Looking at the world today it would be easy to conclude that mankind is at the beginning of a new chapter in the history of global conflict. This is the conflict of religious ideology. The greatest part of the last century was dominated by conflicts of political ideology, between democracy and autocracy, between socialism and [...]
Green gadgets are all around us. Photovoltaic cells will produce electricity, hybrid cars will cut greenhouse gases and bio-diesel is a sustainable fuel for cars and aeroplanes. These green gadgets show promising technological pathways, but hailing them as saviors is not accelerating the drive for the greening of the economy. On the contrary, by detracting [...]
With Orwell’s new literary language came the new fiction: direct, no-nonsense and almost formulaic. Like a Hollywood blockbuster, anything that didn’t contribute to the Plot was discarded. And so writers were presented with a solid theory on book-writing: use gripping plots, eye-catching stories and memorable characters. All writers needed was an assembly line of original [...]
The General Assembly of the United Nations called on the 18th of December 2007, in its resolution A/RES/62/149 for a moratorium on the death penalty. Thanks to this resolution, death penalty is now recognised as a human rights issue. Is this just another scene in the talk show of international diplomacy, or are some measures to make individuals comply with the norms of society just not acceptable any more? Is our system of law finally moving away from retribution and revenge?
Apes are known to use tools. Gorillas have been seen to use sticks to gauge depths of water, and chimpanzees use stones to crack open nuts. But using a simple object to help achieve an end is a far cry from combining two different objects and creating a completely original tool. As soon as early humans started experimenting with tools, they must’ve realized one thing beforehand—that the function of an object may override its original intent. A to B makes C, B to C makes something entirely different. With that historically significant moment came the idea of adhesives.
