US will have no high-level representatives at UN climate talks in Brazil next month, White House confirms
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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No high-level US representatives will go to UN climate talks, Trump officials say
Decision to stay away from Cop30 meeting in Brazil underscores administrationâs hostility to climate action
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/31/cop30-climate-us-officials
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Michael E. Mann
9 days ago
And right on cue, the Murdoch media has joined forces with none other than disinformation artist Bjorn Lomborg himself to promote:
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Modern life is waging a war against ecosystems around us and inside us. Keeping our own microbes healthy is another reason to demand action to preserve the natural world
@phoebeweston.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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The nature extinction crisis is mirrored by one in our own bodies. Both have huge implications for health
Modern life is waging a war against ecosystems around us and inside us. Keeping our own microbes healthy is another reason to demand action to preserve the natural world
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/31/nature-extinction-crisis-mirrored-in-our-bodies-huge-health-implications-aoe?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
9 days ago
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Carl Quintanilla
9 days ago
â.. ticket sales for the Kennedy Centerâs three largest performance venues are the worst theyâve been in years, according to a Washington Post analysis .. â.. Tens of thousands of seats have been left empty.â
@washingtonpost.com
@simsjames.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/entertainmen...
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The New Yorker
13 days ago
People often ask historians whether Donald Trumpâs nonsensical, unhinged, and cruel way of speaking to Americans has any precedent. But if U.S. history is a map, âwe are off the grid, over a cliff, lost at sea without a compass,â Jill Lepore writes.
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Trump and the Presidency That Wouldnât Shut Up
His posts and rants are omnipresent, ugly, and unhinged. Donât look to history to make it make sense.
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/11/03/how-the-president-talks-to-the-people?utm_medium=social&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=bluesky&mbid=social_bluesky&utm_brand=tny
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Adrienne LaFrance
10 days ago
And actually astonishing when you think about it: The Trump administration's top officials are choosing to separate themselves from the publicâmore to the point: separate themselves from any visible protestâand live on military bases. Gift link here:
www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...
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Top Trump Officials Are Moving Onto Military Bases
Stephen Miller, Marco Rubio, Kristi Noem, and others have taken over homes that until recently housed senior officers.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/10/trump-officials-military-housing-stephen-miller/684748/?gift=1ga2TvL-DbuHDQIcYF7oR6IRKlFiVQjpKpNmoQZhUgw&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share
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Looking forward to reading
@elizkolbert.bsky.social
âs latest book, itâs launching in Canada on November 4, 2025
11 days ago
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Sally Jenkins
11 days ago
The turbulence was so great the hurricane hunter had to turn back.
www.theatlantic.com/science/2025...
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Hurricane Melissaâs Dangerous Double Play
The monster storm is crawling across the Caribbean.
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/2025/10/hurricane-melissa-atlantic-landfall-jamaica/684720/?gift=Klof0Wgy0RTUKQp48ZrIq0j8JTpwOyzXhQDI1RY-W94
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Superb cover! Looking forward to reading your book Elizabeth.
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11 days ago
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Elizabeth Kolbert
11 days ago
Lovely to receive the first copies of my new book, "Life on a Little-Known Planet." Thanks to
www.evangaffneydesign.com
for the great cover design.
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Dr Sally Witcher
11 days ago
WHO's advice needs to change. Excellent
@thewhn.bsky.social
letter. Please sign & share by 31 October (anyone can sign)
@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social
@chrischirp.bsky.social
@martinmckee.bsky.social
@kityates.bsky.social
@tryangregory.bsky.social
@njbbari3.bsky.social
@drjoepajak.bsky.social
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Ashis Basu
The Guardian
11 days ago
EU carmakers âdays awayâ from factories halting work in chip war with China
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EU carmakers âdays awayâ from factories halting work in chip war with China
Industry body says reserves of Nexperia semiconductors are dwindling after Beijing bans exports of key components Carmakers in the EU are âdays awayâ from closing production lines, the industry has warned as a crisis over computer chip supplies from China escalates. The European Automobile Manufacturersâ Association (ACEA) issued an urgent warning on Wednesday saying its members, which include Volkswagen, Fiat, Peugeot and BMW, were now working on âreserve stocks but supplies are dwindlingâ. Continue reading...
