Cereal farming produced excess food that could be stored and taxed LUIS MONTANYA/MARTA MONTANYA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY The cultivation of cereal grains probably led to the emergence of the first states – which operated mafia-like protection rackets − and to the adoption of writing for the purposes of recording taxes. There is wide debate over how…
The wiring of our neurons changes with the passing decades Alexa Mousley, University of Cambridge Our brain function is far from static throughout our lives. We already know that our capacity to learn, and our risk of cognitive decline, varies from when we are a newborn through to our 90s. Now, scientists may have uncovered…
“It’s a PR campaign, obviously,” claims Joshua Naftalis, a former prosecutor, now a partner at law firm Pallas Partners. “It’s a no stone left unturned strategy.” To date, Bankman-Fried has not filed a formal pardon application, a White House spokesperson tells WIRED. “We do not discuss speculation about sensitive issues, such as pardons, on-record,” the…
Tanzania has cancelled next month’s independence day celebrations, with the funds to be instead spent on rebuilding infrastructure damaged in recent election unrest, Prime Minister Mwigulu Nchemba has said. His announcement comes as the opposition and others have been calling for people to gather on independence day – 9 December – to demonstrate about killings…
LG makes some of the best TVs you can buy. Its OLED TVs in particular are perennial favorites at WIRED, with C-series models like the C4 (9/10, WIRED Recommends) providing among the best performance for your dollars on the market. LG is about way more than TVs of course. The Korean brand offers multiple products…
Lee Soon-jae, one of South Korea’s most beloved actors, died on Tuesday at the age of 91, his agency announced. In a career spanning more than 70 years across films, television and the stage, Lee was fondly known as the “national TV dad” for his many roles as a wise, older man. This included two…
The controversial, US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) says it is winding down its aid operations in the Palestinian territory, after almost six months. The organisation had already suspended its three food distribution sites in Gaza after the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took effect six weeks ago. The GHF aimed to bypass the…
11 hours ago Laura Gozziand Patrick Jackson Rubio hails ‘most productive day’ of negotiations with Ukraine Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has welcomed proposed changes to the controversial 28-point peace plan for ending the war with Russia. It appears Ukraine’s European allies produced an amended version of the plan after rejecting parts which favoured Russia’s war…
12 hours ago Soutik BiswasIndia correspondent BBC A patient with headphones playing music during surgery in a hospital in Delhi Under the harsh lights of an operating theatre in the Indian capital, Delhi, a woman lies motionless as surgeons prepare to remove her gallbladder. She is under general anaesthesia: unconscious, insensate and rendered completely still…
President Donald Trump has said he agreed to visit Beijing in April and invited Chinese President Xi Jinping for a state visit later next year, following a phone call between the two leaders. Trump and Xi – who met nearly a month ago in South Korea – discussed a range of issues including trade, Russia’s…