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Editor's note
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A group of rocks in Canada may have just changed what we know about the origins of life on this planet. Inside one of these rocks, researchers found microscopic tubes and filaments of iron that turned out to be fossilised microbes dating back at least 3.77 billion years. That makes them the oldest fossils ever found and possibly the earliest known evidence for life on Earth. Matthew Dodd explains how he proved these bold claims.
The average American family effectively pays US$1,400 each year to prop up US coal, oil and gas firms. That's the startling conclusion of economist Radek Stefanski's research on "hidden subsidies", which set up entire societies to favour fossil fuels. Even Donald Trump's most destructive proposals pale in comparison to the damage already being done, he says.
Two recent BBC series, Taboo and Roots, lay bare the cruelty of the transatlantic slave trade – one that provided the basis for wealth creation and power in Europe and the US. Historian Manuel Barcia goes back over the records to reveal how close dramatic depictions match the horrific reality.
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Stephen Harris
Commissioning Editor
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Top story
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Tubular fossils believed to represent early microbes.
Matthew Dodd
Matthew Dodd, UCL
Tiny tubes and filaments of iron found in rocks in Canada turned out to be the remains of microbes from over 3.7 billion years ago.
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Environment + Energy
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Radek Stefanski, University of St Andrews
Even Trump's most destructive proposals pale in comparison. The president is merely throwing a match on a burning building.
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Politics + Society
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Manuel Barcia, University of Leeds
The television dramas have not exaggerated the horrors of the slave trade. The reality was often even worse for Africans taken from their homes.
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Peter Bloom, The Open University
Can the world's progressives build their own international movement?
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James Koranyi, Durham University
EU citizens are being treated as pawns ahead of Brexit negotiations. This has happened before, at the height of the Cold War.
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Peter John McLoughlin, Queen's University Belfast
The two ruling parties live by the letter of the Good Friday Agreement, but not the spirit.
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Paul Smith, University of Nottingham
When the presidential candidate pulled out of an important photo opportunity, everyone thought he was quitting the race.
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Tom Harper, University of Surrey
The One Belt One Road programme is much more than just a freight line to new customers in the West.
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Helen Ringrow, University of Portsmouth
The @RoguePOTUSStaff account claims to be a genuine inside source of West Wing dirt, and hundreds of thousands of people seem to trust it.
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Alexander Brown, University of East Anglia
Incitement to hatred law in England and Wales currently protects many identities, but not disability.
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Robert Herian, The Open University
England's rugby team was flummoxed by a new tactic deployed by Italy in the Six Nations – even though it was within the rules.
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Health + Medicine
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Ian Hamilton, University of York; Mark Monaghan, Loughborough University; Wayne Hall, The University of Queensland
Smoking cannabis can cause addition, impaired memory and even psychosis.
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Nicola Logan, Aston University
Short-sightedness is a growing public health problem. Luckily, scientists are starting to find solutions.
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Arts + Culture
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Ben Edwards, Manchester Metropolitan University
Torcs found in the Staffordshire hills can reveal a lot about Iron Age society.
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Nick Clifton, Cardiff Metropolitan University
The UK's smallest city is bidding to be UK City of Culture 2021 – but how can it compete with its larger counterparts?
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João Florêncio, University of Exeter
Exploring the role and limits of photography is a task that appears all the more relevant in the era of fake news.
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Business + Economy
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Alexander Tziamalis, Sheffield Hallam University
The largest economy on the planet is quickly moving to a protectionist stance in its international trade.
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Science + Technology
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Giles Gasper, Durham University; Hannah Smithson, University of Oxford; Tom McLeish, Durham University
The case for neoclassicism in science.
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Bradley Elliott, University of Westminster
Large mammals such as elephants and whales are among the most long-lived of animals, but very tall humans don't enjoy the same benefits.
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Education
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Juliane Kloess, University of Birmingham
Moves to make sex education compulsory cannot come quickly enough.
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Emma Rich, University of Bath; Niamh Ni Shuilleabhain, University of Bath; Simone Fullagar, University of Bath
A complex issue requires sensitive techniques.
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Featured events
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University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, Somerset, BA2 7AY, United Kingdom — University of Bath
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Southend Campus, Elmer Approach, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, SS1 1LW, United Kingdom — University of Essex
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Egha Hill, Egham, Surrey, TW20 0EX, United Kingdom — Royal Holloway
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Peston Lecture Theatre, The Graduate Centre, Queen Mary University of London, 327 Mile End Road , London, London, City of, E1 4NS, United Kingdom — Queen Mary University of London
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