Society
Latest
Committed to Looking
Photographic contests are an uncomfortable beauty parade built on other people's worst days, yet they remain a vital counterweight to censorship and billionaire media control.
Wildfire
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Pyrocumulonimbus and a Full English
A conference on wildfires, a terrier on bed rest, and Europe's first pyrocumulonimbus — the week refused to rank them. Fire, convalescence, and a full English.
Suntan Lotion & Semiotics
Every heatwave, the cameras find the same shot: ice cream, paddling pools, sunbathers in the park. In May and June that imagery sat alongside 2,700 estimated heat deaths in England and Wales. Representation doesn't just describe risk - it decides how seriously we take it.
Science
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We're going to the f'n moon!
It's hard not to be drawn into the orbit of the Artemis II mission. Only 66 years separated Kitty Hawk from the Sea of Tranquility — man reached the Moon with less computing power than the device you're reading this on.
Society
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A week of awards
The Nobel Prize’s integrity is a reminder that excellence still prevails over politics. Amid funding cuts and cynicism, the MacArthur Fellows highlight America’s diversity and brilliance - an antidote to the relentless noise and despair of the news cycle.
Influential Magazine Covers
The New York Times’ list of the 25 most influential magazine covers sparks debate—subjectivity and omission aside, it reminds us that covers still shape culture. From Time’s haunting 9/11 image to the New Yorker’s restrained symbolism, each great cover captures emotion and its place in time.
7x7 - 14 Sept Edition
A cultural roundup: Real Hackney Dave’s bold screen prints, Professor Alexander’s disaster foresight lecture, a landmark tree photobook, Niwaki’s Field Report, Apple’s awe-inspiring launch, Jony Ive’s design insights, and the urgent crisis of US leadership amid famine and displacement.
AI
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Meta, Do Better
Reuters’ investigation into Meta’s 200-page AI chatbot guidelines revealed egregious oversights approved by Meta's Chief Ethicist. The case underscores how Meta’s rapid AI expansion is outpacing ethical safeguards and creating substantial societal risk.
Africa
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Africa is bigger than you think
The African Union has renewed support for the “Correct the Map” campaign, which challenges the Mercator projection for distorting the true size of continents. The campaign seeks to restore Africa’s rightful place in global consciousness.
Love Kebabs. Hate Entitlement.
It’s hard to disagree with Mangal II: too many diners confuse hospitality with servitude, and feedback with public flogging. Weaponised reviews, no-shows, and performative outrage are detrimental to the fragile economics of independent restaurants, pushing them ever closer to the brink.
Culture
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Visual Culture of Football
Reforming the visual culture of football through the success and popularity of the women's game.