Broomsticks and dragon bones in British Library's Harry Potter magic show

Posted on by DBenson

Manuscripts for JK Rowling’s books mix with a centuries-old mermaid and a witch’s crystal ball in hotly anticipated exhibition

It’s all true, and the incontrovertible proof has gone on display in the British Library. Side by side with original manuscripts and illustrations for the Harry Potter books, in an exhibition that opens on Friday and has already sold a record 30,000 tickets, there are dragons’ bones, a mermaid, a step-by-step illustration (on a scroll six metres long) of how to create a philosopher’s stone, a black crystal ball owned by a 20th-century witch known as Smelly Nelly, and a broomstick More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/oct/18/broomsticks-and-dragon-bones-in-british-librarys-harry-potter-magic-show

  


Astana's plan to stay warm in the winter? Build a ring of one million trees

Posted on by DBenson

In 1997 the Kazakh president launched a plan to protect his new capital from the icy winds of the featureless steppes with a ring of trees. Twenty years on, his scientists are still struggling to grow forests in a spot where no trees stood

“Do you know why women in Astana don’t get expensive haircuts?” asked television presenter Dinara Tursunova. “Because no sooner do you leave the beauty salon, the wind blows away your hairdo, and with it all the money you spent.”

Looking good in the capital city of Kazakhstan is hard work. When Tursunova moved to Astana three years ago More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/oct/18/astana-plan-warm-winter-ring-one-million-trees

  


MP Ross misses parliamentary debate to monitor Messi

Posted on by DBenson

LONDON (Reuters) – While his parliamentary colleagues debate a new welfare payment system in Westminster, MP Douglas Ross will be in Barcelona’s dazzling Nou Camp stadium, focusing on whether Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez have strayed offside.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/UKSportsNews/~3/rHtcm8zSVs8/mp-ross-misses-parliamentary-debate-to-monitor-messi-idUKKBN1CN2DQ

  


'Fake news!': Ireland rebukes Trump over corporate tax claim

Posted on by DBenson

DUBLIN (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertion that he had heard Ireland was going to cut its already low corporate tax rate is “fake news”, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Wednesday.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/UKWorldNews/~3/oXcRELUFUyk/fake-news-ireland-rebukes-trump-over-corporate-tax-claim-idUKKBN1CN2C2

  


Maryland police search for gunman after three killed in office park shooting

Posted on by DBenson

Harford County sheriff says 37-year-old Radee Labeeb Prince opened fire with a handgun at an office park, killing three people and wounding two

A Maryland sheriff said three people have been killed and two were wounded during a shooting at an office park in the north-eastern part of the state.

Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler of Harford County identified the shooter on Wednesday morning as 37-year-old Radee Labeeb Prince. He says Prince opened fire with a handgun and police are looking for him. He is considered armed and dangerous.

Continue reading… More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/oct/18/maryland-police-search-for-gunman-after-three-killed-in-office-park-shooting

  


No charges to be brought over girl's E coli death

Posted on by DBenson

Dunsyre Blue, produced by Errington Cheese, was named in a report in March by Health Protection Scotland as the source of the outbreak

No criminal charges are to be brought against the Scottish cheesemaker implicated in an E coli outbreak which killed a three-year-old girl.

The family-run firm Errington Cheese expressed relief after the Crown Office confirmed that, based on the available evidence, no prosecutions would be brought as a result of the death in September 2016.

