Weekend takeaway: We must save the bees and the seas


27 Apr 2018

Macro image of a bee drinking a water drop from a green leaf. Image: Photografiero/Shutterstock

Essential sci-tech reading for the weekend, including a crucial vote that could save the bees and why we need to work harder to save our seas, too.

This EU vote could make a huge difference to bees’ survival

This EU vote could make a huge difference to bees’ survival

Image: ch_ch/Shutterstock

Member states of the EU are set to vote in a complete ban on a particular pesticide, potentially saving a significant amount of bees in Europe.

Behold, the most detailed, stunning star map of our galaxy ever made

Image: Alex Mit/Shutterstock

Painstaking research undertaken by ESA has created a beautiful and stunning map of nearly 1.7bn stars in the Milky Way.

Ireland to become centre for biodegradable plastic with €22m project

Ireland to become centre for biodegradable plastic with €22m project

Dairy by-products will be used at the centre to develop biodegradable plastic. Image: Matthew Dixon/Shutterstock

In a major win in the effort to develop biodegradable plastic, a new €22m Irish-based research project has been revealed with help from EU funding.

Easkey Britton: ‘The sea is a powerful mirror to what’s going on in society’

Easkey Britton: ‘The sea is a powerful mirror to what’s going on in society’

Easkey Britton riding a wave. Image: Christian McLeod

When she’s not taking to the waves, Inspirefest 2018 speaker and scientist Easkey Britton is working with communities to raise awareness of the massive problem that is plastic waste.

Shells found in Scotland rewrite our understanding of climate change

Rannoch Moor

Rannoch Moor in the central Scottish Highlands was the epicentre of the last ice cap in Scotland. Radiocarbon ages from plant remains were preserved in lake sediments and show the ice cap disappeared around 12,500 years ago. Image: Gordon Bromley

An international team of scientists has found evidence that physical alterations in climate change are different to what we thought.

What’s happening at the world’s biggest start-up campus?

Roxanne Varza, director, Station F

Roxanne Varza, director, Station F. Image: Luke Maxwell

This summer will mark Station F’s first full year in operation. Elaine Burke caught up with Roxanne Varza to find out how start-up life at the 34,000 sq m start-up campus has been.

Hackers create ‘master key’ that unlocks millions of hotel room doors

hotel room keys

Image: Todja/Shutterstock

Two cybersecurity researchers find a glaring flaw in hotel key card security.

UK parliamentary committee to push for Zuckerberg testimony

Facebook app

Facebook app. Image: seasontime/Shutterstock

UK politicians are still keen to grill Mark Zuckerberg after Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Genealogy websites helped track down elusive Golden State Killer

DNA swab

DNA from an online database helped catch the Golden State Killer. Image: Henrik Dolle/Shutterstock

Joseph James DeAngelo, the alleged Golden State Killer, was apprehended using DNA from a genealogical website.

3D-printer breakthrough could turn our skin into electronic devices

Just by tweaking a 3D printer, researchers find way to make ‘electronic skin’

Image: FabrikaSimf/Shutterstock

The line between human and robot is becoming increasingly blurred, with the latest breakthrough opening a new frontier in the field of skin electronics.