This Simple, Overlooked Diet Tweak Could Revolutionize Your Gut Health

If you view chewing as just a necessary step to prevent choking, you’re doing it wrong. Chewing is crucial to healthy digestion, and research suggests that many of us, particularly young people, aren’t practicing it enough. While chewing better may not be the sexiest health upgrade, research shows it can make the digestive process easier on your gut, derive more nutrients from food, and help you feel more sated. Here’s why it’s worth relishing food, not just wolfing it down.Chewing is a key part of the digestion process, according to Terrence Barrett, a gastroenterologist at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. Even before a morsel reaches your lips, the anticipation of eating boosts saliva production. Saliva moistens food and also contains the enzyme amylase that deteriorates it into that perfect, ready-to-swallow bolus.

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Why the UK bubble tea market is 'special'

An Instagram-worthy ombré bubble tea may not seem like the most British of beverages, compared to a cup of Earl Grey during elevenses. Yet Taiwanese boba tea, known for its chewy tapioca pearls and endless customisation options, has become increasingly ubiquitous in the UK. The country is certainly not the first to cash in on this market, but it's found an even bigger opportunity amid a shifting demographic and changing consumer base.Served hot or cold, bubble tea is typically a sweetened fruity or milky tea – always shaken, never stirred – with starchy tapioca balls slurped through a jumbo straw. Originating in Taiwan in the 1980s, bubble tea started spreading as stalls blossomed across Hong Kong, China and the US, gaining popularity among Taiwanese communities in California in the 90s.

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Madagascar: giant tortoises have returned 600 years after they were wiped out

A six-year-old project to return giant tortoises to the wild in Madagascar could result in thousands of the 350kg megaherbivores re-populating the island for the first time in 600 years.The first group of Aldabra giant tortoises (Aldabrachelys gigantea) were brought in from the Seychelles in 2018, and have been reproducing on their own since. Ecologist Grant Joseph explains how reintroducing this tortoise to areas degraded by cattle grazing will help restore the island’s forests, grassy woodlands and shrublands of the past. It could also help prevent devastating forest fires in future.

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3 lessons from MP Karina Gould's parental leave that could help all Canadian families

Federal cabinet minister Karina Gould, leader of the government in the House of Commons, has made Canadian history three times: as the youngest female federal cabinet minister, the first to give birth while holding office and the first to take parental leave. Her approach to parental leave could well translate into her most enduring legacy.Like all MPs, Gould wasn’t eligible for parental leave when her first child was born in 2018. Four weeks later, she resumed work in her constituency of Burlington, Ont. After another five weeks, she returned to the House of Commons with her infant in tow.

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Two-thirds of Canadian and American renters are in unaffordable housing situations

Even as housing markets cool in some areas, housing affordability in Canada is the worst in over four decades due, in part, to sustained post-pandemic inflation and comparatively higher interest rates. According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation — the federal Crown corporation responsible for administering Canada’s National Housing Act — affordability is defined as mortgage or rent payments that do not exceed more than 30 per cent of a household’s gross monthly income.

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How better and cheaper software could save millions of dollars while improving Canada's health-care system

Billions of Canadian tax dollars have been funnelled to private companies to develop proprietary medical software. More tax dollars were then paid to the same companies to use the software to run our medical system. This might not have seemed like a big deal at a time when Canadians could easily get a doctor and our medical system had one of the best doctor-patient ratios in the world.

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Why now is the time to address humanity's impact on the moon

Humans have always looked at the sky, using the stars as navigation guides or for spiritual storytelling. Every human civilization has looked to the stars and used celestial movements to measure time and find meaning.This insatiable thirst for knowledge combined with technological advancements have made it possible for us to dream of travelling in space. These dreams became more and more real after the Second World War, the Industrial Revolution, the Cold War and the large-scale exploitation of the Earth’s resources.

