Author: damazah@gmail.com

EXCLUSIVE: Ridley Scott’s Scott Free Productions and Jim O’Shaughnessy’s Infinite Films have developed and produced documentary feature The Vesuvius Challenge in partnership with directors Daniel DiMauro and Morgan Pehme’s Calliope Pictures. “For decades, computer scientist Brent Seales has pursued an obsession long thought impossible: reading the hundreds of scrolls carbonized by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D,” the film’s logline reads. “Armed with cutting-edge imaging, artificial intelligence, and relentless determination, Dr. Seales and his underdog team work to digitally unlock the secrets of ancient Rome’s only surviving library. As their quest captures global attention, The Vesuvius Challenge becomes a high-stakes…

DevReporting, in partnership with the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), has opened applications for a training and story grant programme for journalists in Osun State ahead of the 2026 governorship election. The initiative, supported through CJID’s Local Media Sustainability Fund (LMSF) with funding from the Royal Norwegian Embassy, is aimed at strengthening accountability reporting on governance, transparency, public finance and service delivery. According to the organisers, the programme comes amid a prolonged leadership crisis that has disrupted governance across Osun’s 30 local government areas and the Modakeke Area Council. The organisers said the project seeks to equip journalists…

Higher education curricula in the State requires added focus on research-oriented content to make teachers – and through them, the students – more research-informed and boost their employability attributes, Lakshmi Narayanan, Chancellor, KREA University and Managing Trustee, Chennai Mathematical Institute, said on Tuesday.“Research-oriented content and information have to come on board in order to drive invention. Progressively, we will create a mindset among the faculty, who will be a lot more research-oriented,” Mr. Narayanan said, delivering the keynote address at Uyarkalvi Uraiyadalgal – Dialogues on Higher Education organised in Chennai by the Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education (TNSCHE).…

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The wife of former Kaduna State Governor, Hajiya Asiya El-Rufai has said that her husband does not deserve persecution having worked for the victory of President Bola Tinubu in the 2023 elections. Asiya, who stated this on Tuesday in Abuja while addressing journalists alongside El-Rufai’s other wife, Aichatou, appealed to the President to allow El-Rufai to be given a lenient bail condition. She noted that the family was not asking the President to interfere with the judicial process or halt the prosecution of El-Rufai, but to ensure that he enjoys the constitutional rights available to every…

DENVER, CO – MAY 22: Max Kepler #17 of the Philadelphia Phillies walks in the dugout in the third inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on May 22, 2025 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)Getty ImagesThe Philadelphia Phillies saw former outfield slugger Max Kepler depart the team in free agency last year and it seems unlikely they were ever very interested in a reunion.But before any team could strike a new deal with Kepler, news surfaced that he would have to serve an 80-game suspension before the 2026 season.Now, after leaving Philadelphia, serving that suspension and…

A look at the dwarf planet Pluto and Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, baffled astronomers after the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) detected a chemical signature on their surfaces that does not match any recorded in spectroscopic databases. Researchers believe this is not an instrument error, but rather the signature of a compound whose identity remains a mystery—a mixture of materials never studied in a laboratory, or even a compound whose chemistry has not yet been characterized.The finding appears in a study awaiting publication in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. Scientists identified an absorption band centered at 5.113 micrometers on both…

Nigel Farage has resigned as MP for Clacton, triggering a by-election he says he will stand in.It comes amid a row over his financial support, after the Sunday Times reported he had not declared benefits and questions were raised about a £5m gift.In a statement, Farage insisted he had “done nothing wrong”.Farage’s constituents have mixed views about the politician and shared their opinions with the BBC.Read more about what Farage said in his resignation speech.

Arable farmers may soon be able to stop slugs eating their crops thanks to research by a Shropshire-based university and the work of “slug sleuth” farmers.Data collected by 28 “slug sleuths” has helped researchers from Harper Adams University find environmentally friendly slug control methods in the form of “prediction maps”.It is part of a three-year, £2.6 million research programme that was funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).Researchers hope the maps could lead to “more precise control of slugs in arable fields” and reduce using pesticides.The model is one of the many projects done by the…

WWE SummerSlam has a WrestleMania flair to it. For the second year, SummerSlam takes place over two nights. The additional day requires more matches and more big names. This year’s card already has meat on the bones with names like Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar.Reigns defends the world heavyweight title against a name he can’t seem to shake. Seth Rollins has been Reigns’ chief ally and mortal enemy for 14 years. The ex-Shield allies tangle again for one of WWE’s top prizes. There’s also the rubber match between Lesnar and Oba Femi. The only thing that can confine such behemoths…

“NCIS: New York,” the upcoming newest entry in the CBS franchise, has added four new cast members. Variety has confirmed that Jennifer Beals (“The L Word,” “Devil in a Blue Dress”), Jacqueline Byers (“Salvation,” “Dark Winds”), Shane Harper (“Good Luck Charlie,” “Power Book IV: Force”), and Devin Druid (“13 Reasons Why,” “Olive Kitteridge”) have all been cast in series regular roles. They will appear opposite previously announced leads LL Cool J and Scott Caan. In the show, LL Cool J will reprise the role of NCIS Special Agent Sam Hanna, whom he played for 14 seasons on “NCIS: Los Angeles.”…