Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News from EconoTimes

Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Thu, Aug 27, 2026 03:29 AM All times are UTC

Follow Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

Mark Lorch

Dr Mark Lorch is a senior lecturer in biological chemistry at the University of Hull. He trained as a protein chemist, studying protein folding and function. His research now focuses on the chemistry of a broad range of biological systems including lipids, proteins and even plant spores.

Mark is also a dedicated science communicator, he blogs at www.chemistry-blog.com and occasionally for the Guardian. He gives regular talks to schools, the public and conferences (sometimes all at once, at science festivals or TEDx) and he occasionally pops up on the radio and TV explaining science and technology to a public audience.

Testing life-hacks with 'citizen science': does stainless steel really get rid of garlic smells?

Nov 22, 2016 23:17 pm UTC| Science

How often does someone suggest to you some new hint, tip or hack that will supposedly make your life a whole lot easier? And which ones can you trust? We want to find out by subjecting life-hacks to rigorous scientific...

Code-a-cola: how to hide secret messages using fizzy drinks

May 04, 2016 04:34 am UTC| Science

Next time you see someone spilling a drink in a bar, you could actually be witnessing a spy secretly decoding an encrypted message. This might sound like something from a Bond movie. But a team from Israel has used some...

Four nifty chemistry life hacks

Mar 30, 2016 12:37 pm UTC| Life

We all love a life hack that makes our day a little cheaper and easier. And the neat tricks that iron out the niggles of life can come from some interesting places. Theres some cool chemistry loitering in your cupboards...

New plastic-munching bacteria could fuel a recycling revolution

Mar 10, 2016 23:08 pm UTC| Science

We manufacture over 300m tonnes of plastics each year for use in everything from packaging to clothing. Their resilience is great when you want a product to last. But once discarded, plastics linger in the environment,...

Economy

US Stocks Finish Flat as Inflation Data, Nvidia Earnings Keep Investors Cautious

U.S. stocks ended Wednesday largely flat as investors digested July inflation data and remained cautious ahead of Nvidias highly anticipated quarterly earnings. The SP 500 closed unchanged at 7,677.00, while the Nasdaq...

Japan Firms Ramp Up Yen Hedging as Currency Weakness Persists

Japanese companies are increasingly turning to currency hedging as persistent yen weakness drives up import costs and creates uncertainty for businesses dependent on overseas goods. Taku Ueno, CEO of Takara MC, which...

Oil Prices Fall as Middle East Ceasefire Hopes Rise

Oil prices declined on Wednesday, extending their weekly losses as signs of diplomatic progress in the Middle East raised hopes that hostilities could ease and the Strait of Hormuz could gradually reopen to commercial...

Gold Prices Fall as Stronger Dollar, Fed Rate Outlook Weigh

Gold prices declined Wednesday as the U.S. dollar strengthened following mixed inflation and economic data, reinforcing expectations that the Federal Reserve could keep interest rates unchanged in September. Spot gold fell...

US Dollar Rises as Inflation Backs Fed Pause, Canadian Dollar Slides

The U.S. dollar strengthened on Wednesday as mixed July inflation data reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve could keep interest rates unchanged in September. Meanwhile, the Canadian dollar weakened again as...

Politics

Carney’s Trump Tariff Pushback Wins Canadian Support, but Economic Risks Mount

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is enjoying strong public support after suspending trade negotiations with the United States and retaliating against President Donald Trumps tariffs. However, economists warn that...

European Allies Seek to Reassure Pentagon as US Reviews Troop Presence

Senior European diplomats are expected to reassure U.S. officials on Thursday that NATO allies are increasing defence commitments as uncertainty grows over Washingtons review of American troop deployments across Europe....

Prince Harry and Meghan Return to Britain With Children After Six Years in U.S.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have returned to Britain with their children, six years after stepping away from royal duties and relocating to the United States, according to the BBC. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex...

Trump Administration Plans New Drug Pricing Deals With Biotech Firms

The Trump administration is preparing to announce a new round of drug-pricing agreements with midsize biotechnology companies on Monday, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The...

US Raises Concerns Over Chinese Artist Gao Zhen’s Prison Sentence

The U.S. State Department has expressed significant concerns over Chinas sentencing of Chinese artist Gao Zhen to three years in prison, citing questions about freedom of expression and the application of a law enacted...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

OpenAI AI Agent Swarm Behind Hugging Face Hack

A swarm of roughly 700 AI agents developed by OpenAI carried out a July breach of open-source AI platform Hugging Face, with some agents attempting to conceal their actions, according to reports released Wednesday. The...

Meta Agrees to $18 Billion Settlement, Tightens Teen Social Media Rules

Meta Platforms has agreed to pay up to $18 billion over the next decade and impose stricter protections for teenagers using Facebook and Instagram, settling claims from nearly all U.S. states that its platforms were...

Nvidia Revenue Soars 106% as AI Demand Hits ‘Inflection Point’

Nvidia reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings on Wednesday as booming demand for artificial intelligence hardware pushed revenue up 106% from a year earlier, prompting CEO Jensen Huang to declare that AI has...

Salesforce Shares Surge as AI Demand Powers Q2 Earnings Beat

Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) delivered stronger-than-expected second-quarter fiscal 2027 results, fueled by rapid growth in artificial intelligence products, improved profitability and rising customer demand. Salesforce...

HP Stock Drops 9% Despite Q3 Earnings Beat and Raised 2026 Outlook

HP Inc. (NYSE: HPQ) delivered stronger-than-expected fiscal third-quarter results, supported by robust Personal Systems sales and tariff refunds. However, HP stock fell more than 9% in after-hours trading Wednesday as...