Author: damazah@gmail.com

Is What Is Life? still as impactful today? A scientist is supposed to write within his field of expertise as a matter of noblesse oblige, writes Erwin Schrödinger, one of the architects of modern quantum science, in his 1944 book What Is Life?. “I beg to renounce the noblesse,” he writes next, inviting the reader into the realm of living organisms instead of the inanimate atoms that he had made a name for himself studying. For 90 or so pages, he is ready to give up his position among the greats of one science and join the rest of us…

Catalans Dragons have announced that their captain Benjamin Garcia will retire at the end of the 2026 Super League season and take up the role of sporting director at the club.Garcia has been with the French outfit since 2013 and has played at the top level for 14 seasons. In his time with Catalans, Garcia has made 282 appearances and scored 42 tries, becoming the third-most capped player in the club’s history. Highlights in his career include winning the Challenge Cup and the League Leaders’ Shield, while helping lead the club to two Super League Grand Finals in 2021 and…

The BBC’s new director general has described the traditional TV licence model as “a busted flush” and “no longer fit for purpose”.In his first major public appearance since taking over the BBC six weeks ago, former Google executive Matt Brittin told MPs that the licence fee is “yesterday’s model”.The BBC receives most of its funding from the £180-a-year TV licence, but the number of households paying has declined in recent years, and the broadcaster is discussing reform of the system with the government.Brittin said: “We can and should be doing as much as possible on [enforcing] licence fee collection under…

President Donald Trump has said the US may consider reimposing a naval blockade on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz and possibly take over the Kharg Island, moves that could restart the war between the two countries and negatively impact the global economy. The naval blockade was lifted last month after Iran and the US signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to end the months-long war. The war between the two countries led to a spike in global oil prices, which affected the global economy. Oil prices, which were over $100 per barrel during the war, have since dropped to…

Trump’s comments on deep strikes into Russia and Patriot licensing deal are positive signals for Ukraine and Zelenskyy – snap analysisLet’s see how much of that translates into actual actions, but on the face of it – although there is an obvious problem with looking at that with Trump – this was a very positive briefing for Ukraine and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.US president Donald Trump meets with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey. Photograph: Alex Brandon/APThe US president repeatedly praised Zelenskyy – even laughing at one point at how fair the pair has…

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its global economic growth forecast to 3.0 per cent for 2026, down from 3.1 per cent in its April 2026 forecast. In its July World Economic Outlook update released on Wednesday, the IMF said global growth is projected to be 3.0 per cent in 2026 and 3.4 per cent in 2027, below the average annual growth of 3.5 per cent recorded in 2024 and 2025. The slight slowdown in global economic growth reflects the economic impact of the war in the Middle East, although part of the effect has been offset by stronger…

Parallex Bank has graduated a new cohort of trainees from its Limitless Banking Academy, reaffirming its commitment to youth empowerment and talent development in Nigeria’s banking sector. The graduation ceremony, held on July 4, 2026, at the CIBN Bankers House, celebrated the successful completion of a six-month intensive programme designed to equip young professionals with the technical knowledge, practical experience and leadership skills required for careers in modern banking. Speaking at the event, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Parallex Bank, Dr. Olufemi Bakre, congratulated the graduates on reaching a significant milestone and urged them to uphold excellence,…

Meta is facing a backlash over its new AI tool Muse Image, which can generate pictures using other people’s profile pictures without telling them.It is one of many text-to-image tools publicly available, which as the name suggests can create pictures from a few lines of simple written text. Muse Image is available through the Meta AI app and web browser, as well as on WhatsApp and in Instagram Stories for US users.While Meta says users can opt out of their image being used even with a public account, Donald Campbell, advocacy director at tech justice non-profit Foxglove told the BBC…

The Treasury has as yet carried out no analysis of the trade-offs necessary for the UK to hit the 3.5% of GDP defence spending promise made to Nato, chief secretary Lucy Rigby has said.Under robust questioning in a joint session of the Treasury and defence select committees on Wednesday, Rigby repeatedly said that how to fund additional defence spending would be a matter for “the next prime minister”.Keir Starmer, who is attending his last Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, has promised the UK will hit the 3.5% target by 2035.The failure to set out a future spending path was among…

Creatine is widely known as a supplement used by athletes and bodybuilders to improve strength and performance. Now, new research from UCLA suggests it may have another surprising role: helping the immune system mount a stronger attack against cancer. The study, published in iScience, found that creatine boosts the activity of dendritic cells, specialized immune cells that detect tumors and activate the killer T cells responsible for destroying cancer. The findings, based on experiments in mice and human cells, build on previous research from the same laboratory showing that creatine also enhances the function of cancer-fighting T cells. Creatine May…