Do you really know?

Who are Oasis? Thanks for asking!     On August 10th 1996, Oasis drew over 250,000 fans to their gigs on two consecutive nights at Knebworth Park. Much like the band, these record-breaking concerts would end up gaining legendary status.   And just a week ago, a dedicated Oasis Knebworth 1996 documentary premiered in UK cinemas, making it the perfect opportunity to talk about one of the country’s m...

What is the Aukus alliance? Thanks for asking!   On September 16th, Australia announced it had signed a strategic pact with the United States and United Kingdom. The aim is to ensure stability in the Indo-Pacific, which consists of several important seaways between India, Japan and Australia. The ocean region is a hub for global trade and energy supply. The recent pact was named AUKUS, to include...

What is the Britney Spears conservatorship case? Thanks for asking! Ardent fans and onlookers alike have probably noticed the diva’s disappearance from major social media platforms, including Instagram. Before deactivating her accounts, Britney assured her followers on Twitter she was just taking a break to celebrate her engagement and promised to be back soon.  However, there seems to be more to...

What is the baby bust? Thanks for asking! The United Kingdom is facing a particularly low birth rate recorded. The phenomenon could have significant long-term economic consequences, a British think tank warned on Monday 20 September 2021. You’ve almost certainly heard of the baby boom, which saw birth rates soar in many countries following the end of the Second World War. Well, we’re currently exp...

What is mucosal immunity? Thanks for asking!  It was announced last week that Covid booster vaccines would soon be available to millions of people across the UK, including all over 50s and other people with underlying health conditions.   In the meantime, new ways to combat the virus are emerging, specifically that of an nasal spray vaccine designed to boost mucosal immunity. Regular listeners may...

What are Butler Cafés? Thanks for asking! In recent months, an interesting trend has been catching on in China. An increasing number of women are paying for male companionship in establishments known as butler cafés. According to Chinese media outlet The Sixth Tone, butler cafés are enjoying impressive success. They’ve been springing up all over big cities for a few months. Review sites list dozen...

What is last chance tourism? Thanks for asking!   Last chance tourism is a travel trend whereby tourists increasingly seek to experience the world’s most endangered sites before they vanish or are irrevocably transformed, according to the definition given by the Current Issues in Tourism magazine. Last chance tourism is also sometimes referred to as doomsday tourism. The term was first coined in t...

What is toxic positivity? Thanks for asking! “Good vibes only”, “everything happens for a reason”, “When life gives you lemons.”...You’ve almost certainly been told these mantras at some point in your life, whether in a professional or personal context.  Toxic positivity is a belief that people should maintain a positive mindset no matter how difficult their situation is. Though they might seem co...

What is 5G? Thanks for asking! On Tuesday 14 September, Apple presented its new iPhone 13. With the 5G, the American company has boosted its iPhone sales. 5G is the fifth and newest generation of mobile connectivity. Its commercial rollout has already begun, with the four major US carriers having begun deployment in 2019. The GSMA estimates that 5G will account for 20% of all global connections by...

What is World Cleanup Day? Thanks for asking!  World Cleanup Day is held annually on the third Saturday of September all over the world. This year it falls today, on September 18th. The global initiative was launched by the Let’s Do It Foundation, a nonprofit association, and the aim is to combat pollution through community clean-ups. Created in 2008 in Estonia, the association is a certified memb...

What is the #QuitMyJob trend? Thanks for asking! This hashtag went viral on TikTok during the summer. On social media, thousands of web users used the hashtag QuitMyJob to hand in their resignation directly on the Internet. For starters, to give their notice in style. But more importantly, to call their employers out for unacceptable behaviour. American Shana Blackwell, is seen as having started t...

What is a Tiny House? Thanks for asking! You may have spotted one in a park, at the edge of the woods, or in a parking lot in the middle of the countryside. Tiny houses on wheels or up on a trailer have been springing up like mushrooms for a number of years.  The tiny-house trend is a social and architectural movement that demonstrates a desire to return to simplicity by downsizing living spaces....

