SCROLL NEWS / DISCOVERY

Search headlines

Find the stories shaping the conversation.

Search mode
Refine results
Active filters Keyword All time

Results for " tension " 1,347 found 🔀 AI-powered Shuffle

African Health Officials On Ebola: ‘This Is Too Much’ (Live Updates)

Several treatment centers have been destroyed and tensions are rising in Congo, the center of the Ebola outbreak.

forbes.com logo
May 25 • 3:58 PM EDT • Health • forbes.com
Forest must keep stars to progress

Nottingham Forest will fight to keep Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson, with Vitor Pereira insisting they need to continue to build. The duo will be in-demand this summer with Manchester City and Manchester United interested in England midfielder Anderson. Gibbs-White only signed a new three-year deal last summer - after Tottenham came in for him - while Murillo penned a one-year extension to 2029 at the weekend.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 25 • 1:41 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Olivia Newton-John book explores ‘tension’ during 'Grease' rehearsals

An Olivia Newton-John book by Matthew Hild explores the 'tension' on the set of 'Grease' during rehearsals.

ew.com logo
May 25 • 10:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • ew.com
Devon Witherspoon's extension may depend on New England Patriots

Devon Witherspoon's contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks may actually depend on the New England Patriots.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 25 • 9:01 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (10%)
wow
75%
love
25%
You Can Now Legally Rip Your Wii, GameCube, Wii And Xbox Discs Using A Blu-Ray Drive

All thanks to OmniDrive

timeextension.com logo
May 25 • 8:30 AM EDT • Technology • timeextension.com
Semiconductor decoupling. Powell's politics. Industrializing Ogaden. Free trade and the Magna Carta.

Thank you for opening your Chartbook email. Feliks Topolski, 1907-1989 8th Army’s Front, Italy 1944 Semiconductor decoupling Source: FT One thing that Jerome Powell deeply understood is that chairing the Fed under current conditions is a deeply political job. “Powell has successes and mistakes to his name. But he stands out as having thought more carefully about the Fed’s democratic legitimacy than any chair since Paul Volcker,” said Paul Tucker, a former deputy governor at the Bank of England, referring to the Fed chair who successfully fought the great inflation of the 1970s and early 1980s. … While Powell was at the Treasury in the early 1990s, he watched Alan Greenspan build relationships within the government. That convinced Powell he needed to follow the former Fed chair’s lead and spend more time in Congress than his predecessors Yellen and Bernanke. “The accountability for the Fed runs through Congress,” said Claudia Sahm, a former Fed official who is now chief economist at New Century Advisors. “That’s not just about having people on speed dial — it’s answering questions, explaining policy and getting feedback.” Source: FT Ethiopia’s PM Abiy and Nigerian business tycoon, with Chinese engineering, are driving industrialization in Ogaden/Somali region of Ethiopia. - Michael Masri’s reporting for Africa Report if fascinating. Ethiopia has launched a cluster of large industrial schemes in the Somali region, laying foundation stones for a urea plant and an oil refinery in Gode while opening the first two phases of the Ogaden LNG project. Abiy Ahmed framed the push as part of a broader strategy to link energy, agriculture and industry. “These projects embody more than industrial growth,” he said. “They represent our shared responsibility to harness opportunities, strengthen co-operation and promote peace.” The Gode urea plant, backed by Dangote Group and Ethiopian Investment Holdings (EIH), is designed for 3m tonnes a year. Dangote owns 60%, while EIH holds 40%. Officials say Dangote’s equity totals about $2.5bn, while the state provides land and implementation oversight. Gas from the Calub fields will be piped 108km to the site. Construction is slated for 40 months, with operations targeted for 2028. Ethiopia imports most of its fertiliser, spending more than $1.2bn a year for 1.5m–2m tonnes. Usage was roughly 1.7m tonnes in 2023, almost half of it urea, and demand for 2024–25 is put above 2.4m tonnes. If delivered on time, the Gode plant could cover domestic needs and allow exports to neighbours. Brook Taye, chief executive of EIH, called the venture “a significant milestone in the journey toward industrial self-sufficiency”. Dangote told the groundbreaking crowd that the complex would be integrated with gas supply and a polypropylene unit to support local inputs. He pointed to Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), with a capacity of more than 5,000MW, and noted his group’s cement operations and expansion plans. The Gode refinery is being developed by Golden Concord Group of China. It is designed to process 3.5m tonnes a year of crude and condensate from the Hilala field, with associated storage. Backers say it will ease foreign-exchange pressure from fuel imports and anchor further industrial activity, including a proposed steel smelting site in Dire Dawa. GCL’s chair, Zhu Gongshan, cast the project as “a key step in Ethiopia’s path to energy sovereignty”, underscoring the Beijing–Addis ties. Financing details are still being finalised, but the refinery is central to the government’s energy-security narrative. Source: The Africa Report Dangote’s Ethiopian vision: Dangote began with cement. His crown jewel, Dangote Cement, dominates Nigeria’s market and has 10 operations in other nations in Africa. The formula has been consistent: identify sectors with chronic shortages – cement, fertiliser, sugar – commit massive local investments, and scale up to serve regional demand. Ethiopia was a natural extension of that model. In 2015, Dangote launched the Mugher Cement Plant outside Addis Ababa at a cost of $600m, with an annual capacity of 2.5 million tonnes. The investment gave him a firm foothold in one of Africa’s fastest-growing construction markets. But success came with risks. In May 2018, violent unrest led to the killing of Dangote’s country manager and temporary shutdowns at Mugher. While other investors might have retreated, Dangote doubled down. Today, he is preparing to spend $400m to expand Mugher’s capacity to 5 million tonnes, alongside a new grinding unit near Addis Ababa. Cement is just one market Dangote is targeting. Ethiopia’s enormous state-controlled sugar industry, long plagued by inefficiency and debt, has struggled for years to reform. Its Omo Kuraz Sugar Development Project, touted as one of the continent’s largest initiatives, continues to face delays and mismanagement. … The most ambitious venture of all is the planned fertiliser production complex in Gode, Somali region. Publicised on 28 August 2025, the Dangote Group and Ethiopian Investment Holdings (EIH) deal plans one of the world’s largest single-site urea manufacturing plants. The project costs an estimated $2.5bn and has an estimated capacity of 3 million metric tonnes annually, a rate that would not only render Ethiopia independent, but even a net exporter of fertiliser. EIH, the state wealth fund of Ethiopia, will hold 40%, while 60% is held by Dangote Group. … For Dangote, Ethiopia is a trifecta: Cement demand is projected to grow by 10% annually, its sugar consumption is growing with rapid urbanisation, and fertiliser demand is all but insatiable, given that farming supports the livelihood of 70% of Ethiopians. Source: The Africa Report The stakes for Abiy are high: For Addis Ababa, the $4bn fertiliser project in Ethiopia’s Somali region is no longer simply a manufacturing investment. It is increasingly being framed as a strategic state project tied to food sovereignty, import substitution and the government’s broader attempt to build economic resilience under mounting fiscal pressure. “Becoming self-sufficient in food is our main agenda,” Abiy says during the visit. “Land is needed; we have it. Water is needed; we have it. Human resources are needed; we have it.” The scale is enormous even by African industrial standards. Once operational, the plant is expected to produce three million metric tonnes of urea annually, potentially making it one of the continent’s largest fertiliser complexes. Ethiopian officials say the project now includes a 110km gas pipeline, a 120MW power plant, a polypropylene packaging facility and a two-million-tonne NPK blending plant. For a government grappling with chronic foreign exchange shortages, ballooning import bills and pressure on agricultural productivity, the numbers matter politically as much as they do economically. The decision to anchor the project in Gode is deliberate. Long viewed as peripheral to Ethiopia’s industrial economy, the Somali region is now being repositioned by the federal government as a future irrigation and agro-industrial corridor. Officials argue that the area’s vast land reserves and access to water could eventually support large-scale commercial farming capable of reshaping Ethiopia’s food economy. The government is simultaneously building housing infrastructure for about 5,000 residents near the plant, while officials project broader industrial expansion along the corridor. Abiy goes further, comparing the long-term revenue potential of the Gode development zone with Ethiopia’s flagship state enterprise. “The investments we are making in this Gode area, combined, will generate high revenue for Ethiopia, at par with Ethiopian Airlines,” he says. Source: The Africa Report Feliks Topolski 1907-1982 Topolski’s Chronicle, ‘Nazi Revival’, Vol. 8, Is. 1-2, 1960 HEY READERS, THANK YOU for opening the Chartbook email. I hope it brightens your day. I enjoy putting out the newsletter, but tbh, what keeps this flow going is the generosity of those readers who clicked the subscription button. Photo by Jakub Dziubak on Unsplash If you are persuaded to click, please consider the annual subscription of $50. It is both better value for you and a much better deal for me, as it involves only one credit card charge. Why feed the payments companies if we don’t have to. Subscribe Grim vision of drone warfare by Sylvie Kaufmann For contributing subscribers only. Subscribe The state of the art in Colbert-studies. Jean-Baptiste Colbert was Louis XIV chief minister from 1661 to 1683 and traditionally seen as an architect of absolutism and mercantilism. Alexander Hamilton later cited him as an inspiration in 1782. Now his legacy is disputed. Daniel Dessert, the chief critic, sees Colbert as the orchestrator not so much of an absolutist state as of an elite cabal. Would be great to have a good English-language review of this important debate. Source: lhistoire Didn’t know that the Magna Carta included free trade provisions Fighting for the right to the beach in Oregon in 1967: Source: Research Gate RAF Station – British and Polish Flags, c. 1940-45, The Ingram Collection Feliks Topolski, 1907-1989 ink and wash If you’ve scrolled this far, you know you want to click: Subscribe

