Kenya’s harsh new security laws put hundreds of thousands of refugees at risk
In response to al-Shabaab’s continued killings, Kenya has chosen to penalise hundreds of thousands of Somalis.
UK
United Kingdom
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Analysis and Comment
January poll puts Syriza in driving seat – and Greece on course for economic turmoil
Next month’s snap poll is expected to return a left-wing anti-austerity party which could have dire results for Greece’s economy.
Why Glasgow Ebola case is very unlikely to spread
It has been confirmed that a healthcare worker who has returned from Sierra Leone has contracted the Ebola virus and is being treated in a Glasgow hospital.
Egypt’s counter-revolution won out in a year of epochal change
It was a year of huge transition for Egypt. Gone was the Muslim Brotherhood, while the military regime of Abdel Fatah al-Sisi strengthened its control of the state.
AirAsia flight QZ8501: how cloud computing could help prevent air disasters
The technology exists to provide real-time and accurate weather warnings to aircraft – but it needs to be harnessed properly.
From comet chasing to gravity waves: 2014 in six science stories
’Tis the season for listicles rounding up the stories of the year. So with, the authority vested in me, here is a selection of six top, bottom and forgotten science stories of 2014.
AirAsia flight QZ8501: when tragedy strikes, grief must not be a spectator sport
The media has a role to play in keeping relatives informed, but intruding into their private grief is not appropriate.
How to get teenagers to revise for exams during the holidays
High schoolers are preparing for mock exams, but how do you get them to put down the phone?
Boxing Day tsunami heralded new era of citizen journalism
The tragedy that killed hundreds of thousands in South-East Asia was largely reported via photos and video from amateurs. This is now commonplace.
The Theory of Everything is inspiring, despite a hackneyed treatment of Hawking’s work
The film makes Stephen Hawking’s remarkable achievements and the conditions under which he has been able to realise them very clear.
Ten years after the Boxing Day tsunami, are coasts any safer?
Witnessed one of the worst natural disasters in history, and that led to a huge change in coastal monitoring.
Scientists are deep sea drilling to learn more about earthquakes and tsunamis
Satellites and surface measurements can only tell us so much. Sometimes the answers are only found deep in the Earth’s crust.
Boxing Day tsunami: the resilience and recovery that followed
Thousands of communities around the Indian Ocean were destroyed. Studies show a strong recovery, but an economic burden lingers.
A huge fertility boom followed the Boxing Day tsunami
Death rates were highest among young children in the tsunami – so how have communities reacted since?
Boxing Day tsunami: balancing social and physical recovery
There have been many natural disasters since 2004 tsunami, but none have exceeded the tsunami in the combination of scale and scope of its destructive impacts.
Scotland and Ireland tackle homelessness in very different ways – here are the results
Housing tends to be seen as a human right, but here’s something to make you pause this winter.
Revealed: the unparalled scale of big data analysis behind Santa’s naughty or nice list
The revelations of Santa’s panopticon raises important privacy questions.
It was German soldiers who made first move in the Christmas Truce
The Christmas Truce is no stranger to popular entertainment – this year more than any other as its 100th anniversary is marked.
Election complete, Tunisia is still a ray of hope for the Middle East
While its neighbours collapsed, Tunisia came through four years of post-revolutionary upheaval with flying colours.
Exodus: the tantastic Gods and Kings epic is suspect but well worth a watch
A sword and sandals epic with high camp, a bit of tragedy and more than a touch of naff: Exodus definitely isn’t boring.
From joy to despair, Glasgow’s George Square has seen it all this year
This week’s refuse-lorry tragedy caps an incredible year for Scotland’s largest city.
Is religion a force for good?
George Washington said it was impossible to be moral without religion but for others believers have no special claim on good behaviour.
China’s digital protesters aren’t confined to Hong Kong
As the liberal West mourns the failure of Hong Kong’s umbrella movement, it has missed the revolution underway on the Chinese mainland.
Daft Christmas jumpers alert: ironic crazes become hip more often than you’d think
While you adorn yourself in knitted nonsense this festive season, beware the lessons of fashion history…
Why happiness is not enough to replace GDP
We can move beyond GDP as a measure of our success but what’s on the table replaces one fetish with another.
Size is everything at Christmas and your oven is no exception
Why is your oven unnecessarily large 99% of the time? Blame Christmas demand peaks.
Panama Canal rival: work starts in Nicaragua amid fears over environment and role of China
Given that it threatens to dominate trans-oceanic shipping routes in the Americas, The Nicaragua Canal is amazingly low profile.
