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Women are underrepresented at science's highest levels
New research has found that, although women represent over half of undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students in STEM fields, they make up just 23.4 per cent of full professors (BBC News). Working with data from 38 countries, including the UK, the team found that although women are enthusiastic and gifted scientists, and are being successfully attracted to the field, there's a “leaky pipeline” that affects retention later in their academic careers, with key factors driving them out including harassment and a culture that promotes and pays women less than men.
Volkswagen has developed an electric upgrade for classic Beetles
The Volkswagen Beetle is one of the world's most enduringly popular and iconic cars and, although the range finally went out of production this year, you can now bring a classic bang up-to-date with an official, fully electric drivetrain (Jalopnik). In a Frankfurt Motor Show announcement, Volkswagen said that it's partnered with German electric conversion company eClassics to convert vintage air-cooled Beetles using the electric drivetrain from the Volkswagens e-Up! city car, with a conversion system for vintage microbuses reportedly planned for the future.
Apple Music is now accessible on the web
Apple Music is still well behind streaming behemoth Spotify in the popularity stakes, but it could expand its 60-million-subscriber reach with the beta launch of its official web streaming portal (TechCrunch). The beta follows the success of unofficial Apple Music web streaming app Musish.
Samsung's Galaxy Fold is coming to the UK on September 18
After months of hype, flawed review samples and delays, Samsung's folding smartphone is coming on sale in the UK on September 18, following today's launch in South Korea (TechRadar). In the UK, it'll be available from EE and directly from Samsung's own stores, priced at £1,800 and with rumours of a 5G-ready option.
xkcd's Randall Munroe on how to tackle our information hellscape
In 2005, Randall Munroe – then a physics student at university in Virginia – started scanning the doodles he’d been scribbling in lectures, drawing square boxes around them and uploading them to a website to share with his friends (WIRED).
Today, xkcd is one of the most popular webcomics on the internet, with millions of readers a month. Munroe’s simple line-art is instantly recognisable, and his growing library of more than 2,000 science-tinged comics pops up all over the internet. Just as The Simpsons has tackled every conceivable plot-line in its three decade run, there seems to be a relevant xkcd for everything. It has stayed on top by constantly evolving beyond its initial nerdy niche.
Why you shouldn't feel good about carbon offsetting
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
