The upcoming total solar eclipse has sparked a frenzy of excitement across the world – with eager tourists clamoring to find the perfect spot to witness the natural phenomenon unfold in front of their, albeit shielded, eyes.
Such is the fevered excitement surrounding the event that cities and areas positioned along the path of the eclipse have seen a staggering surge in hotel and Airbnb bookings, prompting prices to soar to thousands of dollars a night.
Some cities in Texas,
The Royal Suite’s lake view may have won the Burgenstock Hotel and Alpine Spa in Switzerland a listing in the top 100 hotel suites of the world, but the view from just about every other window, patio, balcony and pool, in this amazing spa resort, is almost as breathtaking.
The property sits spectacularly 500 metres (1,640ft) above Lake Lucerne and Elite Traveler, that bible for ultra-high-net-worth individuals, declared that no words could express its ‘glorious wonders’.
I decide to rise
A bitter north wind whipped through the old Liverpool docks, a mile as the crow flies from Goodison Park, and the sky was slate grey, just like the mood around the club who have been docked ten points and now await whatever storms may follow.
But the scene behind the vast granite wall where Everton’s new stadium is being built was one of utter incongruity, given the state of crisis the club find themselves in.
There were 1,100 people on
Most Europeans have a unique idea about what Americans look like in each US state, and artificial intelligence has brought these views to life in lifelike images.
Midjourney, a system that creates images based on users’ text prompts, created an image for each of the 50 states based on how those across the Atlantic perceive them.
According to AI, Europeans think Alabamians typically have missing teeth, all Utahans are Mormons and Virginians are stuck in the Victorian era. And everyone
The second-largest of the Channel Islands, lying in the English Channel around 30 miles (48km) from the French coast, Guernsey offers plenty that’s comfortably familiar for British travellers, served with more than a soupcon of Gallic flair.
The island’s rugged coastline and crystalline seas inspired French Impressionist artist Pierre-August Renoir to paint several works during his stay here in 1883, and 140 years later, many of those paintings are being shown right now for the first time in an exhibition
Welcome to Up for Debate. Each week, Conor Friedersdorf rounds up timely conversations and solicits reader responses to one thought-provoking question. Later, he publishes some thoughtful replies. Sign up for the newsletter here.
Last week I asked readers, “How should liberal democracies utilize or eschew taboos?”
Replies have been edited for length and clarity.
We in liberal democracies have a fondness for countercultural expression and norm challenging that can seem paradoxical—if so many of us come to love a rebel,
Over the last few years, JK Rowling has caused a rift in her fandom over her views on transgenderism and gender identity.
This includes her questioning if trans women should be allowed in women-only spaces.
The Harry Potter author, who denies being transphobic, has responded to the considerable online backlash a number of times claiming she didn’t mean to upset anyone with her opinions.
She clarified in a post in 2020: “I know and love trans people, but erasing the
A series of new images from the James Webb Space Telescope shows the dusty, irregular galaxy NGC 6822 — and the different views captured by various Webb instruments.
Located relatively close by at 1.5 million light-years from Earth, this galaxy is notable for its low metallicity. Confusingly, when astronomers say metallicity they do not mean the amount of metals present in a galaxy, but rather the amount of all heavy elements — i.e., everything which isn’t hydrogen or helium. This
A point-of-view (POV) video showing a top head chef at work has cooked up a feast of clicks on YouTube.
Footage recorded at Fallow restaurant in St James’s, London, by co-founder Jack Croft has racked up nearly four million views.
Jack filmed the POV footage using a 4K GoPro camera during a busy Friday lunchtime, with viewers able to witness how he adds the finishing
The group of teenage pilgrims traipsing through Lisbon during this week’s big meeting of Catholic youth from all over the world seemed to have taken to heart Pope Francis’ call for them to shake things up.
It would be better, one girl said, if the church were “more inclusive of all relationships, gay rights and all that.” A boy holding a portable speaker playing pop hits added he would be all for “girls being priests.” Another girl, with an Irish
