The wide gap in development between rich and poor children could be closed with the help of neuroscience. Might a controversial focus on genetics also help? Film supported by @Mishcon de Reya LLP
Video timeline: 00:00– The achievement gap between rich and poor kids 00:55 – Words matter in childhood development 03:16 – Conversation can combat childhood inequality 05:09 – Can genetics help close the achievement gap? 07:30 – Genetics can be controversial
Salta, a province in northwest Argentina, encompasses parts of the Andes Mountains, Yungas forests and semiarid Gran Chaco lowlands. The capital, also called Salta, has colonial architecture including the neoclassical Cathedral of Salta. It’s the departure point for the Tren a las Nubes, a high-altitude railway. Small-town Cafayate is a gateway to wineries and the dramatic rock formations of the Calchaquí Valleys.
Jujuy, a province in Argentina’s remote northwest, is defined by the dramatic rock formations and hills of the Quebrada de Humahuaca. This valley and its indigenous Quechuan villages lie north of the provincial capital and regional gateway, San Salvador de Jujuy. In the valley’s south, the iconic, multicolored Cerro de los Siete Colores’ rocky slopes tower over the Spanish colonial village of Purmamarca.
America’s central bank plans to pinch off its massive bond-buying programme much faster in a bid to stall inflation; our correspondent says it is perhaps a late-arriving signal—but a promising one.
Loneliness is a growing problem in the rich world but seems particularly acute among American men. And why aged artists are increasingly taking over the December music charts.
An explanation for giant ice structures on Pluto, and dismantling the mestizo myth in Latin American genetics.
In this episode:
00:46 The frozen root of Pluto’s polygonal patterns
In 2015, NASA’s New Horizons probe sent back some intriguing images of Pluto. Huge polygonal patterns could be seen on the surface of a nitrogen-ice ice filled basin known as Sputnik Planitia. This week, a team put forward a new theory to explain these perplexing patterns.
Research article: Morison et al.
06:15 Research Highlights
How Pamplona’s bull-running defies the dynamics of crowd motion, and self-healing microbial bio-bricks.
Research Highlight: Running of the bulls tramples the laws of crowd dynamics
Research Highlight: It’s alive! Bio-bricks can signal to others of their kind
09:06 How the mixed-race ‘mestizo’ myth has fostered discrimination
The term ‘mestizo’ emerged during the colonial period in Latin America to describe a blend of ethnicities – especially between Indigenous peoples and the Spanish colonizers. But this label is a social construct not a well-defined scientific category. Now researchers are challenging the mestizo myth, which they say is harmful and has a troubling influence on science.
Feature: How the mixed-race mestizo myth warped science in Latin America
17:22 Briefing Chat
We discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, how interrupted sleep could be a route to creativity, and the development of vaccines to target respiratory syncytial virus.
New Scientist: Interrupting sleep after a few minutes can boost creativity
Today on Architectural Digest we visit Longmeadow, Massachusetts to tour a colonial-era home with a ton of potential but needing lots of work. Contractor Nick Schiffer from NS Builders takes us through this 18th century relic room by room – laying out the possibilities for restoring the historic flourishes while bringing the property into the present day.
Budapest, Hungary’s capital, is bisected by the River Danube. Its 19th-century Chain Bridge connects the hilly Buda district with flat Pest. A funicular runs up Castle Hill to Buda’s Old Town, where the Budapest History Museum traces city life from Roman times onward. Trinity Square is home to 13th-century Matthias Church and the turrets of the Fishermen’s Bastion, which offer sweeping views.
