TOK: The Human Sciences
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Trump – the playground bully of politics
Do insults work? An article by legendary US journalist Carl Bernstein has revealed that Donald Trump is as rude in his talks with America’s allies as he is in tweets about his enemies.
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Virus death toll reaches 500,000 worldwide
Will we prevent a second wave? Britain is on a “knife edge”, warns a government adviser this morning. And US test sites were overwhelmed, yesterday, as global infections passed 10 million.
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Pack your bags – it’s holiday time after all!
Is a change as good as a rest? Many families everywhere are thrilled about the return of the summer holidays as lockdown restrictions are eased and “air corridors” are announced this weekend.
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Vote Klopp – the man who knows how to win
Should Jürgen Klopp be prime minister? As Liverpool move within two points of their first league title for 30 years, their manager is being hailed as an international model of leadership.
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Hibernation over! Friends reunited at last
Is friendship our most basic human need? Friends have survived three long months of separation under strict lockdown rules. Now we can meet again, will we appreciate our friendships more?
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Two images…and a crisis of masculinity
What does it mean to be masculine? Two moments frozen in time – one an epitome of humane kindness; the other an image of mindless crudity – sum up what many see as a societal catastrophe.
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‘Life has not been the same without football’
Does football do more for society than politics? The Premier League returned last night, a day after Marcus Rashford scored a triumphant victory over the government on free school meals.
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The unsolved murder that still haunts Sweden
What lies behind our fascination with true crime? It is fear? Swedish police have just called a halt to a long-running murder investigation which drove amateur sleuths to the point of madness.
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The Machine rules – you have been warned
Will we value human contact more after the lockdown? A 111-year-old story by EM Forster is proving extraordinarily prophetic about social isolation and our relationship with technology.
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Very smart – and a tool of domestic abuse
Could smart homes increase domestic abuse? As our houses get ever more full of technology to make life more convenient, the possibility of using it for abusive purposes is increasing.
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Germany reboots football behind closed doors
Could English football lose its top spot? The Bundesliga is the first European league to resume matches under strict social distancing rules – stealing the Premier League’s global audience.
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Hello – this is your long-forgotten friend
Is it time to return to the old-fashioned phone call? People trying to keep cheerful during the lockdown are rediscovering the joy of hours spent on the line to friends and relations.
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Alarm as UK death toll hits highest in Europe
Should we trust the government less? A lockdown scientist has quit after breaking the rules with his married lover. The chief scientific officer admits mistakes. The health secretary snaps.
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Tell us your secrets – it’s for your own good
Is loss of privacy a price worth paying? An app designed to trace the spread of Covid-19 launches, today, on the Isle of Wight. But will it make our personal details too easily available?
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US military confirms UFOs are known unknowns
Should we embrace the unknown? After years of secrecy, the US government has released astonishing videos of UFOs, admitting it still doesn’t know if Earth has been visited by aliens.