adamtooze.substack.com logo
May 25 • 6:23 AM EDT • Politics • adamtooze.substack.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (13%)
wow
62%
ahah
38%
Why were GOP Knox County commissioners so fired up? Consider the timing

Knox News exclusively revealed a tense exchange between Republican Knox County commissioners. The texts came hours after a tension-filled meeting.

knoxnews.com logo
May 25 • 5:03 AM EDT • Politics • knoxnews.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (12%)
ahah
34%
wow
34%
love
32%
The Best Browser Extensions to Get More Out of YouTube

You can significantly improve the YouTube experience with these five browser add-ons.

wired.com logo
May 24 • 7:00 AM EDT • Technology • wired.com
"We Are Deeply Sorry" - M2 Has Canned Ikaruga Successor Ubusuna

Hiroshi Iuchi has also left the company

timeextension.com logo
May 23 • 2:30 PM EDT • Technology • timeextension.com
Trump’s Pursuit of a Partnership With China Raises Concerns in India

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has a “gargantuan task” during his visit to Delhi: defuse tensions over President Trump’s anti-India aggression and overtures to China.

nytimes.com logo
May 23 • 5:01 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Matthew Stafford's new deal could impact Commanders, Jayden Daniels

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels is eligible for a contract extension after the 2026 season.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 23 • 3:57 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (17%)
wow
47%
love
33%
ahah
20%
Anti-immigrant protests flare up in South Africa

Authorities have removed hundreds of foreign nationals from a church centre in Durban after days of tension linked to anti‑migrant campaigns. The incident comes amid renewed episodes of xenophobic violence in South Africa.

dw.com logo
May 22 • 1:17 PM EDT • Politics • dw.com
😐 Neutral (8%)
love
50%
wow
50%
As China tensions loom, US temporarily pauses Taiwan weapons sales due to Iran war, acting Navy secretary says

The U.S. temporarily paused weapons sales to Taiwan to ensure munitions are ready for potential Iran escalation, Acting Navy Secretary Cao testified.

foxnews.com logo
May 22 • 11:23 AM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (11%)
wow
40%
ahah
33%
love
27%
In Democratic runoff, Reps. Al Green and Christian Menefee clash over influence of big money in politics

The clash embodies the tension for Democrats who rely on large fundraising hauls to remain competitive, even as they denounce the outsized political influence of corporate cash.

texastribune.org logo
May 22 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • texastribune.org
EU’s Carbon Border Levy Is Growing Source of Tension for Ukraine

In the fourth year since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine’s industrial heartland, Kyiv faces another challenge—this time from a partner: the European Union’s carbon border adjustment mechanism.

wsj.com logo
May 22 • 5:30 AM EDT • Business • wsj.com
San Jose restaurant owner says VTA project killed his business

The owner of La Grullensa Restaurant said construction for the VTA light rail extension from Eastridge to BART drove his customers away.

nbcbayarea.com logo
May 21 • 8:10 PM EDT • Business • nbcbayarea.com
Giants agree to multiyear extension with GM Joe Schoen
sports.yahoo.com logo
May 21 • 7:33 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Giants Keep General Manager Joe Schoen, Agreeing To Multi-Year Extension With Exec

The New York Giants and general manager Joe Schoen agreed on a multi-year contract extension.

foxsports.com logo
May 21 • 7:24 PM EDT • Sports • foxsports.com
Lions sign Jack Campbell to 4-year extension through 2030 season after declining LB's fifth-year option
sports.yahoo.com logo
May 21 • 2:38 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Clemson Livestock Poultry Health Names Catherine Harris Deputy State Veterinarian

Harris said the unit’s unique organizational structure, which includes its adjacency to Cooperative Extension, the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences, and the Harvey S. Peeler Jr. College of Veterinary Medicine, was a major draw and provides opportunity for collaborations that will benefit the state’s animal agriculture industry.

news.clemson.edu logo
May 21 • 11:35 AM EDT • Health • news.clemson.edu
Fox News Poll: As economic pain deepens, disapproval of Trump hits new high

Voters grow increasingly pessimistic about the economy and Trump's handling of key issues as affordability dominates the political landscape in 2026.

foxnews.com logo
May 20 • 3:45 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury and Gray Media double down on fan investment and the future of sports media

The extension ensures Suns, Mercury and Valley Suns games remain free over-the-air across Arizona through 2030 while also introducing a digital streaming option through Arizona’s Family.

azfamily.com logo
May 20 • 12:35 PM EDT • Sports • azfamily.com
Election Year Politics Killed Oklahoma’s Eviction Reform Bills, Advocates Say

Oklahoma's tenant protection bills failed this legislative session, leaving renters without new legal remedies against problem landlords. House Bill 2015, which would have given courts power to hold landlords accountable for habitability failures, stalled, as did an eviction timeline extension bill. Advocates blame election-year politics and landlord influence at the Capitol.

oklahomawatch.org logo
May 20 • 7:00 AM EDT • Politics • oklahomawatch.org
DOJ Accessibility: What Businesses Should Do Now Rather Than Later

For many organizations, the work needed to meet these standards needs to be started now if they plan to meet even the extension. ​

rollingstone.com logo
May 19 • 12:30 PM EDT • Business • rollingstone.com
😐 Neutral (15%)
ahah
67%
wow
33%
FDA approves first-in-class hypertension drug from AstraZeneca

The pivotal trial for baxdrostat showed nearly double-digit placebo-adjusted systolic blood pressure reduction.

cardiovascularbusiness.com logo
May 19 • 11:56 AM EDT • Business • cardiovascularbusiness.com
SCORE Act hits another roadblock — what it means for college sports

Congress’ long-running push to fix college sports stalled again as the SCORE Act was pulled ahead of a House vote following renewed political tension.

