Coronavirus is “bubbling up” in up to 30 areas across the UK, Boris Johnson has warned. The prime minister said levels of COVID-19 are “going down” in Leicester – the first city subject to a local lockdown – but Britons have to be wary of a “really damaging second wave”. “It’s absolutely vital as a
US tech firm International Business Machines on Thursday launched a research partnership with Japanese industry to accelerate advances in quantum computing, deepening ties between the two countries in an emerging and sensitive field. Members of the new group, which includes Toshiba and Hitachi, will gain cloud-based access to IBM’s US quantum computers. The group will
Tour operator Tui is to shut 166 high street stores in the UK and the Republic of Ireland in the face of the downturn in travel caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Around 350 shops will remain following the closures, which the travel firm said was a result of changes in customer’s shopping habits, with the
It’s a familiar sight at Nigambodh Ghat, Delhi’s largest Hindu crematorium. A section of it carved out just for COVID-19-related deaths. Hurried last rites performed on a 65-year-old man who succumbed to the virus this morning. His loved ones have to bid a distant and hurried farewell – everyone deprived of a traditional ritual.
Pepper’s skill set includes making phone calls, identifying missing items in the kitchen and occasional aerobics instruction. Now, after a surge in loneliness among vulnerable groups during the coronavirus pandemic, this robot’s potential as a companion have earned her a role in a Scottish university’s assisted living experiment with artificial intelligence. Scientists at Heriot-Watt University
NASA’s latest Mars rover Perseverance launches Thursday on an astrobiology mission to look for signs of ancient microbial life — and to fly a helicopter-drone on another world for the first time. Take-off is scheduled for 7:50 am (5:20 pm IST) from Cape Canaveral, Florida on board a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. If
A sculpture depicting a dollop of whipped cream topped with a cherry, a fly and a drone has been unveiled at London’s Trafalgar Square. The installation of the Fourth Plinth – home to a rolling commission of public artworks – was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The dystopian artwork by British artist Heather Phillipson,
England suffered the highest levels of excess deaths of any country in Europe over the first half of 2020, the Office for National Statistics has said. But while England endured the largest overall increase in deaths, the report says Spain had the highest peak. Prime Minister Boris Johnson reacted to the news by saying there
6:33 PM ET For the past month, much of the talk at the MLS is Back Tournament has been about the players and staff living in the bubble, the self-contained, Truman Show-like environment designed to keep out COVID-19. But Charlie Lyon isn’t just living in the bubble, he’s also existing in a pool. This is
A Minister for Food Security is urgently needed to deal with the threat posed by COVID-19, Brexit and climate change, according to a cross-party group of MPs. Millions of people have struggled to access food as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with the number of food bank users doubling during lockdown. The Environment, Food
The mysterious origins of Stonehenge’s giant sarsen stones have finally been uncovered. A sample of one of the megaliths taken by a maintenance worker in 1958 has revealed the 20-tonne stones come from West Woods – just 15 miles away from the site, near Marlborough. Robert Phillips worked for a Basingstoke-based diamond cutting business that
People with coronavirus symptoms in England will be told to self-isolate for 10 days instead of seven, according to reports. Health Secretary Matt Hancock is expected to announce the increase in isolation period on Thursday, but it is not clear if Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland will adopt the same policy. Those who have come
Leaders of Amazon, Facebook, Google and Apple have appeared in front of a House committee in the US to defend themselves against claims they have too much power. The companies, which have a joint market value of more than $5trn (£3.8trn), are facing threats of further regulation in the US, with conservative politicians claiming the
Car production in the UK is likely to fall to its lowest level since the 1950s as a consequence of coronavirus, triggering many thousands of redundancies as the industry prepares for the “double-whammy” of a potential no-deal Brexit that would compound record losses this year. Forecasts compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders
Muslims wearing face masks and socially distancing have started arriving in Mecca for a dramatically scaled-down Hajj pilgrimage in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Some 2.5 million pilgrims usually visit the Saudi Arabian cities of Mecca and Medina for the week-long ritual – a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it.
Pop musician Rina Sawayama has spoken out after finding out her debut album was ineligible for this year’s Mercury Prize because she doesn’t hold a UK passport. Sawayama, 29, has lived in the UK for over 25 years and was born in Japan. She had been expected to be nominated for the Mercury Prize, one