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Hage Geingob: Namibian president who played a modernising role

Hage Gottfried Geingob served as the third president of Namibia from 2015 until his death on February 4 2024. He was Namibia’s first prime minister from 1990 to 2002, and served as prime minister again from 2012 to 2015.Geingob was born on 3 August 1941. He joined the ranks of the national liberation movement South West African People’s Organisation (Swapo during its formation in 1960.

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Where did the ingredients in that sandwich come from? Our global nutrient tracker tells a complex story

Have you ever looked down at your breakfast, lunch or dinner and considered where the various ingredients travelled from to reach your plate? A basic sandwich in New Zealand can easily represent five countries: an Australian wheat and Indian sesame seed roll, Danish salami, local lettuce and cheese, seasoned with Vietnamese pepper.

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Should Donald Trump be disqualified from state ballots in presidential election? Here's how the US Supreme Court might rule

The US Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week in former President Donald Trump’s appeal against the decision to exclude him from the ballot in the Colorado Republican primary for this year’s presidential election.The Colorado Supreme Court ruled in December that Trump was disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution because he engaged in an insurrection on January 6, 2021.

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Should twins be in separate classes? Many schools say yes, but the answer is not so simple

Catherine E. Wood has presented at the Australian Multiple Birth Association national conference at different times. As a clinical psychologist specialising in twins, this is one of the most frequent questions parents ask me.

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How much weight do you actually need to lose? It might be a lot less than you think

If you’re one of the one in three Australians whose New Year’s resolution involved losing weight, it’s likely you’re now contemplating what weight-loss goal you should actually be working towards. But type “setting a weight loss goal” into any online search engine and you’ll likely be left with more questions than answers.

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New research shows some gains but fresh difficulties in combating child sexual abuse

Chair of Global Youth Commitee for Global Institute for Women's Leadership, Australian National University Child sexual abuse is common in Australia. The best evidence of this comes from the 2023 Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS), which surveyed 8,500 Australians aged 16 and over. The ACMS found 28.5% of the national population has experienced sexual abuse before age 18 by any person (adult or adolescent). Women were twice as likely as men to have experienced sexual abuse (37.3%-18.8%). Among 16-to-24-year-olds, prevalence was slightly lower (25.7%), but again with a massive gender disparity (35.2%-14.5%).

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Labor's Newspoll lead unchanged since December as 62% support stage three changes

Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Newspoll, conducted January 31 to February 3 from a sample of 1,245, gave Labor a 52–48 lead, unchanged since the previous Newspoll in mid-December. Primary votes were 36% Coalition (steady), 34% Labor (up one), 12% Greens (down one), 7% One Nation (steady) and 11% for all Others (steady).

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Our ancient primate ancestors had an appetite for soft fruits - and their diet shaped human evolution

The diet of early anthropoids – the ancestors of apes and monkeys – has long been debated. Did these early primates display behaviours and diets similar to modern species, or did they have much humbler beginnings? Research on early anthropoids has often suggested a diet high in soft fruits. But some species seem to have had a more varied diet, containing harder foods such as seeds and nuts.

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Indonesia's plan to ban seaweed exports could backfire - hurting its own industry

Indonesia, the world’s second-largest seaweed producer, plans to introduce a nationwide export ban on seaweed, following a ban at a provincial level in 2022. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo argued in November that the ban would encourage investment in domestic seaweed processing, as part of a larger suite of export restrictions.

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NASA is looking for commercial Mars missions. Do people still want to go to Mars?

Since the 1960s, Mars has been a popular destination for space missions. Now, for the first time, NASA has invited the private sector to submit proposals on commercial Mars missions.These missions would range from carrying various payloads to the red planet, to providing communications relay services. No talk of a Mars astronaut just yet.