usatoday.com logo
May 19 • 8:25 AM EDT • Sports • usatoday.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (3%)
love
36%
wow
36%
ahah
28%
Member States Support Extended Deadline For Talks On Pandemic Agreement Annex

All World Health Organization (WHO) member states supported the extension of talks on the last outstanding piece of the Pandemic Agreement, the Pathogen

healthpolicy-watch.news logo
May 19 • 2:00 AM EDT • Health • healthpolicy-watch.news
Carrick made himself the 'only candidate'

BBC Senior football correspondent Sami Mokbel says Michael Carrick's impact and record as interim Manchester United boss made him the "only candidate" to be given the permanent role. United secured their 11th victory in 16 games under Carrick against Nottingham Forest on Sunday and his appointment on a two-year deal, with a one-year extension, is expected from the club imminently. "Carrick has taken that job in his stride so impressively," Mokbel told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 18 • 5:03 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Need faucets, PT, eyelash extensions? Try these new NJ businesses

Porcelanosa sells kitchen flooring and faucets in Ramsey. JAG Physical Therapy has a new location in Belleville. Bonded Lash Bar is in Fair Lawn.

northjersey.com logo
May 18 • 4:16 AM EDT • Business • northjersey.com
Panthers reportedly won't extend Bryce Young before 2026 season

What Panthers are signaling with Bryce Young extension delay.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 17 • 10:27 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Rumored Kansas City Chiefs trade focus earns a contract extension

Rumored Kansas City Chiefs trade focus running back De'Von Achane earns a lucrative contract extension with the Miami Dolphins | @EdEastonJr

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 17 • 8:01 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
😐 Neutral (9%)
wow
75%
love
25%
Retro Recap: All The Classic Gaming News From The Past Week (May 17th 2026)

SN Operator! Zelda! 3DS! Return To Blacktooth!

timeextension.com logo
May 17 • 7:05 AM EDT • Technology • timeextension.com
California colleges are seeing a rise of conservative voices. Some classes are tense

Turning Point USA chapters are growing on California campuses after Charlie Kirk’s assassination, as tensions rise both in and out of the classroom.

calmatters.org logo
May 16 • 8:00 AM EDT • Politics • calmatters.org
Walmart's online grocery delivery boom is stretching store workers

A relatively small Walmart rule change caused a big stir, highlighting the tension the surging e-commerce business is creating for retail workers.

businessinsider.com logo
May 16 • 5:44 AM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
🙂 Positive (50%)
Examining what a potential Macklin Celebrini contract extension could look like

After a stellar second NHL season, Sheng Peng previews what a potential contract extension could look like for San Jose Sharks star Macklin Celebrini.

nbcsportsbayarea.com logo
May 15 • 8:44 PM EDT • Sports • nbcsportsbayarea.com
US plans to indict Cuba’s Raúl Castro, DOJ official says

The development comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Havana.

newsnationnow.com logo
May 15 • 12:06 PM EDT • Politics • newsnationnow.com
🚨 Neuer signs a one-year Bayern extension

Manuel Neuer has signed a new contract with FC Bayern, as the German club announced on Friday afternoon.The agreement between the international goalkeeper and Bayern is valid for one more season. Neue...

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 15 • 11:03 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Andrew Abbott leaned into some science to get his season back on track

Andrew Abbott locked in on the stick-figure graphic of himself. The world of biomechanics is very advanced. But with Abbott going through the worst rut of his big league career, he opened up to some new ideas to get himself back on track. He asked for some help, and he leaned into some sports science. He said the stick figures made it clear, and he credits biomechanics for helping him get his season back on track. Over his last three starts, he has allowed two total runs in 17 ⅔ innings. “There’s a photo of (me) last year and the year before on a graph, and this year is in a different color,” Abbott said. “You see where you are in comparison to that. Where the hands are at this moment, where your feet are, where the knee is, where your head is at, where your shoulders are at, it breaks it all down if you want it.” When Abbott saw his mechanics in this objective way, he recognized exactly what had been going wrong. “When my tempo, my feet and my hands are aligned, then normally my mechanics are sound,” Abbott said. “And when my mechanics are sound, my stuff behaves normally. The fastball is jumpy. I’m up in velo. My extension is better.” Abbott said that he started diving more into his biomechanics in the middle of April. The Reds have a biomechanics team, which works closely with pitching coach Derek Johnson and hitting coach Chris Valaika. Leading the group is biomecahnics manager Franky Mulloy. “I laugh every day,” Francona said. “When Franky starts talking, I start laughing. I remind him to know his audience.” Francona isn’t a scientist. The Reds’ manager jokes about his own comprehension of the data. But it’s easy for him to recognize the value that the biomechanics team is providing. “That’s why we got them,” Francona said. Abbott said that he had his first big biomechanics-oriented meeting in the middle of April. Behind the scenes, there was already a lot of communication going on within the Reds’ staff. “Franky calculates all the things, builds it into these graphs, and DJ gets them,” Abbott said. “They have their internal communication. Then, we go to them and ask what about this or that. The main thing for me is arm angle.” The data shows Abbott how his arm angle evolves from start to start. He hasn’t meant to change it. But just like all of us, our posture might be different from one day to the next. Pitchers’ arm angles can make minor shifts without the pitcher or even coaches noticing. But the data can’t miss a change like that. Abbott recognized that his arm angle had been moving around without him noticing. Now, he checks in with the data to make sure that his mechanics are in sync. “They get into these cool looking graphs,” Abbott said. “I can’t really describe them. I don’t know what they are. But for me, it’s a photo of a stick figure of myself.” The stick figure of his current positioning is superimposed over previous versions of himself. With that format, Abbott can compare his mechanics on any given day to what they were when he was pitching at his very best. “It was very noticeable from the moment I saw this year as black compared to two years ago and last year, it was very, very different,” Abbott said. “I could see with my eyes without having to ask any questions about the difference in the photos.” For any pitcher, there are a lot of moving pieces in your delivery. For Abbott to be the best version of himself, he needs his head, his arm, his hand, his knee and his feet to be on the right “tempo.” “Tempo is a word I’ve used a lot,” Abbott said. “Getting everything in certain areas working together.” He has been much better at that recently. The data backs that up, and so does Abbott’s ERA. The biomechanics data has also given the Reds’ staff and Abbott some better ideas for some training that he can do between starts. He has added drills to shore up areas of his body that Abbott needed to make stronger. “They make a plan based off what they see,” Abbott said. “If things start changing, we know what to revert back to.” Overall, Abbott says that he’s not a very analytical guy. There’s so much information out there, and he says that it’s important for him to not get too analytical when he breaks down his specific pitches. He has learned the value of being “analytical about mechanics.” And the way that the Reds presented that information to him made it easier for him to make the right adjustments without being overloaded by information. “It was a very simple fix,” Abbott said. “It took a long time to finally get there, feel the results and see it. But for the most part, it was very simple to apply it.”

charlieschalkboard.substack.com logo
May 15 • 8:29 AM EDT • Science • charlieschalkboard.substack.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (12%)
wow
58%
ahah
42%
Official: ‘Proud’ Italy starlet Inacio signs new Borussia Dortmund deal

Italian wonderkid Samuele Inacio has signed a contract extension with Borussia Dortmund until June 2029, just days after scoring his first senior goal with the Bundesliga side: ‘I want to celebrate ...

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 15 • 6:05 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Deep dive
🙂 Positive (34%)
wow
73%
love
27%
Chartbook 449: Voldemort on Threadneedle street. The Bank of England and the "haunted house" of English politics.

