Antarctica
Finger-prick diabetes blood test could be early warning for children
All UK children could be offered screening for type 1 diabetes using a simple finger-prick blood test, say researchers who have been running a large study. Currently, many young people go undiagnosed and risk developing a life-threatening complication called diabetic ketoacidosis that needs urgent hospital treatment. Identifying diabetes earlier could help avoid this and mean treatments to control problematic blood sugar levels can be given sooner. Some 17,000 children aged three to 13 have already been checked as part of the ELSA (Early Surveillance for Autoimmune diabetes) study, funded by diabetes charities. Imogen, who is 12 and from the West Midlands, is one of those found to have diabetes thanks to the screening.
Spat deepens between Elon Musk and Ryanair's O'Leary
Elon Musk has suggested he could buy Ryanair and called for its chief executive to be fired amid a deepening spat between the pair. The budget airline on Tuesday branded the Tesla chief executive an idiot, and used the extraordinary row to promote its January sale. Musk and Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary have been trading insults over the past week after O'Leary rejected the idea of using Musk's Starlink technology to provide wi-fi on flights. The two are among the world's most outspoken business chiefs, with Musk the world's richest man with an estimated net worth of $769bn (£573bn), and O'Leary running Europe's busiest airline. A statement on Ryanair's X account on Tuesday evening said: Perhaps Musk needs a break?? Ryanair is launching a Great Idiots seat sale especially for Elon and any other idiots on'X'.
Watch: Cow astonishes scientists with rare use of tools
Scientists are rethinking what cattle are capable of after an Austrian cow named Veronika was found to use tools with impressive skill. The discovery, reported by researchers in Vienna, suggests cows may have far greater cognitive abilities than previously assumed. Veronika, a cow living in a mountain village in the Austrian countryside, has spent years perfecting the art of scratching herself using sticks, rakes, and brooms. Word of her behaviour eventually reached animal intelligence specialists in Vienna, who found Veronika used both ends of the same object for different tasks. If it were her back or another tough area that warranted a good scratch, she would use the bristle end of a broom.
Mum gives CPR to her baby with rare condition after seizure in Tesco
A baby with a rare neurological disorder, airlifted to hospital after collapsing in a supermarket, is not out of the woods yet, said his father. Seven-month-old Rupert Smith, from Broughton, Flintshire, stopped breathing in a Tesco store in Broughton Park, on Monday. His mother Siobhan, 35, immediately called for help and administered CPR before emergency services, including paramedics, police and an air ambulance arrived. Rupert, who has a disorder called alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC), was flown to Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool for treatment. Dad Dave Smith said Rupert had continued to have quite significant seizures [in hospital] so they have been giving him medication and he has undergone various different tests.
Russian strikes again leave half of Kyiv with no heating in winter cold snap
A large Russian aerial strike on Ukraine has again left half of Kyiv's residential buildings without heating or power as temperatures across the country continue to hover around -10C. Drones, ballistic and cruise missiles targeted several locations in Ukraine, including Kyiv, Dnipro in the centre and Odesa in the south. Air raid alerts in the capital lasted for most of the night. On Tuesday, sirens rang out again as Russian drones and cruise missiles approached the capital. President Volodymyr Zelensky said a significant number of targets had been intercepted.
The 3,500-mile love story that started in an online horror game
It is an online romance that has overcome a 3,500-mile distance, and also the Covid pandemic - which meant they had to get married virtually. Welsh cheesemaker Lewis Relfe struck up a relationship with Ameila Henderson, from Virginia, USA, while playing the Friday the 13th horror video game in 2017. She made a number of visits across the Atlantic, including one for six months, and he proposed on Aberystwyth Pier, dressed as the game's main character, Jason Voorhees. While they admit to seeing the humour in being the couple that met and married virtually, they now live together in Ceredigion, with daughter Evelyn. But because of parental responsibilities, they no longer get to enjoy the thing that brought them together.
