Mubeen Blogs

As a child, I didn’t understand the ancient food decaying in my grandmother’s cupboard. Now I’m beginning to “This oregano is best before 1985!” my sister cries, adding it to the pile on the laminate bench. It’s Hervey Bay circa 1991. My family is staying in Gran’s retirement villa, my sisters and I on camp stretchers in the garage. A single pedestal fan brings short bursts of breeze, rotating relief from the December heat. The town is not yet on the backpacker circuit. There aren’t any cafes, shops or streaming services, and there are only so many games of Scrabble we can take. Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/DQlrVRk

Reggio Emilia prefect stops gig after ‘concerns’ from local Jewish community over rapper’s previous antisemitic remarks A Kanye West concert in Italy has been cancelled over “public order and safety issues”. The 48-year-old rapper, who changed his name to Ye in 2021, was due to perform at the Pulse of Gaia festival at the RCF Arena in Reggio Emilia on 18 July, but the city’s prefect, Salvatore Angieri, stopped the gigs after “concerns” from the local Jewish community over previous antisemitic remarks by West. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/EnySjug

Russian strikes in Kyiv, the Ebola outbreak, Eid al-Adha in Gaza and Sinner at the French Open – the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/ndmwSoZ

Cutting boards are some of the germiest kitchen items. We asked a food safety professor for the best ways to clean one to prevent bacteria The six best plastic-free cutting boards, tested Sign up for the Filter US newsletter, your weekly guide to buying fewer, better things Your cutting board could be dirtier than a toilet seat, according to germ experts. When we recently asked microbiologists about surprisingly filthy everyday items, they ranked cutting boards among the germiest household items (alongside kitchen sponges and water bottles ). Many things at home could technically be dirtier than toilet seats, a surface we emphasize disinfecting regularly. (We asked custodians for cleaning tips there.) So this is not something to spiral into a germaphobic panic about, but at dinner cleanup, it’s worth paying some special attention to that cutting board you just used to chop up zucchini or carve chicken. Knowing how to clean this kitchen surface is vital for avoiding unpleasant odors...

Hum, Helen Phillips’ third novel, featuring a woman whose job is taken by a humanoid robot, is a terrifying look into a future where AI rules and nature is scarce A novel featuring a protagonist whose job is taken by AI has won the Climate fiction prize. Hum by Helen Phillips, the American writer’s third novel, is about a woman, May, who loses her job to a “hum” of the title – a humanoid robot. Struggling to find work, she becomes a guinea pig for an experimental injection that alters her face so it can’t be recognised by surveillance. When she gets paid for it, she splashes out on family passes to the Botanical Garden, the last remaining green space in her city. There, things take a turn for the worse. Hum by Helen Phillips (Atlantic Books, £16.99). To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com . Delivery charges may apply. Helen Phillips will appear at Hay festival to discuss the book on Friday 30 May Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/LfqHjhQ

US president, who turns 80 next month, frequently casts himself as fit but recent photos have added to questions about his health Sign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Donald Trump, the oldest inaugurated president in US history, completed a physical exam on Tuesday at Walter Reed national military medical center, amid questions around his health. “Everything checked out PERFECTLY,” the US president declared in a social media post. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/4yDM9nV

Senior lawyers call on prime minister to request Indian prosecutors drop charges that would breach double jeopardy rule Four senior lawyers, including the former attorney general Dominic Grieve, have written to Keir Starmer urging him to request that Indian prosecutors drop charges against the British national Jagtar Singh Johal on the basis that continued prosecution would be in manifest breach of the double jeopardy rule which prevents someone being tried twice for the same offence. Johal has been held in an Indian jail for eight years, and in March last year was acquitted of the terrorist charges laid against him in a court in Punjab. The court found the prosecutors had ‘miserably failed’ to present any reliable evidence, despite having had seven years to do so. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/YroKMVZ