Imagine the scene: In some Harry Potter version of 21st-century London, a group of deathless UK Treasury officials gathered from across the last century huddle over warm pints and glasses of Chardonnay. Around the table there are officials from the 1920s, the 1930s, the 1970s, 2022 and today. Inevitably, in May 2026, the subject of conversation is the disintegration of the current Labour government. Despite its huge majority in parliament, it has been reduced to tatters by catastrophic local election result. These exposed the fact that rather than having a government with a clear popular majority, the UK is like most other modern societies divided into 5 segments each of which commands between 26 and 16 percent of the vote. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the leadership at Nos 10 and 11 Downing Street - where the Prime Minister and the Chancellor (Treasury Secretary) work - seem paralyzed. They are caught between mounting discontent over unfairness and the cost of living, and tough fiscal strictures that push them into making unpopular spending decisions. In the London pub, the Treasury officials from across the ages, can barely hide their satisfaction at the latest display of democratic politics caught in the vice-grip of financial logic. “Remember the mur d’argent and the banker’s ramp?” “Just like yesterday!” There are smirks around the table. Then the representative of 2026 pipes up: “One thing you have to say about the current lot (referring to the latest hapless Labour government), you don’t have to teach them about the bond market!” There is a murmur of ascent from the Treasury Mandarins. The trauma of the fiscal crisis of September-October 2022 sits deep. Back then, in the final stages of Tory decay, a ‘mini budget’ that challenged fiscal orthodoxy led to a brief but fierce panic in one of the oldest government bond markets in the world (aka gilt market). Now all you have to do is to mention the “bond market” to hush debate. [ Paul Mason@paulmasonnews In the name of public service, and as ex-economics editor of BBC Newsnight, I offer to do a zoom call, tonight, with any Labour MP who wants to understand why bond markets do not "fall into line" with governments. 1/ 3:57 PM · May 12, 2026 · 466K Views 224 Replies · 674 Reposts · 3.93K Likes ](https://x.com/paulmasonnews/status/2054229532404519082?s=20) “And the funny thing is”, the young man in the huddle continues, “they don’t even want to talk about … ”. There is a sudden hush. Significant looks are exchanged around the table. About? One of the senior figures puts down his glass with a decisive “clink”. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has entered their thoughts. Meanwhile, a few miles away in a grubby pub in Bloomsbury, two conspirators from the camp of Critical Macrofinance huddle over cans of low-alcohol IPA. They look at each other and blurt out loud: “The Bank!” “Everyone in the bloody Labour party is talking about the bond market. But why aren’t they even mentioning … the Bank of England!?” “Why is no one talking about Voldemort?” In Paul Mason’s blogpost, after much chest-thumping about basic fiscal logic, the basic point about the Bank of England is buried in the fine print at #3 in his list of suggestions as to what a radical Labour government might actually be able to do! [ Conflict & Democracy Down with the bond market! Down with gravity! It may seem unfair to focus on Labour MP Paula Barker for her off-the-cuff assertion that the bond market would have to “fall in line” with Andy Burnham, should he replace Keir Starmer as prime minister. But Burnham himself told the New Statesman that Labour had to “get beyond this thing of being in hock to the bond markets… Read more 2 days ago · 100 likes · 3 comments · Paul Mason ](https://htsf.substack.com/p/down-with-the-bond-market-down-with?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=post_embed&utm_medium=web) Back in Bloomsbury they shake their heads and ask: “Didn’t we learn anything from the Eurozone crisis?” Meanwhile, as if summoned to the conversation by some higher force, the “pink pages” announce: “The days of ultra-cheap government borrowing have come to an end” and Martin “Whizzard” Wolf publishes the graph of the season Look at the UK in 2026, perilously positioned on the upper edge of the pack. No wonder no one in London needs any lessons about the “bond market”. But, look again. Imagine how they feel in Rome. What is London’s nightmare in 2026? The nightmare is that you end up like Italy in the early 2010s during the Eurozone crisis. Once comfortably situated in the middle of the pack, watching with horror as your ten-year yields explode to 7 percent and “spreads” become a national nightmare. One of the largest economies in Europe, a founding member of the euro, stigmatized. But the message of the Italian experience is ambiguous. After all, the stigma didn’t last. In 2026, Italy borrows at rates lower not only than the UK but the US. The US, which, as everyone knows, enjoys the “exorbitant privilege” of being the issuer of reserve, safe asets. What kind of magic is this? How did Italy, in the space of fifteen years, go from being good, to bad and back again? Which brings us back to our dissident friends in their Bloombury boozer and their memories of the Eurozone crisis. Italy never was Britain - with its ongoing fiscal deficits. Without interest payments, on primary balance, from 2000 to 2020 Italy ran a tight fiscal ship. Even in 2008 it barely went into deficit and when it was being put on the rack in the early 20210s its primary surplus matched that of austere Germany. So, what happened? How did it end up stigmatized? Of course Italian politics didn’t help. Berlusconi was at the helm and he had legal issues. But amongst friends in the Bloomsbury pub, Berlusconi is a sideshow, the name we whisper to each other is “Trichet”. From 2004 to 2011 the ECB was headed by Jean-Claude Trichet, ex of the French Treasury, more German than the Germans. After 2009 as the news of the Greek fiscal disaster broke, the European bond markets wento into panic mode and Trichet began a brutal game of cat and mouse. Between 2009 and 2011, Trichet intervened in the bond market to help, only when he thought he had compliance with austerity. When he thought they were uncooperative, he withdrew. In the summer of 2011, he even made direct suggestions to his Italian counterparts in Rome, as to how Italy should be governed. It was this cat and mouse game that drove the bond markets crazy and exposed Italy to a violent squeeze. When Mario Draghi took over the ECB at the end of 2011 and declared “whatever it takes”, the pressure on Italy, gradually eased. It is that starring role that has made Draghi into the towering figure in European politics that he remains today. So now you see why voices in London hush when it comes to the Bank of England. “The bond market” isn’t an irresistible objective force like the weather or an avalanche. It can appear like that. But that depends on the way it is being handled, or not handled by the central bank. Which is why the silence about the Bank of England in London right now is so significant. If you think this all sounds a bit fishy, coming from a left-liberal Keynesian like myself, well, let me introduce you to Robin Brooks, who, to put it mildly, plays on a different quidditch team to me. Here, from the position of a fiscal hawk is Robin’s celebratory account of the Bank of England’s role since 2022; In October 2022, at the height of the bond market blow-up in the UK, something incredible happened. Governor Andrew Bailey told British pension funds the Bank of England would end its support program for the country’s fragile gilt market, drawing a line under how much help the central bank was willing to give to exposed pension funds and - implicitly - the government. By the end of that week, Kwasi Kwarteng - the finance minister - had resigned. Prime Minister Liz Truss would soon follow. This episode is so incredible because it contrasts with what happened in the Euro zone earlier that year. Bond markets in Spain and Italy were under pressure amid high inflation and rising interest rates. In the middle of this, Mario Draghi - Italy’s Prime Minister - resigned, compounding pressure on bond markets of high-debt countries on the Euro periphery. Unlike the Bank of England, the ECB caved. It bought Italian and Spanish government bonds in an effort to cap yields and introduced a new tool that signaled to markets it might do such caps more frequently going forward. Faced with pressure on bond markets, the ECB capitulated to political pressure from high-debt countries like Italy and Spain. The Bank of England stood its ground and toppled the Truss government. This kind of thing has long-lasting consequences. It means markets price a higher probability of yield caps in the Euro zone, which keeps Italian and Spanish yields artificially low, while markets feel free to push up UK yields without fear of central bank intervention. As I flagged in yesterday’s post, this means you really can’t compare UK yields to those of other high-debt countries. The UK looks worse, but only because its central bank isn’t interfering with markets. There’s more to this than just that 2022 episode. The Bank of England has also been much more aggressive in its quantitative tightening (QT) than other central banks. If one motivation for quantitative easing (QE) is to lower bond yields - especially longer-dated ones - then it stands to reason QT pushes yields up. The left chart above shows a four-quarter moving average of UK government debt issuance (black line) in percent of GDP and which sectors absorb this issuance, including the Bank of England (blue bars). The right chart above compares the Bank of England’s accumulation or run-off of government bonds (blue line) with that of other central banks, where this blue line is the same as the blue bars in the left chart. The Bank of England was quicker and more aggressive than other central banks in downsizing its bond holdings, so UK yields will have risen more than elsewhere also for this reason, not just because of Governor Andrew Bailey’s remarks in October 2022. Back in October 2025, after a conversation in New York with friends in British politics, my sense of dysphoria was such that I raised the issue of the Bank of England openly in the FT Since 2008, the UK has slid into a deep economic and political predicament. Growth has stagnated to a degree far worse even than in the 1970s. The Tory leadership’s wager on the Brexit referendum spectacularly backfired, leaving the UK isolated from Europe and at the mercy of its special relationship with the US, many of whose political class regard the UK as a basket case. After years of austerity, the Labour party lurched to the left and then back to the centre. The Tory party has been eclipsed by the populist nationalism of Reform. Any British government should be worrying first and foremost about how to restart growth. Instead, Keir Starmer is beset by shades of the gilt market panic triggered by the Liz Truss government in 2022. The debt level is higher than in recent years, but there is no cause for panic. UK debt is at far from critical levels and of long duration. Whether you want to “take back control” or launch progressive economic policy, a democracy dogged by fear of bond market vigilantes is unhealthy. In a country that is a monetary sovereign, this climate points to one thing: a disconnect between the government and the central bank. Since 1997, the independence of the Bank of England has become a sacred cow. But independence is what you make of it. And in the wake of the gilt market crisis of September 2022, relations between the Bank of England and the UK government need a reset. In normal times, there is no doubt that an inflation-targeting independent central bank can serve a country well. But since 2008, the UK and other advanced economies have not had the luxury of such simple problems. To their credit, central bankers around the world have not stood on orthodoxy. After 2008, the US Federal Reserve rescued the global banking system and, through quantitative easing, it stabilised the Treasury market in the face of huge deficits. In Europe, things were trickier. Both the Bank of England under Mervyn King and Jean-Claude Trichet’s European Central Bank played cat and mouse with national governments. This was a high stakes wager that between 2010 and 2012 escalated bond market tension and triggered a disastrous turn to austerity. Shaken by the impact of those shocks, their successors, Mark Carney and Mario Draghi adopted a more protective stance (assuming you were not the government of Greece). Recall that Draghi’s legendary slogan, “Whatever it takes”, was uttered to face down the City of London’s bond vigilantes. In 2015, Draghi launched QE — financial repression by another name. In 2016, Carney used the authority of the Bank of England to stabilise markets following the vote for Brexit, an exemplary demonstration of how central banks can underpin democratic choice, even when those choices are wrong headed. All these were independent central bankers steeped in the best practice of the 1990s, who recognised that historic crises demanded radical action. It was the price surge of 2021-2023 that poisoned the atmosphere. Though the shock came mainly from the supply side, central banks ended up in the dock. Nowhere more so than in the UK. The Bank of England reacted with aggressive normalisation. Faced with a cost of living crisis, the governor called for workers to accept real wage cuts. In early 2022, as gas prices were at record levels and Russia’s army was poised to invade Ukraine, the Bank adopted a stringent programme of quantitative tightening, elevating interest rates. When the Truss government got itself in trouble, the Bank took almost a week to come to the rescue. Rather than enacting a charade of normality, it is time to recognise that in 2025 the UK faces a period of historic transition. To meet this challenge, what is needed is a new concordat with the Bank. This should not ignore inflationary pressures or the long-run trajectory of debt, but should affirm the priority of reviving investment-led growth. One could follow Donald Trump in demanding interest rate cuts. The Bank could shadow the ECB in its commitment to capping Eurozone yields. But the top priority should be to lay the ghost of September 2022. The Bank’s slowing of QT last month was a concession. An immediate and complete end would send the right signal. Such a concordat will not by itself restore sanity to politics, solve the housing problem or rebuild the NHS. But it would help to lift the fear of bond market crisis, which is paralysing the effort by democratic politicians to answer the fundamental questions facing the nation. Now, that call for a new concordat between government and Bank of Englands seems more urgent than ever. The problem is that in October 2025, Starmer still had some authority. Today the government is in tatters. And when you are the “under the harrow” - to echo a phrase of Montagu Norman’s from the 1920s - it is the worst possible time to consider institutional change. To make general arguments at a time of crisis can only seem like special pleading rather than a general argument for long-term change. The same, unfortunately, is also true for the other basic institutional reform that Britain urgently needs i.e. the abolition of the out-dated first past the post electoral system and its replacement by a moderated form of proportional representation. And thirdly - whilst we are saying the quiet parts out loud - Britain needs to reopen the question of EU membership. What the local election results of 2026 show is that this remains a key issue. And what they also show is that there is a clear majority that would favor a return. Until these basic features of Britain’s political economy are addressed the country will carry on its politics as though in a haunted house, governed by governments that lack actual majorities, conjuring up false constraints whilst ignoring the real ones. This one is for DG and MI. I love writing the newsletter. If you enjoy it too and fancy buying me a coffee once a month, you know what to do. Click below! Subscribe