Chris Pratt on new film Mercy: I asked to be locked into an executioner's chair
Chris Pratt on new film Mercy: I asked to be locked into an executioner's chair Being locked barefoot in an executioner's chair sounds uncomfortable, but that is what Chris Pratt requested for his latest film, Mercy. More familiar as a wisecracking action hero in blockbusters like Guardians of the Galaxy and Jurassic World, this role is quite a departure for him. He plays homicide detective Chris Raven, who's fighting for his life after being accused of murdering his wife. Raven is an alcoholic who wakes in the chair after a drinking binge, with just 90 minutes to convince an AI judge he's innocent, or he'll be executed immediately. The film is set in real time, so we see Raven defend his case - while enduring a crashing hangover.
Greenland 'will stay Greenland', former Trump adviser declares
Greenland'will stay Greenland', former Trump adviser declares Donald Trump will not be able to force Greenland to change ownership, a former top adviser to the US president has told the BBC. IBM's vice chairman Gary Cohn, who advised Trump on the economy in his first term, said Greenland will stay Greenland and linked the need for access to critical minerals to his former boss's plans for the territory. Cohn is one of America's top tech bosses, a leader in the race to develop AI and quantum computing, and served under Trump as director of the White House National Economic Council. In a sign of how seriously business leaders are taking the crisis, he warned invading an independent country that is part of Nato would be over the edge. He also suggested the president's recent comments about Greenland may be part of a negotiation.
Scientists discover Greenland's 'Achilles heel' that could force Trump to rethink his Arctic playbook
Revealed: The message Norwegian PM sent Trump that sparked president's outburst saying Nobel Peace Prize snub justified Greenland land-grab The Kristi Noem photo that reveals why anti-ICE mob stormed Minnesota church as terrified child worshipper sobbed in father's arms We were $460,000 in debt. We weren't high earners and paid it off using simple but life-changing tricks... anyone can do it Idyllic city was hit by a surge in cancers and miscarriages when Trump's'beautiful baby' arrived. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was the hottest actor in Hollywood... then vanished: Unearthing family tragedy that sparked disappearance and has left'lasting' scars Mayor of gorgeous Oregon city that's home to Nike HQ explains simple reasons why it is thriving while neighboring Portland circles the drain Spanish train disaster victims flew through windows and were found hundreds of yards away, with more than 39 feared dead - as mystery over what caused'truly strange' crash grows Dark side of America's favorite vacation hotspot... where women are subjected to the most horrific sex attacks imaginable Dietitian reveals the game-changing supplements that work like Ozempic... and will super-charge your weight loss without side-effects Pierce Brosnan fans defend star's wife Keely Shaye Smith, 62, after cruel troll posts a photo of her when she met the 72-year-old Bond star alongside a recent snap as a'reminder to avoid marriage' My husband was acting odd for months. But nothing prepared me for what was hidden under the couch... undeniable proof of my worst fear John Barrowman breaks down in tears while cradling his dog's body after the beloved pet'waited until I got home' before dying peacefully in his arms Country singer Karley Scott Collins responds to rumors she's living with Keith Urban after Nicole Kidman split Scientists discover Greenland's'Achilles heel' that could force Trump to rethink his Arctic playbook MORE: I'm a Risk board game champion... Here's how Trump's tactics are a winning strategy for global domination Scientists have identified a hidden geological weakness beneath Greenland's ice sheet that could accelerate its collapse, and complicate US ambitions in the Arctic. A new study discovered a hidden layer of sediment, composed of soft dirt and sand, which has driven more of the Danish territory's glaciers to melt, break apart, and fall into the ocean.
Socks, salsa and stand-up comedy... easy ways to find joy in January
Socks, salsa and stand-up comedy... easy ways to find joy in January There is a reason it is called Blue Monday. Slap-bang in the middle of a month that is all about freezing drizzle and self-denial, the third Monday in January is notoriously the gloomiest day of the year. But some of us are fighting back. Here are some ways to find joy among the January gloom. Laughter is a great tonic.