What is tokenism? Thanks for asking!   Have you ever got the feeling a company or organisation is preaching equality, but it all feels a bit fake? Well, you may be witnessing what’s known as tokenism. It’s a societal practice which is designed to prevent accusations of discrimination. It involves recruiting members of underrepresented groups to give an impression of equality. But more often than n...

What is Operation London Bridge? Thanks for asking!  This meticulous plan had remained largely secret until now. All the details of this dreaded moment have just been leaked to a British media. Queen Elizabeth II has reigned over the United Kingdom and Commonwealth since February 6th 1952, longer than any other British monarch.  Believe it or not, extensive protocol is already in place for the day...

What is the 9/11 Museum? Thanks for asking! It’s been twenty years since the 9/11 attacks which shocked the entire world, killing 2977 people. As part of the commemorations, President Biden is due to visit the three plane crash sites in New York City, Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon.  Part of the memorial at Ground Zero in New York includes the 9/11 Museum, which was inaugurated in May 2014 by th...

What is squirting? Thanks for asking! OK, so from their teenage years onwards most men get used to fluid shooting out of their genitals on a regular basis. But female ejaculation is a thing too, and it’s known colloquially as squirting. Most often, it’s when a woman expels fluid from the vulva either before or during an orgasm. It’s generally seen as a pleasurable sensation, even when it doesn’t h...

What are Fan Tokens? Thanks for asking! Even if you’re not a football fan, you can’t have missed the news of Lionel Messi’s recent transfer to Paris Saint Germain in mid-August. But you may not have heard details of the star’s €30M sign-on package at PSG, a significant proportion of which was paid in the club’s Fan Token cryptocurrency. The move led to a spike in PSG trading, with the token value...

What is terraforming? Thanks for asking! If you’re a fan of sci-fi, the idea of terraformation should be familiar. It refers to all the techniques and technologies which aim to transform the surface of a planet, making it suitable for human inhabitation. Basically, it means making a planet similar to Earth. To make a Hollywood comparison, that’s exactly the purpose of the Weyland-Yutani company in...

What is a deepfake? Thanks for asking! “Seeing is believing”, as the old saying goes, but in this day and age, you can never quite be sure, especially when viewing something online. Deepfaking is a technique used to create fake videos of real people, with the help of AI technology.  They’ve got a lot of attention in recent years, often as a source of light-hearted entertainment. But experts have a...

What is empty nest syndrome? Thanks for asking! With the summer holiday season drawing to a close, many university students are preparing to leave home for the first time and head to campus accommodation. While they’re enjoying freshers week, chances are their parents may be finding it unsettling that their child is no longer present at home. That’s even more likely when it’s their last child who’...

What is air rage? Thanks for asking! Many of us have not set foot on an aeroplane for quite some time, and the idea of being crammed alongside other passengers for a long flight is potentially unnerving, what with Covid still circulating.  Of late, a number of amateur clips have gone viral, showing passengers becoming aggressive and sometimes even violent towards fellow fliers or airline staff. Su...

What are silent discos? Thanks for asking! I don’t know about you but I sure miss partying the night away. In the age of social distancing, most of us can barely remember what it’s like to be part of a crowd dancing together in a club. While we wait for life to slowly get back to how it was pre-Covid, you might be interested to know about another kind of party. Even your neighbours are unlikely to...

What is the Ebola virus? Thanks for asking! On August 14th, an Ebola virus case was detected in the Ivory Coast, for the first time in over a quarter of a century. The infected person was an 18-year old woman who had travelled over 900 miles by bus from Guinea, a country which had already seen an Ebola outbreak in early 2021, leading to 12 deaths. The consequences of Ebola returning to the Ivory C...

What is a QR code? Thanks for asking! QR codes have likely never been used more than in the Covid age. They’ve become ubiquitous especially since the NHS started using them for its test and Trace app. These odd black-and-white grids may all look alike, but in fact every QR code is unique. QR codes, or quick response codes to give them their full name, were first invented by Japanese engineer Masah...

What are the Paralympics? Thanks for asking!   The Paralympic Games got underway yesterday, with 4,400 competitors in Tokyo, including 227 representing Great Britain. Just like the Olympic Games of last month, the Paralympics are taking place behind closed doors because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The latest edition will see athletes compete at 22 disciplines, including taekwondo and badminton for t...