adamtooze.substack.com logo
May 15 • 3:04 AM EDT • Politics • adamtooze.substack.com
The Tricky Business of Dupe-Fluencing

Influencers know their audiences want dupes. Fashion brands hate when they share them. This tension speaks to the shifting dynamics in today’s creator economy.

businessoffashion.com logo
May 15 • 12:30 AM EDT • Business • businessoffashion.com
Former Blackhawks First-Rounder Lands Extension With Bruins
sports.yahoo.com logo
May 14 • 9:33 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Bruins Sign Young Forward To Contract Extension
sports.yahoo.com logo
May 14 • 1:47 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Spotify Brings Nashville’s Songwriting Community Together for Mental Health Summit

Spotify recently welcomed songwriters, artists, executives, and music students to Nashville for a Mental Health & Songwriter Summit. The event was an extension of our ongoing Heart & Soul, Mental Health for Creators initiative, which offers tools, care, and space to reflect on the emotional side of creative life. The summit at Belmont University’s Fisher...

newsroom.spotify.com logo
May 14 • 10:00 AM EDT • Health • newsroom.spotify.com
Scientists Might Have a Unified Theory of Everything. It’s Hiding Inside a ‘Qbox.’

A new theory could resolve longstanding tensions in mutually exclusive ideas about physics.

popularmechanics.com logo
May 14 • 9:00 AM EDT • Science • popularmechanics.com
RFK Jr.’s Political Power Is on the Ballot in Louisiana GOP Primary

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is unleashing the force of his political movement to oust two-term Republican US Senator Bill Cassidy in Louisiana’s Republican primary after more than a year of tensions between the two men.

bloomberg.com logo
May 14 • 6:15 AM EDT • Politics • bloomberg.com
Trump courts Xi amid Iran war and trade tensions

Trump praised China’s leader and emphasized their personal bond as both sides sought to steady relations despite tensions over Iran, trade and global power.

washingtonpost.com logo
May 14 • 1:58 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com
The Dynamics of Escalating Tensions on the Washington-Tehran Axis

The impasse between Washington and Tehran is about the asymmetry between U.S.'s coercive approach to diplomacy and Iran's survival priorities.

politicstoday.org logo
May 14 • 12:51 AM EDT • Politics • politicstoday.org
Watch Philippines' Political Tension Escalates After Senate Gunfire

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has called for calm after gunshots were fired on Wednesday evening at the Philippine Senate, where a lawmaker wanted by the International Criminal Court has sought refuge.

