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The Guardian — page 21

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Coverage, page 21

page 21 of 102

Indonesian wildfires threaten leading orangutan research site in Borneo

Critically endangered Bornean orangutans flee forests as staff at Cabang Panti work round the clock to stave off blaze Wildfires in Indonesia are sweeping through a critical research site for Bornean orangutans and are now threatening a celebrated research camp, home to one of the world’s longest-running studies of wild apes. In the past few days, the fires have burned within 200 metres of Rangkong research station, a satellite of Cabang Panti research station, which lies about four miles north in Gunung Palung national park. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Gloria Dickie15 Sept

Matthew Rhys’s alma mater pays tribute to ‘loyal pupil’ and Welsh language devotee

Actor, who made history at the Emmys, thanked the ‘great and the good people of Wales’ for nurturing his talent When Matthew Rhys made history as the first actor ever to win two best lead Emmy awards in one night, he paid tribute to his roots. “To the great and good people of Wales, who were as much a nurturer as anyone else,” said the proud Welshman now living in New York, “We are a small but mighty nation”. “Diolch yn fawr iawn,” he added, meaning “thank you very much” in Welsh. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Caroline Davies15 Sept

The sinister influence of crypto billionaires on our politics | Letters

Readers respond to the news that Christopher Harborne has given £36m to Reform UK, matching a donation from Ben Delo Cryptocurrency is often sold as decentralised and democratic, yet its real behaviour resembles gravity: wealth is pulled inexorably into a few vast centres while draining from everyone else ( Christopher Harborne matches £36m Reform donation of Ben Delo, 12 September ). Early adopters, insiders and whales acquire huge holdings at negligible cost. Their size then shapes the market, drawing in ordinary investors whose money ultimately fuels those already at the top. Because crypto generates no cash flow and produces little real economic output, it becomes structurally zero‑sum. One person’s gain is another’s loss, and the system relies on a continual inflow of participants whose contributions sustain the fortunes of a minority. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Guardian Staff15 Sept

Social media is promoting harmful attitudes towards sun exposure | Letter

An awareness campaign isn’t enough. The UK should ban commercial sunbeds, writes Dr Amy Perkins Rising melanoma rates demand more than another awareness campaign ( Editorial, 7 August ). As a consultant dermatologist with a special interest in the health impacts of social media, I see how digital platforms are normalising harmful attitudes towards sun exposure, while the sunbed industry thrives. Social media algorithms reward content that provokes strong reactions. Extreme tanning routines, dramatic before-and-after images and misleading health claims can therefore travel further than balanced medical advice. I have previously raised the alarm about irresponsible sunbed advertising, including claims that sunbeds offer a net health benefit. Such promotion is indefensible: UV radiation from sunbeds is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization’s cancer agency. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Guardian Staff15 Sept

Leader of Reform UK in Wales stands down after arrest on suspicion of assault

Dan Thomas, a former Tory councillor, was elected to Senedd as leader of the opposition in May The leader of Reform UK in Wales is standing down after he was arrested and bailed on suspicion of assault. Dan Thomas, a former Tory councillor, was announced as Reform UK’s Welsh leader by Nigel Farage in February. He was elected to the Senedd as leader of the opposition in May’s election. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Ben Quinn and Bethan McKernan15 Sept

Top golfers to get no favours for PGA Tour return after LIV bankruptcy

PGA commissioner: ‘The Tour is built on meritocracy’ Rahm and Hatton likely to start back on DP World Tour The head of the PGA Tour has insisted there will be no favours offered to golfers looking to return to the platform following LIV’s bankruptcy filing last week. The increasing likelihood is players such as Jon Rahm, Cameron Smith and Tyrrell Hatton will have to play their way back on to the PGA Tour through performances in Europe in 2027 in what would represent a boost to the DP World Tour. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Ewan Murray at Wentworth15 Sept

Thousands of sea turtles reach Mexico in yearly migration threatened by climate crisis – video

More than 330,000 sea turtles arrived in southern Mexico in a mass nesting phenomenon known as an ‘arribada’. The sixth arribada of the season, which began in March, brought thousands of turtles to the beach in less than 48 hours to lay their eggs, according to officials at La Escobilla beach sanctuary in Oaxaca, Mexico. The olive ridley turtle plays a fundamental role in marine and coastal ecosystems by contributing nutrients to beach-dune systems and regulating populations of jellyfish and sponges, according to Mexico's federal attorney for environmental protection, but the climate crisis is now threatening their survival Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian15 Sept

Football Daily | Have laudable Leeds left the chaos behind them?

