Breaking Waves: Ocean News

As rich westerners fuel demand for the ancient fragrance, a lucrative race for the resin is killing the trees but leaving little of the trade’s profit for those gathering it In a corner of Covent Garden, well-heeled Londoners and tourists browse the range of frankincense products sold by a leading cosmetics brand while they drink a complimentary rose and berry tea. Amid the aromatic resin sheathed under glass, shoppers can buy “age-defying” serums, creams and essences, and tablets to strengthen brittle nails and hair. At one counter, a sales assistant is advising customers on how much of the essential oil to add to their nebuliser to make guests feel relaxed “without overwhelming them”. Another explains frankincense’s “hydrating and rejuvenating” properties, including its alleged ability to smooth out fine lines caused by smiling and squinting. In terms of popularity, she says, it now far outstrips lavender, tea tree and other botanicals. Continue reading...

The hoiho, which means ‘noise shouter’, triumphed in a year free from the usual scandals surrounding the competition One of the world’s rarest penguins has been crowned New Zealand’s bird of the year, in an unusually sedate year for the competition, free from the foreign interference and voting scandals of previous events. The endangered yellow-eyed penguin, or hoiho, is the largest of New Zealand’s mainland penguin species and is distinctive for the pale yellow band of feathers linking the eyes. Continue reading...

Emissions from in-house data centers of Google, Microsoft, Meta and Apple may be 7.62 times higher than official tally Big tech has made some big claims about greenhouse gas emissions in recent years. But as the rise of artificial intelligence creates ever bigger energy demands, it’s getting hard for the industry to hide the true costs of the data centers powering the tech revolution. According to a Guardian analysis, from 2020 to 2022 the real emissions from the “in-house” or company-owned data centers of Google, Microsoft, Meta and Apple are likely about 662% – or 7.62 times – higher than officially reported. Continue reading...

Soaring UK production is helping sate record demand for ‘ultimate superfood’ but growers want more help from retailers Whether they add them to smoothies or salads or just pop them straight in their mouths, Britons are eating more blueberries than ever before. But whereas supermarket shelves used to be filled with imports, fruit growers are hailing a “British blueberry boom”. Sales of British blueberries are up by 13% this year, despite challenging conditions for growers, according to British Berry Growers (BBG), the industry trade group. It said the rise was a “clear indicator of the rising consumer demand for healthier food choices and a testament to the quality of British blueberries”. Continue reading...