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/oct/29/europe-carmakers-china-computer-chip?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=bluesky&CMP=bsky_gu
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Ashis Basu
The Guardian
11 days ago
Can bowhead whales with their 200-year lifespan help us to slow ageing?
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Can bowhead whales with their 200-year lifespan help us to slow ageing?
Researchers find Earthâs longest-living mammal is particularly good at fixing faulty DNA â and cold water may help
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/oct/29/can-bowhead-whales-with-their-200-year-lifespan-help-us-to-slow-ageing?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=bsky_gu&utm_medium=&utm_source=Bluesky#Echobox=1761755049
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Nina Lakhani
12 days ago
He is tech billionaire and major landowner... not a vaccines expert or a climate scientist
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
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Bill Gates says climate crisis wonât cause âhumanityâs demiseâ in call to shift focus to âimproving livesâ
Billionaireâs statement comes a day after UN said humanity missed 1.5C climate target and warned of devastation
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/oct/28/bill-gates-climate-crisis-pivot
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Nina Lakhani
12 days ago
Climate emergency: Rising heat kills one person every minute worldwide, major study reveals via
@dpcarrington.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/29/rising-heat-kills-one-person-a-minute-worldwide-lancet-countdown?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
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James Murray
12 days ago
This is just mind-bendingly wrong-headed. âLetâs just adapt, tech will save usâ has always been a reckless strategy, but as evidence mounts that natural carbon sinks are failing it really does start to sink into a form of climate denialism.
www.newsweek.com/bill-gates-d...
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Bill Gates Delivers âTough Truthsâ on Climate Just Before Big U.N. Talks
Bill Gates argues against focusing on emissions goals in favor of measures of human development.
https://www.newsweek.com/bill-gates-delivers-tough-truths-on-climate-before-u-n-talks-10951942
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What could be better than meeting
@margaretatwood.bsky.social
in person? From the twinkle in her eyes, to her ready wit, and excellence as one of the finest writers of the world, and, a Canadian! Kudos to her for founding @PENCanada along with her co-founders.
11 days ago
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Albert Pinto
11 days ago
"If not aunt, why aunt shaped" -
@whaler.bsky.social
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It was a great pleasure listening to
@rebeccasolnit.bsky.social
and
@maddow.msnbc.com
in conversation with
@nahlahayed.bsky.social
at the Korner Hall in Toronto. For those who havenât read books by Rebecca or Rachel grab a copyâŠ
11 days ago
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Bill McKibben
13 days ago
Hurricane Melissa continues to set records, with the lowest barometric pressure ever observed this late in the season in the Atlantic, 906 millibars. The picture below is of its fearsome eye
yaleclimateconnections.org/2025/10/jama...
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Jamaica braces for Cat 5 Hurricane Melissa, Earth's strongest storm of 2025 » Yale Climate Connections
A remarkable three of the Atlantic's five hurricanes this year have hit Cat 5.
https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2025/10/jamaica-braces-for-cat-5-hurricane-melissa-earths-strongest-storm-of-2025/
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Michael E. Mann
12 days ago
Bill Gates sure picked an interesting day to downplay the threat of climate change
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The weight-loss drug semaglutide cuts the risk of heart attack or stroke regardless of how many kilograms people lose, the largest study of its kind has found.
@andrewgregory.com
www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
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Weight-loss drug cuts heart attack risk regardless of kilograms shed, study finds
Semaglutide study suggests such drugs could have wider benefits, though researchers find shrinking waistlines linked to better heart outcomes
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/oct/22/weight-loss-drug-cuts-heart-attack-risk-no-matter-how-many-kgs-are-shed-study-finds?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
12 days ago
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David Corn
15 days ago
NEW. In my OUR LAND newsletter, I report on how Bari Weiss, CBS News, Paramount Skydance, and artificial intelligence make for a very troubling mix. Give it a read and tell me what you think.
link.motherjones.com/public/42172...
Sign up for a FREE trial subscription to OUR LAND at
davidcorn.com
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