bloomberg.com logo
May 13 • 8:00 PM EDT • Politics • bloomberg.com
Introducing Northwood Insights, a New Blog for the Next Generation of Business Leaders

New content platform strengthens the university’s digital presence, broadens its reach among prospective students, and establishes Northwood as a thought leader in business, free enterprise, and entrepreneurial education. Northwood University has launched Northwood Insights, a new blog designed to position the university as a leading voice in business education, free enterprise, entrepreneurship, and career development. The platform delivers expert, research-informed content to prospective students, current students, and the broader professional community, meeting audiences where they already are online and searching for answers. “Northwood has always been about preparing people to move forward with clarity and confidence,” said Marketing and Communications Officer Rachel Valdiserri. “With Northwood Insights, we’re meeting students where they are with content that’s relevant, direct, and built for how they discover and learn today. It’s not about adding more noise; it’s about delivering ideas, perspectives, and insights that help them make more informed decisions earlier in their journey.” The blog features a growing library of articles spanning Northwood’s core academic strengths, including business administration, automotive and mobility studies, sports management, and entrepreneurship. Each piece is written to inform and guide, answering the real questions students are asking while organically connecting readers to the academic programs, faculty expertise, and career outcomes that define a Northwood education. Each article is crafted to reflect Northwood’s institutional voice while being optimized for the search behaviors of today’s prospective students, a generation that begins researching universities long before they apply. By appearing in those early search results, Northwood establishes credibility, builds familiarity, and creates a meaningful connection with students the moment they are most open to influence. “This platform is a natural extension of our enrollment strategy,” said Dr. Matthew Bennett, vice president of enrollment and strategic alliances. “When a prospective student searches for career paths, we want Northwood to be the source they trust. Northwood Insights makes that possible at a global scale.” Beyond enrollment, Northwood Insights serves the university’s broader advancement mission. As a platform built to demonstrate expertise and institutional relevance, it reinforces Northwood’s standing as a thought leader in free enterprise education and entrepreneurial leadership, directly supporting alumni engagement, donor confidence, and community partnerships. The content signals that Northwood is not only preparing students for the careers of today but actively shaping the conversations defining the industries of tomorrow. “Attention isn’t given anymore; it’s earned,” said Milada Dzevitski, Northwood’s digital content and technical writer who manages the Northwood Insights blog. “This platform is built to meet that standard, with content that’s relevant, direct, and worth engaging with.” Northwood Insights is live now and will continue to grow with new content published regularly. Share this page

northwood.edu logo
May 13 • 8:28 AM EDT • Business • northwood.edu
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (11%)
wow
43%
ahah
29%
love
28%
Former NYPD chief launches NYC mayoral bid, promises ‘truth’ over politics

Retired NYPD Chief of Department John Chell joins ‘Mornings with Maria’ to sound off on NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s budget, warn on taxing the wealthy, and weigh in on crime, protests and NYPD-ICE tensions.

foxbusiness.com logo
May 13 • 8:24 AM EDT • Politics • foxbusiness.com
Donald Trump demands Xi Jinping ‘open’ China to US business

US president arrives in Beijing for two-day summit clouded by geopolitical tensions and conflict over trade and tech

ft.com logo
May 13 • 8:18 AM EDT • Business • ft.com
NFL Writer reveals uncertainty for Chiefs WR Rashee Rice’s future

An NFL Writer recently revealed his uncertainty for Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice’s chances for a contract extension | @EdEastonJr

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 13 • 8:01 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Las Vegas tourism agency approves spending up to $464M on marketing city

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority board of directors approved extensions and updates to five contracts, emphasizing the need for speed, flexibility and scale in promoting the destinat...

reviewjournal.com logo
May 12 • 8:14 PM EDT • Business • reviewjournal.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (17%)
love
67%
wow
33%
It’s not just Canadian tourists snubbing U.S. cities. Business leaders are cancelling more trips to America as geopolitical tensions continue

An analysis of cell phone data shows Canadian visits to U.S. cities have plummeted 42% year-over-year, dwarfing previous estimations.

fortune.com logo
May 12 • 3:43 PM EDT • Business • fortune.com
Blue Jackets Sign Veteran Center to Long-Term Contract Extension

After being picked up last off-season, the Blue Jackets have announced a long-term deal for their 34-year-old veteran.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 12 • 11:14 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Mapped Out: Why Cyprus is NATO and Europe’s hidden problem

50 years after its division, Cyprus is back in the focus of the European Union, as Europe redraws its security strategy amid a changing world order. Could geopolitical tensions help unify the island?

dw.com logo
May 12 • 8:21 AM EDT • Politics • dw.com
Trump to head to China for high-stakes talks with Xi

Meeting comes amid tentative trade truce but Iran, Taiwan and tensions over global supply chains will be complicating factors

theguardian.com logo
May 12 • 7:21 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
Trump heads to China today for high-stakes meeting with Xi

Trade, Taiwan and tensions with Iran are surefire topics for President Trump's meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

cbsnews.com logo
May 12 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • cbsnews.com
High-Signal Publisher
Louisiana senators address heated exchanges during tense redistricting debate

Tensions are high in the State Capitol as Republicans push to redraw the congressional map to eliminate one or both majority-Black districts.

nola.com logo
May 11 • 7:44 PM EDT • Politics • nola.com
😐 Neutral (0%)
Chris Boswell, Steelers reportedly agree to 4-year, $28 million extension
sports.yahoo.com logo
May 11 • 12:45 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
"Learn How To Code" - Team Behind PS3 Emulator RPCS3 Has Had Enough Of People "Peddling AI Slop"

"Leave behind something useful to humanity when you're gone"

timeextension.com logo
May 11 • 5:35 AM EDT • Technology • timeextension.com
"Thanks For Destroying Your Own Legacy" - Quarter-Century Of Online Gaming History Vanishes As Digital Press Forum Goes Dark

"Whilst this is not the situation which most of us wished for, it is nonetheless the current situation"

timeextension.com logo
May 11 • 4:30 AM EDT • Technology • timeextension.com
Locking up key contributor named Eagles' most underrated offseason move

It has been an extremely eventful offseason for the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles made several major additions over the offseason, including edge rusher Jonathan Greenard and wide receivers Hollywood Brown, Dontayvion Wicks and rookie first-round pick Makai Lemon. Locking up defensive tackle Jordan Davis on a three-year, $78 million extension was named Philadelphia's most underrated offseason move by Jeff Kerr of Sports Illustrated.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 10 • 5:47 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Manchester City's Phil Foden To Sign New Long-Term Extension

Phil Foden has reportedly reached a definitive decision regarding his Manchester City future after attracting significant interest from rival clubs across Europe.

foxsports.com logo
May 10 • 3:51 PM EDT • Sports • foxsports.com
Geek Out Napa Valley returns to celebrate ‘creativity and fandom’

Whether it be Star Wars, Star Trek, Marvel, DC, music, crafts, “Dungeons & Dragons” or something else entirely, the Napa County Library can help people celebrate. Geek Out Napa Valley is simply an extension of what the library has to offer.

napavalleyregister.com logo
May 10 • 2:00 PM EDT • Entertainment • napavalleyregister.com
Iran Responds to Latest U.S. Plan to End War

The two countries have been discussing a 30-day extension to the cease-fire and a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

nytimes.com logo
May 10 • 12:03 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Breece Hall’s $45.75 million Jets payday ‘really hit different’

Breece Hall was in his feels after inking a $45 million extension with the Jets on Friday, which allowed him to avoid playing on the franchise tag.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 8 • 5:16 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Breece Hall agrees to reported 3-year, $45.75 million extension with Jets
sports.yahoo.com logo
May 8 • 3:13 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
US and Iran trade fire, threatening fragile truce

Any agreement between the United States and Iran could also help lower tensions in Lebanon

euractiv.com logo
May 8 • 1:43 AM EDT • Politics • euractiv.com
Energy shock to accelerate transition: EU-Asean Business Council

Chris Humphrey of EU-Asean Business Council says businesses are withholding investments and waiting for more clarity amid geopolitical tensions. He added that ASEAN firms believe oil shocks from the ongoing Middle East tensions could speed up the shift to green energy.

cnbc.com logo
May 8 • 12:40 AM EDT • Business • cnbc.com
OpenAI's Codex Now Works in Chrome With New Extension

OpenAI today launched Codex for Chrome, a Chrome extension that lets Codex work directly in the browser on Macs and PCs. With the extension, Codex can use the browser to test web apps, get context across multiple tabs, use web DevTools, and more without taking over the browser from the user. OpenAI says that after it launched Computer Use in the desktop Codex app, it saw that most common workflows happened in the browser.

macrumors.com logo
May 7 • 8:42 PM EDT • Technology • macrumors.com
Is North American trade at a ‘breaking point’?