Continue reading… More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/oct/18/no-charges-to-be-brought-over-girls-e-coli-death

  


Domestikator is nasty public art. The Louvre was quite right to reject it | Jonathan Jones

Posted on by DBenson

In a gallery, obscenity is one thing. But in a public space where people of all ages will see it without choosing to do so? That’s bullying

The other day I walked into a Brussels art gallery where a colossal bronze woman was swooning in sensual ecstasy. In case of any confusion about its sexual content, this new sculpture by Tracey Emin is called All I Want Is You. I couldn’t help telling the artist she should erect it in a London park. “Erect” is the right word, for she jokes that from one angle it looks like a More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/oct/18/domestikator-public-art-louvre-gallery-obscenity

  


U.S., Russia set for likely U.N. row over Syria toxic gas inquiry

Posted on by DBenson

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United States said on Wednesday it would push the United Nations Security Council to renew within days an international inquiry into who is to blame for chemical weapons attacks in Syria, setting the stage for a likely showdown with Russia.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/UKWorldNews/~3/FxUiF4YdWK8/u-s-russia-set-for-likely-u-n-row-over-syria-toxic-gas-inquiry-idUKKBN1CN29Z

  


Gord Downie, Tragically Hip frontman, dies of cancer aged 53

Posted on by DBenson

Lead singer of Canadian rock group and the country’s ‘unofficial poet laureate’ has died from battle with brain cancer

Gord Downie, frontman of Canadian rock band the Tragically Hip, has died after a battle with brain cancer.

A message on Twitter attributed to the Downie family announced that the musician had “passed away with his beloved children and family close by”. The statement went on to say that “Gord knew this day was coming – his response was to spend this precious time as he always had – making music, making memories and expressing deep gratitude to his family and More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/oct/18/tragically-hip-frontman-gord-downie-dies-aged-53

  


Too rude for Paris? 'Copulating' sculpture causes stir in French capital

Posted on by DBenson

Dutch artist says it is not sexual, but Louvre decided giant sculpture of human appearing to copulate with an animal was too rude to be displayed

From a vandalised butt-plug to a desecrated “queen’s vagina”, Paris has often been at the centre of rows over whether some public art is supposedly too rude to go on show.

But the latest spat over a giant metal sculpture of a box-like figure appearing to copulate with a geometric being on all fours is proof that the label “too rude” can, for some Paris museums, be seen as a badge of pride.

<a target=_blank More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/18/too-rude-for-paris-copulating-sculpture-causes-stir-in-french-capital

  


China national congress: Xi Jinping signals spread of state control over all aspects of people&apos;s lives

Posted on by DBenson

Xi sets out vision for China at centre of world stage, with his Communist Party having total control of not just the economy and internet but also culture, religion and morals More Here…

Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/china-national-congress-xi-jingping-state-control-chinese-people-lives-freedom-rights-a8007356.html

  


Explicit sculpture finds new home at Pompidou Centre – video

Posted on by DBenson

A huge abstract sculpture, rejected by the Louvre Museum because it was deemed obscene, has found a new home at Paris’ edgier Pompidou Centre. The sculpture, titled Domestikator, was unveiled on Tuesday in front of the Pompidou modern art museum. Dutch artist Joep Van Lieshout said he was very happy with the Pompidou’s offer to display the sculpture, which is about domestication

Continue reading… More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2017/oct/18/explicit-sculpture-finds-new-home-at-pompidou-centre-video

  


Four British missionaries kidnapped in Nigeria

Posted on by DBenson

Britons snatched by unidentified gunman in Nigeria’s southern Delta state on 13 October, say police

Four Britons have been kidnapped in the southern Delta state in Nigeria, according to the police.

The authorities are attempting to rescue the four people, who were taken by unidentified gunmen on 13 October, said Andrew Aniamaka, a spokesman for Delta state police.

