Helena Horton Microbes that can digest plastics at low temperatures have been discovered by scientists in the Alps and the Arctic, which could be a valuable tool in recycling. Many microorganisms that can do this have already been found, but they can usually only work at temperatures above 30C (86F). This means that using them… Read More Microbes discovered that can digest plastics at low temperatures
Van Badham The western drift away from seeking moral instruction from the church is understandable; the morality plays staged every day on Reddit’s infamous “Am I the Asshole?” threads are far more entertaining. A few weeks ago, a post went viral in which the author seeks a public verdict on the question “AITA for asking… Read More The culture of mistrust is bleeding into our personal lives. No wonder there’s a sex recession
Tim Adams Prison ships have forever been associated with the worst excesses of English injustice. On the eve of Waterloo, Napoleon stiffened the resolve of his troops by demanding: “Soldiers, let those among you who have been prisoners of the English describe to you the hulks, and detail the most frightful miseries which they endured!”… Read More Napoleon’s words come back to haunt us as a prison barge for our times sails in
Mukul Kesavan To watch an election show as an anti-majoritarian spectator in the time of Narendra Modi is a traumatic business for two reasons. One, you mostly lose and two, sometimes even the ones you win, you lose. There was a moment during the Karnataka results show when the Congress’s leads dropped to a bare… Read More BJP-bin Dakshin
John Naughton Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to remember the metaverse, which was quietly laid to rest a few weeks ago by its grieving adoptive parent, one Mark Zuckerberg. Those of you with long memories will remember how, in October 2021, Zuck (as he is known to his friends) excitedly announced the arrival of his… Read More A moment’s silence, please, for the death of Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse
The BJP has grown and thrived by evoking the worst in this country’s citizens. It cannot be the presumption that what has been evoked, and what is on display, will disappear on its own by not facing up to it. This is just wishful thinking. What is the point of an opposition that is afraid… Read More The call for banning the Bajrang Dal shows rare electoral courage
Turkey’s general election on Sunday, May 14 will see voters cast their ballots for 600 members of its parliament and the country’s powerful presidency. This election has become intensely competitive in a country which has undergone severe democratic erosion over the past decade, but may now be looking for change. Turkish president, and previously prime minister, Recep… Read More Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu: Turkey’s opposition leader is leading in the polls
This May, The Caravan’s work has been recognised by two institutes. Stanford University’s Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center has awarded us the Shorenstein Journalism Award for 2023 for our steadfast coverage that champions accountability and media independence. “Despite intimidation and harassment from the government, The Caravan continues to document the erosion of democracy and… Read More The Caravan awarded Stanford University’s Shorenstein Journalism Award for 2023
The solution to the monstrous men of art, Claire Dederer argues, is not to smash our idols but to avoid making them idols in the first place. (Note: I have added some remarks on this which can be read at the bottom of this post) BY LAURA MILLER “Can I still listen to David Bowie?” That’s… Read More The Art of Monstrous People
Rather than confront the inherent role of the university as a class-sorting mechanism (as well as an engine of the military-industrial complex),.. educators settled on a pedagogical model that valued the individual and immediate experiences of students over general civic and literary instruction. In lieu of learning a shared curriculum, students earned course credits through… Read More The Language of Democracy
After the truth-shower 