Life Style

Ever been moved to tears while cooking dinner? If not, you are probably not cooking with onions. For most of us, our eyes react this way because of a sophisticated self-protection system in these allium plants.Jutta Papenbrock, a professor at the Institute for Botany at Leibniz University Hannover, in Germany, explains why cutting onions makes us cry, and ways to prevent it.Sulphurous, volatile substances are produced when we cut onions, thanks to a reaction between the organic compound isoalliin and the enzyme alliinase, which are contained in onion cells, Papenbrock says. This substance helps protect onions by keeping predators like voles and rats at bay.The two substances come together when an onion cell is destroyed, releasing a volatile mixture that irritates the eyes, which then prod...

A young actress’ suicide in South Korea. Allegations of an underage relationship. These are part of a growing drama in the Asian entertainment world that raises questions about society’s treatment of celebrities in crisis, with harsh media and online commentary amplifying their lowest moments.This week, South Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun publicly denied allegations that he dated the late actress Kim Sae-ron when she was under the age of sexual consent. His emotional press conference followed Kim Sae-ron’s suicide in February, which reignited allegations that they were romantically involved.Here’s what we know about the case.Who was Kim Sae-ron?Kim Sae-ron was once one of South Korea’s most promising film stars. She began acting aged nine in A Brand New Life (2009), which premiered at the Cann...

Anyone who recalls whispering at the dinner table as a child likely also has memories of being overheard and reprimanded by a sharp-eared mother – even as an oblivious father ploughed through his meal.According to British and French researchers, the impression that women often have sharper hearing than men is now backed by scientific evidence.Following tests on around 450 people across 13 countries, the team revealed results showing women “typically” having hearing amplitude that is around two decibels more sensitive than men’s.“Women consistently exhibit higher sensitivity by two decibels” on average across the entire frequency spectrum tested in all populations sampled, the research team said in a paper published in the journal Scientific Reports.Women not only show “heightened cochlear ...

Manhattan is a bagel city, a pizza city and … a croissant city?Over the past dozen years, many have focused their attention on transforming the classic pastry. Since the days of the Cronut, New York-based bakers have been modifying butter-laminated dough to create everything from Sicilian pizzas to a Dubai-style chocolate bar pastry.“To understand the popularity of croissants, you have to follow the butter,” says Gadi Peleg, founder of the New York-based chain Breads Bakery. He sees croissants as both a highly adaptable blank canvas and the ultimate flex, given the technical mastery needed to laminate dough.He also believes the growing availability of artisan domestic and imported butter makes the pastries an irresistible product for bakers and their customers.Even with the rising cost of ...

In the early afternoon of March 28, 2025. a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck near Mandalay, in central Myanmar, followed by a 6.7-magnitude aftershock moments later.Within minutes, social media and the internet were deluged with videos of the earthquake, many of which originated in Bangkok, Thailand, about 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) from the epicentre of the quake.We saw frightening scenes of swaying skyscrapers, water cascading from rooftop swimming pools and panicking people in the streets in the Thai capital.A building under construction near the popular Chatuchak Weekend Market collapsed, killing and trapping dozens of workers in the rubble.Workers spray disinfectant to sterilise the rubble of a collapsed building in Mandalay, days after a major earthquake struck central Myanmar. Phot...

Cancer patient Jessica Ainscough, an Australian wellness entrepreneur, made the wrenching choice to turn her back on prescribed oncology treatment – amputating her arm. She had epithelioid sarcoma, a rare form of the disease. The Netflix series Apple Cider Vinegar is loosely based on her story.Ainscough instead turned to Gerson therapy, an alternative cancer treatment that involves patients following a strict two-year organic juice regimen – drinking up to 13 glasses of fresh juice a day, taking dietary supplements and having daily coffee enemas.The theory which underlies it, and which has no scientific backing, is that disease can be cured by removing toxins from the body, boosting the immune system and replacing excess salt in the body with potassium.Ainscough – the inspiration for the c...

Fresh dung. Tracks in the sand of the Namib desert. The black rhinoceros cannot be far away. Wildlife rangers Stefanus Ganuseb, 42, and Fritz Hoeb, 45, are patrolling on foot, equipped with binoculars and a camera, and accompanied by an armed policeman.Then they discover the young male rhino named Arthur on a distant crest.The rangers check the direction of the wind so that their scent will not be detected, and creep toward the animal. Normally they get no closer than 100 metres (330 feet), but today, Arthur is coming closer, not noticing the men and peacefully grazing on juicy stalks of spurge bushes.The men take pictures and fill out a form of the sighting for the animal protection group Save the Rhino Trust.A photo of a black rhino taken by the Save the Rhino Trust in Namibia. Photo: In...

If you are in Hong Kong this long weekend, then there are a few things you might want to check out, including an Oscar-winning animated film, a full-length ballet on Mexican painter Frida Kahlo and a craft beer event.1. FlowWhen director Gints Zilbalodis accepted his Oscar win for best animated feature last month for his ethereal animated film Flow, he thanked his parents and his “cats and dogs” – fitting, given that the charming cartoon follows a feline and other animals as they survive a huge flood.Then he added a rallying cry for the industry: “I’m really moved by the warm reception our film has had … and I hope that it will open doors to independent animation filmmakers around the world.”Flow’s success in beating huge American studio animations like Inside Out 2 and The Wild Robot to t...

Yodellers of the world, you never stood a chance: monkeys will always be better at yodelling than humans because they have a “cheap trick” hidden in their voice box, scientists revealed this week.When monkeys howl – or yodellers yodel – they rapidly switch back and forth between low and high frequency sounds.This is in contrast to opera singers, who are trained to precisely control how they gradually move from note to note, in a way that is pleasing to listen to.Yodellers and monkeys, however, make bigger jumps far more abruptly, creating vocal breaks that sound like Tarzan’s yell.When yodelling, a human might be able to jump an octave, which doubles the frequency.

Britain’s spy agency MI5 is revealing some secrets.In collaboration with host The National Archives and prepared over several years by the agency’s own archivists, “MI5: Official Secrets” is giving the public the chance to see equipment and methods used by real-life James Bonds and their colleagues over the agency’s 115-year history.Ken McCallum, director general of MI5, said the agency wanted to be more transparent.While TV fiction showed the dramatic side to spying, real intelligence work was about “ordinary human beings together doing extraordinary things”, he said at an event this week launching the exhibition.A 110-year-old lemon that was used by German spy Karl Muller to write secret messages with its juice is displayed at the exhibition. Photo: ReutersOne of the featured items is a ...