Articles from ‘elocal magazine’

In 2024, Antarctica’s sea ice extent returned to near the 1981–2010 average, according to the US-based National Snow and Ice Data Centre (NSIDC). · In 2023, the BBC described the ice loss as “mind-blowing,” quoting Dr Walter Meier of the NSIDC. Mainstream media is now silent on the supposed “crisis” having fizzled out. · Chris Morrison, writing for The Daily Sceptic, argues that journalists and scientists alike hyped the short-term anomaly of…

Moses wasn't the first to climb a mountain to meet his god. For at least 10,000 years people in the Negev and Sinai deserts were climbing skyward, leaving silent hints at purpose beyond functionality in the shape of standing stones and altars on the hilltops. · Whether Moses was a historic figure or where Mount Sinai might be – we do not know. We can say that Israel's southern deserts feature sites that whisper of a "mountain cult" that…

Professor Elizabeth Rata argues that the Treaty Principles Bill essentially poses a choice about the kind of society New Zealand wants to be: a democratic nation controlled by elected representatives, or dominated by rent-seeking elites leveraging historical grievances. · Rata critiques the judiciary’s reliance on what she describes as an “ahistorical” view, where the Treaty and tikanga practices are treated as immutable mandates, filled with…

Centuries before the arrival of Europeans, Indigenous people in the Western United States learned how to live with fire. They knew the recipe for catastrophic seasonal wildfires—bone-dry grasses, fallen logs and other forest debris, and high winds—and took measures to protect old-growth stands of trees. · In many cases, those methods involved using fire to prevent fire. In the late winter and spring, when conditions were cooler and wetter,…

When the weather gets warm, there’s nothing like corn cooked on the barbecue. Sweet and juicy, with just a hint of smokey char – it’s the perfect side to any meal. The only way to make it better is to add one of these delicious flavoured butters! · Ingredients · - 6 corn on the cob, with husks on - 125g  Butter, softened · Soy, chilli & sesame butter: · - 2 tablespoons soy sauce - ½ teaspoon chilli flakes - 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds…

In the world of ugly shoes, we've had some real bangers. · First was the Croc, a rubber one-piece shoe best suited as a doorstop – that is until you tried one on and realized it might be the most comfortable thing you've ever put on your foot, despite the scornful looks from your peers. Then came the Kanye/Adidas collaboration-abomination called the Yeezy, with a history so tumultuous we hesitate to even bring it up. · Cue the new Syntilay,…

By defeating Irishman Ike Weir at San Francisco, Murphy became the first New Zealander to win a world professional boxing title on Jamurary 13th, 1890. Until Joseph Parker won the World Boxing Organization’s version of the heavyweight title in 2016, Murphy was the only New Zealand-born boxer to have held a recognised world professional title. · Born in Auckland in 1862, Thomas William Murphy (‘Torpedo Billy’) began boxing as a teenager before…

Scientists think sleep is the brain’s rinse cycle, when fluid percolating through the organ flushes out chemical waste that accumulated while we were awake. But what propels this circulation has been uncertain. A study of mice, reported today in Cell, suggests regular contractions of blood vessels in the brain, stimulated by the periodic release of a chemical cousin of adrenaline, push the fluid along. · “This is excellent science,” says…

We’ve done it. The future is now. The world of Arthur C. Clarke is upon us, and how! The world’s first flying passenger motorcycle, called the Skyrider X1, has just been unveiled at CES in Las Vegas. It rides, it flies, it’s autonomous and it’s pretty darn wild. · The vehicle is built by Rictor, which is a sub-brand of Chinese company Kuickwheel – which focuses on eco-friendly and energy-efficient mobility options. Up until now, Rictor had just…

The debate over how to manage ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) has gained momentum following a recent study suggesting that surgery might not be necessary for women diagnosed with the condition. · Often described as "stage zero breast cancer" or "a very early form of breast cancer," DCIS is not actually cancer but rather a cluster of abnormal cells contained within the milk ducts. · Despite its non-cancerous status, the use of terms like…