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! It’s been quite the stomach-churning white-knuckle ride for Leeds United over the past decade. Their fans have been forced to endure more highs, lows, loops, corkscrews and rolls than a thrill-seeking visitor on Nemesis Reborn at Alton Towers. There have been b@nter eras, multiple owners, near-misses, promotions, relegations and managerial churn. The Marcelo Bielsa years will always be remembered as fondly as the Thomas Christiansen months have been erased from collective memory. Under Jesse Marsch, Leeds secured dramatic final-day Premier League survival at Brentford, before dropping through the trapdoor the following season despite the best efforts of the High Performance American and Lower Performance Javi Gracia and Big Sam Allardyce. After yet another VAR offside fiasco at the weekend ( yesterday’s Football Daily ), centering on whether a player diving towards the goal is active or not, can I suggest we take subjectivity out of the equation? We have this nice, already marked, box on the field which is used to decide how harshly punished a foul is. So can we not just say everyone in the penalty area is active, no matter what they’re doing, and judge offsides accordingly?” – Hugh Fordham. Re: Arsenal demanding a meeting with Pro Ref after a penalty decision (yesterday’s News, Bits and Bobs, full email edition). It should write to Mikel Arteta and ask why he feels the need to repeatedly leave his technical area. After all, ‘it is unacceptable at this level’” – Deryck Hall. Chris Brown’s observation that ‘Spurs’ front three right now pose about as much threat as a Muttley-SpongeBob-Sylvester the Cat trio’ ( yesterday’s Football Daily letters ) brought to mind the obvious conclusion that it’s not Messrs Lange and Venkatesham who are in charge of player investments, but Wile E Coyote. Spurs’ strategy seems to be just as sound as all Mr Coyote’s purchases from Acme Co in his private pursuits” – Peter Rehwaldt. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Barry Glendenning15 Sept

‘She went to her studio every day and no one was allowed near it’: the glorious nature paintings of Yasmin David

Her father was Laurie Lee, her mother the bohemian Lorna Garman, and the full extent of her talent wasn’t apparent until after her death. A revelatory exhibition places David at the heart of British landscape painting When Clio David was growing up, her mother’s studio was off-limits. The wooden outbuilding where her mother, Yasmin, went to paint was in the apple orchards that surrounded her childhood home in south Devon. It had once been a dormitory for the students of Dartington Hall, a progressive school where Clio’s father taught during the 1960s. “It was somewhere she went every day to paint and work, and no one was allowed near it,” says Clio. “The walls of our house were covered in her paintings, but the studio was a private place.” Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Alice Fisher15 Sept

AFL finals: where the Sydney v Fremantle preliminary final will be won and lost

The Swans are within touching distance of an unlikely grand final spot while the Dockers have their campaign for a first premiership back on track Sign up for our free weekly AFL newsletter Sydney’s season was meant to be dead and buried by now. The club-imposed suspension of five players for breaching club standards was thought to have weakened the side to such an extent that a straight-sets finals exit was all but guaranteed. But while the spotlight was on the absent players, a galvanised group of those who remained – one still sprinkled with stardust – dialled up the heat to stun Brisbane and surge into a home preliminary final. The emotion-charged triumph made the Swans the 13th team to win a qualifying final by more than 50 points since 2000. Eleven of the previous 12 teams then earned a spot in the decider. But for all of their newfound momentum, Dean Cox’s side have to overcome the loss of another pivotal player after captain Callum Mills sustained a serious knee injury against the Lions. The Swans have turned doubters into believers with the way their players have stepped up in the face of adversity. But it would be another chapter in a story for the ages if they can beat the minor premiers to reach a third grand final in five seasons. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Martin Pegan15 Sept

Pauline Hanson’s daughter Lee working for a NSW One Nation senator remotely from Tasmania without ministerial approval

Exclusive: Lee Hanson also appears to be regularly campaigning for party during work hours, social media shows Listen to Guardian Australia’s podcast The Populist here Get our new political email , free app or daily news podcast Pauline Hanson’s daughter, Lee Hanson, has been working in Tasmania as a senior adviser to a New South Wales One Nation senator without the required ministerial approval, Guardian Australia can reveal. Under work base arrangements that apply to the staff of all MPs, a personal adviser such as Hanson can only be allowed to work in a location other than Canberra or the parliamentarian’s home base with approval from the special minister of state. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Sarah Martin Senior correspondent15 Sept

Datacentre giant accused of using AI while lobbying for Victorian minister’s support for hyperscale factory

Exclusive: Correspondence requests state MP Melissa Horne to lobby on NextDC’s behalf – but contains alleged AI-created errors Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast The Victorian jobs minister has accused one of Australia’s largest datacentre companies of using artificial intelligence while requesting she lobby her colleague to approve a massive expansion of its “hyperscale AI factory”. Correspondence between Victorian cabinet minister Melissa Horne and the chief executive of ASX-listed company NextDC, Craig Scroggie, reveals increasing sensitivity to community concerns about datacentres before the state election. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Henry Belot15 Sept

‘In this new car, I feel patronised’: which driver assistance systems actually improve safety?