U.S.-Canada tensions rise as USMCA deadline nears

theweek.com logo
May 7 • 2:07 PM EDT • Business • theweek.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (18%)
wow
62%
love
38%
What Iran’s absence from the Venice Biennale reveals about art and politics

Rather than existing outside politics, the Venice Biennale has become a site where geopolitical tensions are actively staged and contested.

theconversation.com logo
May 7 • 8:40 AM EDT • Politics • theconversation.com
Science diplomacy lessons from a North Korean volcano

Mount Paektu, a mythic, active volcano on the border between North Korea and China, is almost the epitome of a scientific challenge that crosses political lines. In 946 CE, it erupted in one of the five biggest volcanic events of the past 10,000 years, kicking up huge quantities of ash and sending destructive mud flows down river channels for hundreds of kilometres. Should this happen again, the entire region, including easternmost Russia, South Korea and even Japan could be hit. “It’s definitely got the potential to be big,” said James Hammond, a professor of geophysics at Birkbeck, University of London. An eruption on the scale of 946 would have “huge regional impact.” For the past 15 years, Hammond has helped lead a groundbreaking collaboration with North Korean scientists to study the volcano, navigating scientific sanctions, tough export controls on scientific equipment and a long, pandemic-enforced exodus from the country. Although he seems more at home on far-flung research expeditions – before speaking to Science|Business, Hammond was camping out on a Greenland ice sheet – he has also advised the European Commission on its changing science diplomacy strategy. His long experience with North Korea has made Hammond sceptical of blanket bans on science collaboration, no matter the country.This is a live question in Europe, where in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, institutional ties with Russian universities were almost entirely severed, although some scientists fear this could undermine our understanding of climate change’s impact on the Arctic. Here, Hammond tells the story of the Mount Paektu mission and the policy lessons he takes from it. Ominous rumblingsThe genesis of Hammond’s collaboration came in 2002, when Mount Paektu began to rumble ominously. Earthquake activity picked up and the volcano began to emit unusual gases. North Korean scientists took notice. “People felt we need to know more about this volcano,” said Hammond. In 2011, North Korean vulcanologists put out a request for international expertise to help them learn more. At the time, Hammond and his collaborator, Clive Oppenheimer, were working on a vulcanology project in another sanctioned country, Eritrea, and so decided to answer the call. Within a month, they had flown into Pyongyang. “It was pretty incredible,” recalls Hammond (left). “We were made to feel like honoured guests, and invited to official celebrations.” The scientific opportunity was huge. Paektu is unusually positioned, a thousand kilometres from where tectonic plates rub against each other in the Pacific. “It was an incredibly interesting volcano, but not much research had been done, at least not in the international community,” he said. “There was so much we felt we could do. And we had these partners that were super keen to engage.”The mission received an unusual visitor in the form of volcano-obsessed filmmaker Werner Herzog, who accompanied Hammond and Oppenheimer while directing his 2016 film Into the Inferno about volcanos across the world. Four days into the trip, the German director delivered a long speech about reunification to his North Korean hosts, recalls Hammond. “He got to the heart of the Koreans and how they felt, and how they thought, in a way that I'm not sure I ever will,” he said. UN sanctionsHowever, Hammond realised he’d been “naïve” about how difficult it would be to collaborate with North Korea, which was sanctioned far more heavily than Eritrea. “We didn’t fully appreciate the all-encompassing nature of restrictions,” he said. In 2016, as tensions escalated over Pyongyang’s nuclear tests, a United Nations resolution banned all joint scientific work with North Korea. However, the UN sanctions did allow countries to request carve outs, and the UK successfully requested an exemption for Hammond’s work. Related articlesEU pushes for joint science diplomacy, but care needed to avoid gridlock, experts sayRussia severs its last ties with German scienceAnchor Greenlanders in Arctic climate research, experts tell EU ahead of policy updateExport controls have also delayed Hammond’s work. In one case, it took 18 months to get approval from the UK government to take seismometers, which measure earthquakes, to North Korea. “It was frustrating,” he said. “But they didn’t just say no.” However, one instrument, called an induction coil, used to measure how the earth conducts electricity, was blocked entirely because it can in theory be used to detect submarines. Karaoke bondingSince the collaboration started in 2011, Hammond has visited the country around 15 times, although the pandemic closed off North Korea for more than five years. A trip last November was Hammond’s first since the outbreak. Despite this lengthy interlude, Hammond has deep bonds in the country. The North Korean scientists Hammond works with are somewhat isolated, as they struggle to access the latest research papers and travel to international conferences. That said, they are “excellent geophysicists” and are “very well trained in the field,” he said. Over karaoke and chats about their families, “we’ve made friendships, for sure,” he said. The authorities have to sign-off things like the placement of seismometers, for example, but Hammond said these requests have been approved. “Everything that we've asked for within a scientific context has been delivered.”Scientific backchannels? These kind of personal links between scientists across political lines are one purported benefit of science diplomacy. During the Cold War, some historians argue, scientific contact between the US and Soviet Union laid a groundwork of trust for other cooperation, such as on arms control. Hammond agrees that backchannel contacts to North Korean geophysicists are hardly likely to defuse a military crisis on the Korean peninsula, but the simple fact of the scientific collaboration makes contacts between diplomats that little bit easier. “It creates opportunities to understand each other a little bit better,” he said. “When maybe you have those more difficult discussions as diplomats, it's coming from a slightly better place.” Cutting tiesDrawing lessons from the Mount Paektu mission for today’s links with Russian science isn’t simple. The analogy is far from exact, Hammond said, “because one is essentially a Cold War, versus a pretty hot war in the case of Russia.” But Hammond’s broader argument is that the challenges we face, such as climate change, pandemics, biodiversity loss, pollution and so on, have globalised in an unprecedented way, making blanket shutdowns in collaboration with any country unwise.He’s somewhat critical of the UN scientific sanctions imposed on North Korea in 2016, even though they did allow for exceptions. “I think a blanket halt to some of these things, when we face big global challenges [. . .] that’s quite a risky thing to do,” he said.Institutional endorsement?European academics are still by and large free to work individually with Russian counterparts. However, official, institutional partnerships have largely ended. Shortly following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russian university rectors wrote a public letter endorsing the war, meaning European universities fear official collaboration could also be seen as a kind of endorsement. Hammond acknowledges there is a risk of legitimising regimes, and state-controlled universities, through scientific cooperation. “That’s the trade off you have to make,” he said. Strategic projectsWith Russia, instead of giving a green light to restart all Arctic science, a middle ground might be firing up a few carefully selected “strategic” projects, said Hammond. After all, European countries are still collaborating with Russia on the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, an experimental nuclear fusion plant in the south of France. However, even if Europe did try to revive Arctic science with Russia, there’s no guarantee Russian scientists would play ball. A series of high-profile arrests of physicists in Russia accused of sharing their findings with the outside world has made collaboration fraught. Even before the invasion of 2022, “the Russian regime made it increasingly difficult, and this sort of discouraged people,” Dag Rune Olsen, rector of the Arctic University of Norway, told Science|Business last year.

