
Collagen powders, gummies and pills have boomed in popularity in recent years boosted by claims that they smooth wrinkles, promote glossy hair and help with joint pain. Amid the noise it can be hard to figure out whether there’s any actual science behind the promise of looking younger for longer. Luckily Dr Xand van Tulleken has spent the past three years writing Make Me Well: a quest to understand the confusing world of wellness, and his chapter on collagen dives deep into the evidence. He tells Madeleine Finlay what collagen does in the body, how we can get it without splashing out on expensive supplements, and why getting to the truth behind wellness claims can be so hard
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Continue reading...As human development and roads increasingly fragment their habitats, a study suggests traffic noise could be altering the animals’ wake-up call
Dawn has broken, and the air is cool and still. It’s at about this time that gibbons usually erupt into song, wa-oo-ing and wa-ing from the highest branches and filling the tree tops with rich melodies. But in this corner of Malaysian forest, bordered by housing and roads, the resident white-handed gibbons are quiet. All that can be heard is the hum of traffic from a nearby highway.
This isn’t a rare occurrence for this group of gibbons, according to research, which found these particular gibbons, named Mambang and Walinong, appeared to be producing far fewer morning songs than others that are not exposed to the same level of traffic noise.
Continue reading...President has dismissed anxieties over AI’s dangerous potential even as Democrats and some Republicans acknowledge risks
Donald Trump is facing a rare backlash from the US Congress as Democrats and some Republicans push for guardrails on the world’s most powerful AI companies.
Concerns over the dangerous potential of AI reached fever pitch this week after tech leaders sounded the alarm over the rapid advancement of the technology and its potential threat to humanity.
Continue reading...The businessman has spent the past decade moving through some of Russia’s most politically connected circles
Umar Kremlev, the Russian oligarch at the centre of reports that he helped pay for Donald Trump Jr’s wedding in the Bahamas, has spent the past decade moving through some of Russia’s most politically connected circles.
Born in 1982 in Serpukhov, an industrial town about 60 miles south of Moscow, he has said he boxed until the age of 19 but never turned professional, blaming what he later called a lack of discipline.
Continue reading...Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Almost 3,500 people have died in outbreak and experts say more must be done to ensure Bundibugyo is under control
Authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have announced that the Ebola outbreak ravaging parts of the country has reached its peak.
For the first time since the epidemic was declared in May, the numbers of people becoming infected is slowing down, according to officials.
Continue reading...Capitals star is long-time supporter of Russian leader
Ovechkin is NHL’s all-time leading goalscorer
Alex Ovechkin, the NHL’s all-time leading goalscorer, has appeared in a campaign ad for the United Russia party, which supports Vladimir Putin, as he prepares for the new hockey season.
The Russian business newspaper Vedomosti published images of the Washington Capitals star alongside pro-Putin figures such as Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, the leading parliamentary candidate on United Russia’s list, and Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of the propaganda network RT.
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