Modern cars are fitted with features like autonomous emergency braking and fatigue monitoring. But do they support motorists or drive them to distraction? This new car I’m test-driving boasts all the latest bells and whistles – or, rather, beeps and bings. Peer sideways for too long checking traffic and the car emits an irritating sound. Should I take a hand off the wheel to scratch an ear, I’m admonished with a strident beep. When the car determines it’s too near a white line, it tugs the wheel against my hands and brakes as a car slows ahead. Its haptic “buttons” feel like fingers pressing back – as if an invisible presence has its hands and feet on the controls: a ghost in the machine I’m inside. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Andrew Herrick15 Sept

No Big Deal review – is this how AI ends humanity … with a sitcom so bad it bores you to death?

The characters are dead-eyed waxworks which speak with all the nuance of a satnav. But this AI-created workplace comedy is so bad that even the greatest actors alive couldn’t stop it being unwatchable As you will no doubt be aware, one Anthropic researcher claimed there is a greater than one in 10 chance that AI will end all of humanity as we know it within the next decade. However, now that I’ve given it some thought, I think this statistic might actually be a little conservative. This is because I have just watched an episode of a sitcom created by AI, and if I ever have to do it again I’m genuinely going to die of boredom. The show is No Big Deal, and it premiered on YouTube on Friday. I was apparently only the 376th person to watch it. This is by no means a recommendation that you become the 377th, more a warning to avoid it if your algorithm ever decides it hates you enough to suggest this. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Stuart Heritage15 Sept

Democrat sends letter to White House over Trump Jr wedding bankrolled by Russian oligarch

Robert Garcia expresses concern over ‘any possible foreign entanglement’ between White House and Umar Kremlev Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, is investigating potential ties between the White House and a Russian oligarch who paid for a portion of Donald Trump Jr’s wedding. In a letter sent to Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, on Monday, Garcia expressed concern about “any possible foreign entanglement” between the president’s son and the oligarch, Umar Kremlev . Garcia asked Wiles to provide documents, records and communications between the White House and Trump Jr about Kremlev, among other requests. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Ariana Baio15 Sept

Manchester United shocked as talented youngster JJ Gabriel asks to leave

15-year-old wants his registration to be cancelled He was to be in squad to face Brighton on Wednesday Manchester United have been left confused and shocked by the news that the talented 15-year-old JJ Gabriel has asked to leave the club, a day before he was to be included in the first-team squad to face Brighton. Gabriel could have become United’s youngest player in the Carabao Cup third-round tie at Old Trafford on Wednesday. But the Guardian understands Gabriel has asked for his registration to be cancelled. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Dominic Booth15 Sept

‘I loved my time in the FBI but nothing can compare to the NFL’: Charles ‘Peanut’ Tillman on his unlikely career path

The player who invented the Peanut Punch talks about his nomadic childhood, love of Chicago and time as a cop By No Helmets Required Defensive back Charles Tillman played 168 games for his hometown team Chicago Bears across 13 NFL seasons. Nicknamed “Peanut” as a child by his mother, he became renowned for the Peanut Punch, where he would whack the ball out of the hands of unsuspecting receivers. After retiring from playing, he spent eight years in the FBI before quitting over the Trump administration’s ICE policies and tactics. Now 45, he spent some of his summer in England, teaching flag football to kids in Liverpool. You went to a dozen schools around the world as a child. Do you share your own experiences when you coach kids now? “Absolutely. I share a great deal because it helped shape me into the person I am today. My dad being in the military and us moving around so much helped my personality. I’m very outgoing and a lot of that stems from my childhood, always being the new kid in school and having to make new friends. So, I talk about those experiences with the kids when it feels appropriate.” Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Gavin Willacy15 Sept

When is an ebike not an ebike? When it has a powerful illegal engine. Get this menace off our roads | Peter Walker

As a cyclist I want the authorities to act with clarity. Lime bikes and renters can be annoying, but the true threat is those who dangerously flout the law One of the curiosities of debates about cycling in the UK is that almost all of them centre on the place with the greatest concentration of not only bikes but also politicians and journalists: inner London. Inevitably this is just a small part of the story. Much of the current focus is on so-called share bikes operated by companies such as Lime and Forest – nippy electric-assist machines that can be picked up and left on pavements. On Saturday, a Guardian investigation revealed that councils in the capital have so far this year seized 3,393 dangerously parked or abandoned ebikes , a number 23% higher than the total for the whole of last year. Continue reading...

The GuardianThe Guardian•Peter Walker15 Sept