Learner profile: Thinkers
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Close-up reveals tiny ‘campfires’ on the Sun
How do we know the Sun will rise tomorrow? Thanks to stunning new satellite images, we know more about the Sun than ever. But we are still no closer to solving the deepest problem of all.
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World’s most powerful Twitter accounts hacked
Should Twitter be run by the United Nations? An astonishing security breach has exposed the private company’s vulnerabilities – as well as its enormously influential role in public life.
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Experts predict ‘jaw-dropping’ fertility crash
Is this a good thing? Scientists say we have greatly overestimated population growth. While environmentalists might be happy, a lack of young people could also lead to terrible consequences.
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Silence, the world’s most precious commodity
Should we have a right to quiet? An ingenious invention promises to protect us from unwanted noise, returning us to a state of calm which has been prized by thinkers across the centuries.
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China crisis as Huawei ban provokes Xi Jinping
Is it too late for the West to resist China? The UK’s decision, yesterday, to ban Huawei from its 5G network has dramatically upped the stakes in a battle of economics and ideology.
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Earth to invade Mars with a summer of rockets
Are we all Martians? Three spacecraft will soon begin a hazardous journey to the red planet in search of life. Some dream of colonising Mars – but the Martians may already have colonised us.
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Super-rich call for more taxes on themselves
Is tax the best way to share wealth? Eighty-three of the world’s richest people have written an astonishing letter to governments asking for more of their money to be taken away from them.
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Mystery elephant deaths spark new virus fears
Is a new pandemic starting in Botswana? Hundreds of elephants have dropped dead in southern Africa, baffling environmentalists. Scientists now fear a lethal disease could be the cause.
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Scientists baffled as monster star vanishes
Are you literally a star? It is a fact that humans are made of stardust. Nearly all the elements in our bodies were made in a star – and will eventually be returned to a “cosmic ash heap”.
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Cancel culture letter sparks fierce backlash
Is “cancel culture” destroying argument? A letter signed by 150 public figures in defence of freedom of thought has launched a debate about intolerance, privilege, and the right to boycott.
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Sunak – a heartbeat from 10 Downing Street
Has he risen too far, too fast? This week, all eyes were on the whizz-kid chancellor. After a meteoric rise, Rishi Sunak is tipped to become Britain’s first prime minister from an ethnic...
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The 450-million-year-old crab saving humanity
Does it all come back to nature? A substance key to making a Covid-19 vaccine is only found in horseshoe crabs. But conservationists are worried declining numbers will threaten ecosystems.
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Iran nuclear base blitzed by deadly sabotage
Does Israel have the world’s best secret service? An explosion in Iran has caused major damage to the country’s nuclear programme – and few people doubt that Mossad agents were responsible.
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Modern slavery at heart of new virus outbreak
Will the world ever eliminate slavery for good? Nearly 200 years since the UK outlawed the abhorrent practice, modern-day slaves are revealed to be the source of a new coronavirus outbreak.
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‘Americans just don’t believe in science’
Are anti-science attitudes killing Americans? As the number of new virus cases in the US hits record highs, top doctor Anthony Fauci has pointed the finger at those who deny science.