One of the most notorious cold cases in modern US history is thought to have been solved, as an independent group of investigators say they have decoded the mystery of the Zodiac Killer.
The Zodiac Killer is a serial killer who terrorised San Francisco and Northern California from 1968 until the early 1970s. He was known for his regular communication with the police and newspapers during his killing spree, and the cryptograms he sent, which he said would reveal his identity when decoded.
He was known for a crosshair-like symbol, which he used when signing off his letters.
The group of investigators, known as the Case Breakers, have named a man who they believe is the Zodiac Killer, saying he died in 2018.
Before now, he's frequently been referenced in popular culture, and there have been several documentaries and podcasts dedicated to trying to solve the infamous cold case.
Here, we round-up podcasts, documentaries and films about the Zodiac Killer:
'The Most Dangerous Animal of All'
FX's The Most Dangerous Animal of All is a four-part TV mini-series about Gary L Stewart, who suspects his biological father is the Zodiac Killer after years spent trying to find him.
The documentary series is based on The New York Times best-selling book of the same name.
'Zodiac: A to Z'
Michael Butterfield's podcast Zodiac: A to Z reports on facts and debunks myths surrounding the murderer.
The podcast debuted in September 2019, with new episodes released as recently as last month. Episodes are long, ranging from about 45 minutes to more than an hour and a half, with shorter bonus content peppered in.
'Monster: The Zodiac Killer'
The second season of iHeartRadio's Monster podcast focuses on the killings of the Zodiac Killer. Released in 2019, with the narrative starting at Christmas 1968, the 15-episode series explores the notorious unsolved serial killing and tries to answer the question: who is the murderer?
The episodes range from 35 to 49 minutes long, and explore copycat killers, the Zodiac Killer's relationship with police and the press, and his legacy 50 years on.
'True Crime Garage'
Crime podcast True Crime Garage is presented by duo Nic and the Captain, and started in 2015. The pair tackle a different crime each week, but released a five-part series on the Zodiac Killer in March.
The podcast goes through Zodiac's confirmed kill timeline, with speculation on who they think it could have been.
'The Hunt for the Zodiac Killer'
In 2017, the History Channel released a five-part series titled, The Hunt for the Zodiac Killer.
The mini-series focuses on expert code breakers who are trying to crack the riddles left behind by the Zodiac Killer with a team of investigators. During the series, the team managed to break one major code.
It can be watched on YouTube.
'Zodiac Speaking'
Presented by Christopher J Garcia, podcast Zodiac Speaking does a deep dive into the case, but not with the intention of solving it, as many others endeavour to do.
The podcast instead focuses on the cultural impact of the Zodiac Killer. The facts that the killings started five years before Garcia was born and that the man killed members of his parents' generation heavily influence the series. The podcast focuses on the victims more than the killer and the suspects, and the families left behind.
The Zodiac Killer in film
It is not only documentary retellings of the Zodiac Killer that are prevalent in popular culture, as he has been referenced a number of times in film, music and TV.
In 1971, when the killer was still active, The Zodiac Killer was released and starred Hal Reed and Bob Jones. In the same year, Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry was loosely based on the killer. The film is about a murderer who has named himself Scorpio, a Zodiac sign, and is tracked down by Eastwood's character, San Francisco Police Inspector 'Dirty' Harry Callahan.
Later on, the 2007 film Zodiac stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey, Jr and Mark Ruffalo. Directed by David Fincher, the film is based on Zodiac and Zodiac Unmasked: The Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer, two non-fiction books by Robert Graysmith. The film is set in San Francisco between 1968 and 1983. It is available to watch on Netflix in the UAE.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
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Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
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Coming 2 America
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It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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