The forgotten Essex train station that was in use for just 12 years
It was once a key part of the local transport system, but is now all but forgotten
Malcolm in the Middle star sparks widespread fan concern as he poses for first reunion snap
Fans of Malcolm in the Middle were left worried over one of the show's beloved cast members after a behind-the-scenes photo from the upcoming reboot went viral.
Death row inmate yells 'I didn't kill anybody' in chilling last words before he's EXECUTED after burning man alive over $200
The 54-year-old was convicted in 1995 for helping to kidnap and burn alive 32-year-old George Huguley.
Organisation invites Essex residents to submit historic figures for blue plaque
THE county's tourism organisation is inviting Essex residents to champion historical figures and events.
5 high street brands that (sadly) disappeared from Essex over the years
While online shopping has changed retail forever, here are five iconic brands that once dominated Essex town centres.
Young dog with 'enthusiasm for life' waiting at Dogs Trust looking for new home
This adorable young dog is one of many at the Dogs Trust centre in Essex are looking for their new home - can you help any?
Organisation invites Essex residents to submit historic figures for blue plaque
THE county's tourism organisation is inviting Essex residents to champion historical figures and events.
5 high street brands that (sadly) disappeared from Essex over the years
While online shopping has changed retail forever, here are five iconic brands that once dominated Essex town centres.
Young dog with 'enthusiasm for life' waiting at Dogs Trust looking for new home
This adorable young dog is one of many at the Dogs Trust centre in Essex are looking for their new home - can you help any?
Essex residents 'looking forward' to opening of long-awaited new railway station
It's been in the pipeline for decades
Carly Rae Jepsen is married! Call Me Maybe singer ties the knot with music producer at iconic NYC hotel
Carly Rae Jepsen officially said 'I do' to music producer Cole M.G.N. during a romantic ceremony at the iconic Chelsea Hotel in New York City earlier this month.
Met Police launches massive new grooming gangs inquiry with 9,000 cases probed again after criticism of Sadiq Khan and UK's biggest force
The Mayor of London has repeatedly denied that his city was blighted by the kinds of child abuse seen in towns such as Rochdale and Rotherham.
Iceland Just Found Its First Mosquitoes
An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNN: Iceland's frozen, inhospitable winters have long protected it from mosquitoes, but that may be changing. This week, scientists announced the discovery of three mosquitoes -- marking the country's first confirmed finding of these insects in the wild. Mosquitoes are found almost everywhere in the world, with the exception of Antarctica and, until very recently, Iceland, due to their extreme cold.
The mosquitoes were discovered by Bjorn Hjaltason in Kioafell, Kjos, in western Iceland about 20 miles north of the capital Reykjavik. "At dusk on October 16, I caught sight of a strange fly," Hjaltason posted in a Facebook group about insects, according to reports in the Icelandic media. "I immediately suspected what was going on and quickly collected the fly," he added.
He contacted Matthias Alfreosson, an entomologist at the Natural Science Institute of Iceland, who drove out to Hjaltason's house the next day. They captured three in total, two females and a male. Alfreosson identified them as mosquitoes from the Culiseta annulata species. A single mosquito from a different species was discovered many years ago on an airplane at the country's Keflavik International Airport, Alfreosson told CNN, but this "is the first record of mosquitoes occurring in the natural environment in Iceland." Further monitoring will be needed in the spring to see whether the species can survive the winter and "truly become established in Iceland," Alfreosson said. He said he's not sure climate change played a role in the discovery but "warming temperatures are likely to enhance the potential for other mosquito species to establish in Iceland, if they arrive."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
As Texas Power Demand Surges, Solar, Wind and Storage Carry the Load
Texas's electricity demand has surged to record highs in 2025 but renewable energy is meeting the challenge. According to new data from the Energy Information Administration, solar output has quadrupled since 2021, wind continues steady growth, and battery storage is increasingly stabilizing the grid during evening peaks. Electrek reports: ERCOT, which supplies power to about 90% of the state, saw demand jump 5% year-over-year to 372 terawatt hours (TWh) -- a 23% increase since 2021. No other major US grid has grown faster over the past year. [...] The biggest growth story in Texas power generation is solar. Utility-scale solar plants produced 45 TWh from January through September, up 50% from 2024 and nearly four times what they generated in 2021 (11 TWh). Wind power also continued to climb, producing 87 TWh through September -- a 4% increase from last year and 36% more than in 2021.
Together, wind and solar supplied 36% of ERCOT's total electricity over those nine months. Solar, in particular, has transformed Texas's daytime energy mix. From June to September, ERCOT solar farms generated an average of 24 gigawatts (GW) between noon and 1 pm -- double the midday output from 2023. That growth has pushed down natural gas use at midday from 50% of the mix in 2023 to 37% this year. The report notes that while natural gas is still Texas's dominant power source, it isn't growing like it used to. "Gas comprised 43% of ERCOT's generation mix during the first nine months of 2025, down from 47% in the first nine months of 2023 and 2024," reports Electrek.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Primark's 'brilliant' winter PJs shoppers keep praising because of 'amazing' design
Shoppers thanked Primark for the PJ sets
Met chief Sir Mark Rowley goes to battle with the BBC over Panorama exposé of shamed police station - after fourth officer is sacked for misconduct
This month, the broadcaster released Panorama: Undercover in the Police which exposed racist and discriminatory comments and actions by officers at Charing Cross police station.
Sweden's Crowd-Forecasting Platform 'Glimt' Helps Ukraine Make Wartime Predictions
alternative_right shares a report from France 24: [Sweden's] latest contribution to the war effort is Glimt, an innovative project launched by the Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI) earlier this year. Glimt is an open platform that relies on the theory of "crowd forecasting": a method of making predictions based on surveying a large and diverse group of people and taking an average. "Glimt" is a Swedish word for "a glimpse" or "a sudden insight." The theory posits that the average of all collected predictions produces correct results with "uncanny accuracy," according to the Glimt website. Such "collective intelligence" is used today for everything from election results to extreme weather events, Glimt said. [...]
Group forecasting allows for a broad collection of information while avoiding the cognitive bias that often characterizes intelligence services. Each forecaster collects and analyses the available information differently to reach the most probable scenario and can add a short comment to explain their reasoning. The platform also encourages discussion between members so they can compare arguments and alter their positions. Available in Swedish, French and English, the platform currently has 20,000 registered users; each question attracts an average of 500 forecasters. Their predictions are later sent to statistical algorithms that cross-reference data, particularly the relevance of the answers they provided. The most reliable users will have a stronger influence on the results; this reinforces the reliability of collective intelligence. "We used this method and research, and we suggested to the Ukrainians that it could improve their understanding of the world and its evolution," said Ivar Ekman, an analyst for the Swedish Defence Research Agency and program director for Glimt. "If you have a large group of people, you can achieve great accuracy in assessing future events. Research has shown that professional analysts don't necessarily have a better capacity in this domain than other people."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Barristers win right to go without wigs in court after campaigners branded the hairpieces 'culturally insensitive'
Revised guidance from The Bar Council now allows lawyers to ditch their wigs for criminal cases if it is 'uncomfortable, or impractical'.
MICHAEL GOVE: Oxford is on its knees to every Left-wing god. No wonder students cheer the death of their political opponents
If the Boomers have failed, Gen X has been a disappointment and the millennials are missing in action, then the composition of our future elites matters.
Celebrity 'stunt casting' on London's West End stages comes under new spotlight after series of high-profile flops - with warnings the trend could 'kill' the industry
In the past few years, theatre performances starring Catherine Tate , David Threlfall and Hollywood veteran Sigourney Weaver have all struggled to wow critics.