Continue reading… More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/18/four-british-missionaries-kidnapped-in-nigeria-delta

  


Ireland to seek specific border commitments from Britain, PM says

Posted on by DBenson

DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ireland wants Britain to commit to a fallback option that would avoid a customs border returning to the island of Ireland should its plan of maintaining the closest possible ties with the EU fall through, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Wednesday.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/UKWorldNews/~3/OJbwGHP5jxY/ireland-to-seek-specific-border-commitments-from-britain-pm-says-idUKKBN1CN28Z

  


Brazil's former Olympic chief charged in 2016 Games bribes investigation

Posted on by DBenson

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Brazilian prosecutors charged the former head of the national Olympics committee (COB), Carlos Nuzman, and five other people on Wednesday with corruption based on an investigation of alleged bribery to have Rio de Janeiro host the 2016 Games.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/UKSportsNews/~3/V617rpz5CQw/brazils-former-olympic-chief-charged-in-2016-games-bribes-investigation-idUKKBN1CN20B

  


Trump slams NFL for not making players stand for anthem

Posted on by DBenson

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump criticized the National Football League on Wednesday for not forcing players to stand for the national anthem, firing back after league officials meeting in New York chose instead to effectively back players’ right to political activism.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/UKSportsNews/~3/O-e-AYcf-LA/trump-slams-nfl-for-not-making-players-stand-for-anthem-idUKKBN1CN277

  


Give MPs basic rights at work, or Britain’s gender gap will never close | Clare Phipps

Posted on by DBenson

Parental leave isn’t enough: job-sharing is the only way to make parliament more representative – and the only way someone like me can become an MP

Admitting I am “in politics” is not something I do casually. Why would I want people to associate me with duck houses and expenses scandals? Being an MP does seem a pretty lavish existence. A £70,000+ salary, a second home, subsidised cream tea and Chablis, and a nice severance package and pension at the end of it – what’s not to love?

If you are a disabled woman, like me, quite a lot. While More Here…

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/oct/18/mps-basic-rights-work-gender-gap-parental-leave-job-sharing

  


Chinese fintech firm Qudian impresses in U.S. market debut

Posted on by DBenson

(Reuters) – Shares of Qudian Inc rose as much as 48 percent in their market debut on Wednesday, valuing the online micro-credit firm at about $11.67 billion in the biggest U.S. listing by a Chinese company this year.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/technologyNews/~3/fAmcSq1u1uA/chinese-fintech-firm-qudian-impresses-in-u-s-market-debut-idUSKBN1CN275

  


First coalition talks constructive - German parties

Posted on by DBenson

BERLIN (Reuters) – Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc and the pro-business Free Democrats described their first talks on building a coalition government as constructive on Wednesday, but a meeting later with the Greens could prove more difficult.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/UKWorldNews/~3/6mxbpAWb0-s/first-coalition-talks-constructive-german-parties-idUKKBN1CN18G

  


PM praises Italy's migrant policy as U.N. cites humanitarian crisis

Posted on by DBenson

ROME (Reuters) – Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on Wednesday that Italy was a model for Europe on how to reduce migrant arrivals, a day after U.N. agencies said its policies had trapped tens of thousands of people in dire conditions in Libya.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/UKWorldNews/~3/-rN_Clg3fBE/pm-praises-italys-migrant-policy-as-u-n-cites-humanitarian-crisis-idUKKBN1CN25T

  


IBM shares head for biggest gain in eight years

Posted on by DBenson

(Reuters) – Shares in International Business Machines Inc surged 9 percent on Wednesday after it beat expectations on revenue and gave an outlook that hinted one of the world’s first big computing names was back on a growth track after six years in retreat.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/technologyNews/~3/kM5PZr_Uv48/ibm-shares-head-for-biggest-gain-in-eight-years-idUSKBN1CN1MA

  


Pakistan, Afghanistan in angry tangle over chicken-wire border fence to keep out militants

Posted on by DBenson

Angoor Adda, PAKISTAN (Reuters) – Pakistan is betting that a pair of nine-foot chicken wire fences topped with barbed wire will stop incursions by Islamist militants from Afghanistan, which opposes Islamabad’s plans for a barrier along the disputed frontier.

More Here…

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/Reuters/UKWorldNews/~3/n2jPlAYkjr8/pakistan-afghanistan-in-angry-tangle-over-chicken-wire-border-fence-to-keep-out-militants-idUKKBN1CN25F