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Sovereignty is sacred: in Timor-Leste's remote Oecusse Enclave, a border dispute threatens to open old wounds

In September, Timor-Leste will mark a quarter century since its vote for independence from Indonesia, the conclusion of a 24-year long struggle that left few Timorese families untouched. Reconciliation with its giant neighbour stands out as one of Timor-Leste proudest achievements, but as 2024 begins, a long simmering border dispute, in which a border hamlet faces the prospect of its land being transferred to Indonesia, is stirring both political strife and ghosts many hoped were at rest.

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Does Yang Hengjun have any legal hopes left after receiving a suspended death sentence in China?

The Chinese-Australian academic and writer, Yang Hengjun, has been detained in China for five years on suspicion of spying for Australia. A secret trial was held in 2021 with no family, friends or Australian consular officials permitted in the courtroom. The verdict was then delayed at least seven times, according to Amnesty International.

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Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger want to leave Ecowas. A political scientist explains the fallout

Senior lecturer in Politics and International Relations, Leeds Beckett University Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have sent Ecowas, west Africa’s main political union of 15 countries, a formal notice of their withdrawal from the bloc. The three countries are governed by military rulers who have overthrown democratically elected leaders over the past 12 months.

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Radical Innovation Needs Old-School VC

The winter 2024 issue features a special report on sustainability, and provides insights on developing leadership skills, recognizing and addressing caste discrimination, and engaging in strategic planning and execution.The winter 2024 issue features a special report on sustainability, and provides insights on developing leadership skills, recognizing and addressing caste discrimination, and engaging in strategic planning and execution.We currently have an abundance of venture capital for projects that are not that risky, such as platforms and apps that promise to make our lives more convenient. These innovations largely disrupt markets and competition — but don’t disrupt the biggest problems facing humanity. We don’t have enough green energy options, and we lack the technology that could suck enough CO2 out of the atmosphere to restore the climate’s balance. According to the United Nations, more than 800 million people — a tenth of the global population — are undernourished today. We don’t know how to cope with a growing world population or stop overexploiting natural resources.

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Netflix Just Quietly Added the Most Deranged Slasher Thriller of the Decade

The 1970s were defined by low-budget slasher films like Halloween and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, while the ’80s saw the proliferation of weirder, more elaborate supernatural horror flicks like A Nightmare on Elm Street, Evil Dead II, and Poltergeist. The ’90s then produced more tongue-in-cheek, meta-horror exercises like Scream, The Faculty, and I Know What You Did Last Summer, while the 2010s and 2020s have seen a surge in “elevated” horror films simultaneously more ambitious and tamer than is typical of the genre.X isn’t like that. The Ti West-directed, A24-produced 2022 horror movie is a send-up of 1970s slasher flicks that delights in being as foul as possible. It’s a film that argues for the importance of trashy, hyperviolent slasher thrillers that have, like big-budget rom-coms and R-rated studio comedies, become increasingly hard to come by. Even better, it does so with unadulterated, bloody gusto.

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Exercise, Alcohol, and Drugs Can All Dramatically Rewire The Brain, Research Shows

New ways of thinking about how addictions form have the potential to change how we approach treatment.Many people are wired to seek and respond to rewards. Your brain interprets food as rewarding when you are hungry and water as rewarding when you are thirsty. However, addictive substances like alcohol and drugs of abuse can overwhelm the natural reward pathways in your brain, resulting in intolerable cravings and reduced impulse control.

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Disney+'s Most Promising New Franchise is Learning the Worst Lessons From Star Wars

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is not a bad series. It’s not outright amazing either, though. Sure, it’s competently directed and boasts a compelling cast, along with some crisp visuals. It’s also a mercifully faithful adaptation of the book series by Rick Riordan, give or take a few tweaks. But in the pursuit of authenticity, it kind of forgets its soul.Percy Jackson largely lacks the tension or the sense of fun that Riordan — who serves as co-creator — brought to the original series. In its stead, a heavy, self-serious tone presides over the whole affair, while Pierre Gill and Jules O’Loughlin strive to compensate with sweeping cinematography.

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