Modern management’s angelic legacy is stuck in the past
Reith Lectures: the goal of medicine should be well-being, says Atul Gawande
Twelve reasons your children should watch films at Christmas
Women raped and enslaved by warped IS code that encourages widespread sexual abuse
Ebola vaccines were always in the pipeline – now we’re starting to see the results
Five reasons why some countries are so lax at regulating smoking
Bank bailouts begin as Russia faces biggest challenge to date
Family background more important for a good graduate job in the UK than Germany
Lords a leaping: how some in the upper house jump ahead of defecting MPs
Research and News
It’s just not cricket! Only two neutral umpires can eliminate bias in favour of home team
When it comes to LBW decisions, it makes a difference where the umpires come from.
If you go down to the woods today you’re in for a big surprise – Europe’s bears are back
One third of mainland Europe now supports stable populations of large carnivores, with 17,000 brown bears and 12,000 wolves calling the continent home.
Oxbridge and London retain grip on university research prowess
The results of the Research Excellence Framework 2014 are out.
G20 leaders agree US$2 trillion growth goal: experts react
The G20 leaders have reaffirmed a commitment to raise global growth, saying if more than 800 agreed measures are “fully implemented”, GDP will grow by an additional 2.1% by 2018.
Hard Evidence
Hard Evidence: is a teacher shortage looming?
Government needs to address the undersupply of teachers in important subject areas.
Hard Evidence: meat means emissions – so which countries are doing the most damage?
Emissions are often attributed to producing countries but consuming countries also bear some of the responsibility.
Ebola
Ebola vaccines were always in the pipeline – now we’re starting to see the results
When people look back on 2014, it may be best remembered as the year of Ebola.
In Conversation with Nigel Crisp: Ebola response and lessons from African health leaders
The former chief executive of the NHS talks about the huge global health challenge.
CIA Torture Report
Blair to tell all to torture inquiry? And I believe in Santa Claus
The former prime minister says he is willing to answer questions on the treatment of terrorism suspects but let’s not get too excited.
Explainer: can people tortured by the CIA now sue the US?
The CIA’s torture victims will be lining up to take the US to court. What chance do they stand of success?
Columnists
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Because mocking the turkeys is even more fun than lauding the brilliant
Lauren Rosewarne -
Here are some of my highlights from the business of sport in 2014
Simon Chadwick -
Lisa Regan — “Have we lost the art of present giving? No, we’ve just never had it”
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Eunice Goes — “The three main parties are on red alert as newcomers shake up voter intentions”
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James Dyke — “Get into the festive spirit by not eating turkey this Christmas – give peas a chance”
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Stephen Chan — “Zimbabwe’s Saturn is eating his children – but can he digest them?”
Editors’ Picks
How we restored Harvard’s Rothko murals – without touching them
In 1989, I was a conservation student at the Courtauld Institute in London. During a class on varnish removal, my professor, Gerry Hedley, demonstrated how shining blue light on a picture with yellowed…
Not just the CIA: special forces in Iraq fought a shadow war that led to rise of IS
The controversy over the CIA torture report has moved on to calls for the UK government to be open about its own involvement. The arguments have also been widened to include other elements of CIA activities…
Priceless: the inefficient, but merry economics of Christmas
Fingers crossed, we are soon to be inundated with Christmas joy disguised as presents from our family and friends. I received my first card more than a week ago and a present – now sitting under the tree…
The tale of squirrelling away books that sparked a nutty row over children’s literature
Maurice Sendak, author of Where the Wild Things Are, was an ardent defender of children’s literature, believing the works of Beatrix Potter to be equal to “the greatest English prose writers that have…
Dog brains process human speech in the same way we do
Sometimes it may seem like your dog doesn’t want to listen. But in our study, however, we’ve found that he may understand more than he lets on. Human speech is complex, communicating not only words but…
Jim Murphy wins in Scotland … but can he save Ed Miliband?
So the bookies were right. The new leader of Labour in Scotland is indeed Jim Murphy. The challenge from Neil Findlay (less so Sarah Boyack) wasn’t enough to produce an upset. Not only is the future of…
Rubik’s Cube trademark puzzle solved by EU court
The Rubik’s Cube has confounded millions of people, including myself since discovering it in my uncle’s house as a child. And now the iconic three-dimensional puzzle has been the subject of an EU ruling…
Phillip Hughes death raises new questions over cricket helmet design
The tragic death of 25-year-old Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes after he was hit on the back of the head by a cricket ball has shocked followers of the sport around the world and raised questions about…
Lee Rigby murder was a terrible crime, but MI5 can’t win them all
MI5 has a lot of competing priorities, and limited staff. This means some acts of terror just can’t be prevented.
Ferguson has reinforced racial fear and lethal stereotypes
The citizens of Ferguson know that stereotypes can kill – and they’re fighting back.
Events
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Conflict, Co-operation and the Cameron-Clegg Government — Coventry University
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OpenMinds: The Future of Technology in Education — The Open University
How we are different
10 reasons
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