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Tributes have been pouring in from US presidents and luminaries around the world celebrating the life Aretha Franklin. Songs sung by the “Queen of Soul” became anthems against adversity as well as hope to millions of people in very different social and political settings. Music culture also owes her a debt. As one of the first true great divas of soul she fused gospel and African American spiritual music traditions with the blues, pop and R&B. Leah Kardos pays tribute.
The world of literature also bade farewell to a big name this week: Nobel Laureate VS Naipaul passed away aged 85. Dilip Menon looks back on his controversial life and literary oeuvre.
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Peter Foley/EPA
Leah Kardos, Kingston University
Aretha Franklin, the 'Queen of Soul', was the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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VS Naipaul after receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2001.
EPA
Dilip Menon, University of the Witwatersrand
Nobel prize winning author Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul was as hard on himself as on others.
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Health + Medicine
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Sarah D'Souza, University of the Western Cape; Admire Dube, University of the Western Cape
The reason that nanoparticles hold such hope for TB treatment is that they can be carefully targeted.
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Ian Jones, University of Reading
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been hit with another Ebola outbreak. This may be the test case for how to deal with future outbreaks.
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Politics + Society
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Netina Tan, McMaster University; Cassandra Preece, McMaster University
The re-election of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen contributes to the growing global democratic crisis. Here's why.
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Shandana Khan Mohmand, Institute of Development Studies
In a country where less-than-democratic elites wield substantial power, bottom-up politics is still alive and well.
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