sciencebusiness.net logo
May 7 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencebusiness.net
Rubio’s Rome mission balances diplomacy and Republican politics

As global affairs expert Ian Lesser argues, Marco Rubio’s visit to Rome is unlikely to fully repair recent tensions between Washington, Italy and the Vatican, but it could still help ease the political climate. According to Lesser, Rubio embodies a more diplomatic and moderate Republican voice, yet remains constrained by the broader posture of the [...]

decode39.com logo
May 7 • 6:12 AM EDT • Politics • decode39.com
Rubio to meet Pope Leo after weeks of tensions with Trump

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will sit down with Pope Leo XIV on Thursday amid a historic period of tension between Washington and the Vatican.

cnn.com logo
May 6 • 12:46 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (6%)
wow
52%
ahah
48%
F1 announces Sky Sports contract extension in UK until 2034

The broacaster has held F1's TV rights in the UK since 2012, taking on exclusive rights to show races in 2019.

nytimes.com logo
May 6 • 11:06 AM EDT • Sports • nytimes.com
Bruins Urged To Begin Extension Talks With 30-Goal Center

Boston could look to sign a centerman to an extension this summer.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 6 • 9:29 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Alito and Jackson’s fiery debate over the Voting Rights Act exposes Supreme Court tensions

The November election is still a long way off, but patience is already running thin at the Supreme Court.

cnn.com logo
May 5 • 2:45 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Rubio to meet with Pope Leo in Vatican City amid tensions with Trump

The State Department said Monday that Rubio, a Catholic who with this trip will have visited Italy or the Vatican at least three times as the Republican president's top diplomat, would be in Italy on Thursday and Friday.

pbs.org logo
May 5 • 12:40 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
WATCH LIVE: White House briefing with Rubio may address Vatican trip, Strait of Hormuz efforts

Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Rome and Vatican City this week in a bid to ease rising tensions between Trump and Pope Leo XIV over U.S. policies, particularly the Iran war.

pbs.org logo
May 5 • 10:25 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
🙂 Positive (35%)
Obama admits 'genuine tension' in marriage over pressure to stay in politics

Former President Barack Obama says his role as President Donald Trump's most high-profile critic has created tension in his marriage with former first lady Michelle Obama.

foxnews.com logo
May 5 • 8:09 AM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (15%)
wow
70%
love
30%
What did Anthony Edwards loudly direct toward the Spurs bench

Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who was listed as week-to-week after a left knee hyperextension and bone bruise, shocked everyone by returning in just nine days.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 5 • 12:02 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (1%)
wow
58%
ahah
42%
Obama admits political demands caused 'genuine tension' in marriage

The former president spoke on the impact of political demands and his role in the Democratic Party since his departure from the White House.

usatoday.com logo
May 4 • 10:42 PM EDT • Politics • usatoday.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (22%)
wow
60%
love
40%
House Democrats’ campaign arm takes sides in contentious primaries key to winning midterms

The House Democratic campaign arm on Monday inflamed ongoing tensions over the influence of party leadership by taking sides in several competitive primaries for battleground House seats.

cnn.com logo
May 4 • 3:13 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (19%)
love
36%
wow
22%
ahah
21%
Trump ‘Wants Action,’ May Restart Iran War

While U.S. and Iran negotiations are still ongoing, the president’s intervention in the Strait of Hormuz could spark new tensions.

nymag.com logo
May 4 • 12:52 PM EDT • Politics • nymag.com
Gaming’s Expanding Influence: Licensing Expo 2026 to Host Panel on How Gaming Brands Are Shaping Mainstream Entertainment

Session featuring CD Projekt Red, Supercell, Ubisoft, and Think Influence will explore how gaming brands are redefining entertainment through licensing and cultural innovation, in a panel moderated by Game DeveloperLAS VEGAS, May 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Informa Markets’ Licensing Expo, the world's most influential event for licensing, IP extension, and brand collaborations (May 19–21, Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV), announces a panel discussion that will spotlight the gami

finance.yahoo.com logo
May 4 • 3:01 AM EDT • Entertainment • finance.yahoo.com
C.J. Stroud Not Expected to Give Discount on Second Contract

As Houston’s franchise cornerstone nears a massive extension, league executives predict a high-stakes standoff where market leverage—not just performance—dictates whether Stroud becomes the NFL's next highest-paid player.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 3 • 8:11 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Free mental health seminar offers support and resources to Delaware's agriculture community

Because May is recognized nationally as Mental Health Awareness Month, the Delaware Farm Bureau Promotion and Engagement Committee is partnering with the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension to host a

wboc.com logo
May 3 • 10:18 AM EDT • Health • wboc.com
Rubio to visit Italy, Vatican amid troop drawdown call, tension with Trump, Pope Leo: reports

Marco Rubio is reportedly traveling to the Vatican and Italy this week for meetings aimed at steadying relations strained by Trump-Pope Leo disputes.

foxnews.com logo
May 3 • 7:54 AM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
World Cup protests, prices and politics in focus at FIFA

As the World Cup 2026 approaches, protests in Vancouver, criticism of ticket prices and political tensions dominated FIFA discussions over costs, access and unity.

dw.com logo
May 3 • 6:52 AM EDT • Politics • dw.com
Kenya violence: As political tension cranks up fears grow of a return to unrest

More than 100 gangs are operating nationwide as the growing use of political thugs raises fears of election violence.

bbc.com logo
May 3 • 2:57 AM EDT • Politics • bbc.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (0%)
wow
36%
angry
33%
ahah
31%
Analysis: Perfect display sets up Champions League test

This match could not have gone any better for Arsenal and Mikel Arteta. With Manchester City having been in FA Cup action last week and not playing until Monday, they made the most of their chance to extend their lead in top spot and ease relieve some of the tension. Boss Arteta has to be given credit for taking what could be perceived as risk by playing left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly in midfield for the first time and leaving out Martin Zubimendi, who has played the most minutes of any outfielder in the Gunners squad.

sports.yahoo.com logo
May 2 • 3:03 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
US to pull 5,000 troops from Germany as Europe rift deepens

The U.S. will withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany as tensions with European allies grow.

tvpworld.com logo
May 2 • 2:15 AM EDT • Politics • tvpworld.com
Pentagon orders withdrawal of 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany as Trump escalates feud with Merz

The Pentagon confirmed the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany as tensions between Trump and Chancellor Merz intensify.

foxnews.com logo
May 1 • 9:03 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Army's Dark Eagle hypersonic missile draws focus amid Iran tensions

The US Army's Dark Eagle hypersonic missile is drawing attention after a reported deployment request amid a fragile ceasefire with Iran.

businessinsider.com logo
May 1 • 5:02 PM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
Nashville business owners clash with property assessor over rising tax bills

Tensions ran high during a recent meeting in Nashville as local business owners voiced frustration over soaring property tax assessments, warning they are being

fox17.com logo
Apr 30 • 10:32 PM EDT • Business • fox17.com
WATCH LIVE: Senate considers FISA extension, latest Iran war powers resolution
pbs.org logo
Apr 30 • 10:20 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
🙂 Positive (35%)
The C64 And ZX Spectrum Are Being Reimagined As Nintendo-Style Clamshell Handhelds

"Takes inspiration from some of the most successful gaming handhelds of the past"

timeextension.com logo
Apr 30 • 5:45 AM EDT • Technology • timeextension.com