This new sustainable lamp uses water to generate light
A Colombian designer has collaborated with renewable energy company E-dina and Wunderman Thompson to build a lamp that generates light using salt water. It could help over 800 million people worldwide with little access to electricity. Ever been stuck out in the wilderness without a torch? Phone run out...
Current in Culture
Opinion – Kanye needs to stop using ‘art’ as an excuse for hate
Kanye West’s new ‘Wh*te Lives Matter’ T-shirts are more than a cry for attention. They’re dangerous. This year, Paris Fashion Week burst at the seams with viral conversation starters. Despite a disappointing lack of sustainable sentiment, it would be hard to deny the future-facing stance of Paris’ shows – with a...
Does Netflix’s ‘Dahmer’ drama trivialise real tragedy?
Ryan Murphy’s drama adaptation of the Jeffery Dahmer case is a huge hit for Netflix. Despite seemingly well-intentioned studies of racial tensions throughout, the show still glamourises Dahmer and reduces real tragedy to convenient social media one-liners. Currently sitting at the top of Netflix’s home page, ‘Dahmer’ dramatizes and...
Caleb McLaughlin opens up about racist ‘Stranger Things’ fans
McLaughlin’s experience proves one thing: that whether young, old, or wildly successful, even those who seem untouchable still face racism. We’re all guilty of mystifying Hollywood stars. We immortalise them, so much so that the death of a mainstream actor feels like the loss of a loved one. Their wealth feels...
Student wins design prize for microplastic collecting robot fish
A student at the University of Surrey has designed a robot fish capable of filtering waterways to collect microplastics. The digital code is open source too, so anyone with access to a 3D printer can create their own. Microplastics are an ecological menace that have only really entered global discourse...
Meg Thee Stallion launches mental health platform
The program, called ‘Bad Bitches Have Bad Days Too’ provides an expanse of resources for therapy services and mental health helplines. It also showcases organisations offering advice for Black and LGBTQ+ communities, with the hope of improving access to mental health care and removing the stigma around asking for...
Opinion – why Halle Bailey’s portrayal of Ariel is so important
The new trailer for Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid features a Black actress in the title role. Conflicting responses from young children and racist adults prove why Ariel’s new casting is so important. Scheduled for a 2023 release, a live-action The Little Mermaid has created buzz since it was first announced in 2016. When Halle Bailey, a young Black musician – and five-time Grammy award winner alongside her...
Why is queerbaiting often a misunderstood term?
From Noah Schnapp to Madonna, accusations of ‘queerbaiting’ have been the source of controversy and debate across social media, but the term has often been misunderstood and misused. Just last week, Heartstopper star Kit Connor deleted Twitter after accusations that he had been ‘queerbaiting’ by playing a bisexual character in the popular Netflix show. Pictures of Connor holding hands with his co-star in the upcoming film, A Cuban Girl’s Guide to...
Dutch students build solar power motorhome
Is it a car? Is it a house? Technically this sustainable motorhome is both. Running on solar power, Dutch students created the vehicle to promote cleaner travel and demonstrate the potential of green living. A group of Dutch students from the Technical University of Eindhoven have built a new solar-powered motorhome that allow for up to 460 miles of travel on a sunny day. It's hoped that the vehicle will...
Researchers create solar powered cyborg cockroaches
The idea of using cockroaches to help search and rescue missions has been in development for quite some time. Now, Japanese researchers have implemented solar cells into an electronic backpack which can be mounted onto real cockroaches. Some scientific research projects are so off-the-wall it’s hard to believe they’re actually real. Such is the case with RIKEN’s newly-developed solar cell cockroach backpack. Created by researchers in Japan, it mounts onto...
