A bloodless syringe, a heart on fire and a bearded woman are among the suite of new emojis that will be released with the next operating system update for iPhone.
A total of 217 emojis – a mixture of new creations and modifications – will come as part of iOS 14.5, which is expected to arrive within the next month.
The vast majority – a whopping 200 out of the full set – focus on allowing couples to more freely represent themselves by changing skin tones. The update might have just missed Valentine's Day, but now people in relationships can represent themselves as much more than just a pair of yellow faces across the set of loved-up emojis available on phones.
There are only three new smiley faces: exhaling face, face with spiral eyes and face in clouds.
They look like this:
Two additions to the wide range of heart emojis will also be available: one on fire and another called Mending Heart that's been bandaged up.
It is also now possible to specify a gender for a bearded person, and the blood has been removed from the syringe emoji, making it "more versatile when used to describe Covid-19 vaccination", writes Jeremy Burge, Emojipedia's chief emoji officer, in a blog post.
The headphone emoji, which once looked like AirPods, is also now a more generic over-ear device.
New emoji release date
The Unicode Consortium announced the 217 new designs for Emoji 13.1 in September.
For the past few years, new emojis and updates were approved in January to March, with them being released around October to November. Now, however, as they were approved later, it means they have to wait 13 months to release the characters ("too long") or one month ("too short, not enough time to prepare and test"), so a new release date in spring has been chosen.
Until then, designs are subject to change.
The effort to offer a wider range of skin tones comes after a 2019 study in the journal First Monday found that the Unicode Consortium emojis continue to centre on whiteness.
Lead author Miriam E Sweeney, an assistant professor in the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Alabama, told radio station WBHM: "The base decisions remain central. For instance, several black users noted that the emojis now have a different skin colour, but they still retain these kind of European phenotypic features, so the same smooth hair and facial structures as before. So it's a case where the representation did shift and become broader. But at the centre, that base character remains the same. We didn't rethink that original image and representation."
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
MATCH INFO
World Cup qualifier
Thailand 2 (Dangda 26', Panya 51')
UAE 1 (Mabkhout 45 2')
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
US tops drug cost charts
The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.
Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.
In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.
Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.
The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.
High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tips for entertaining with ease
· Set the table the night before. It’s a small job but it will make you feel more organised once done.
· As the host, your mood sets the tone. If people arrive to find you red-faced and harried, they’re not going to relax until you do. Take a deep breath and try to exude calm energy.
· Guests tend to turn up thirsty. Fill a big jug with iced water and lemon or lime slices and encourage people to help themselves.
· Have some background music on to help create a bit of ambience and fill any initial lulls in conversations.
· The meal certainly doesn’t need to be ready the moment your guests step through the door, but if there’s a nibble or two that can be passed around it will ward off hunger pangs and buy you a bit more time in the kitchen.
· You absolutely don’t have to make every element of the brunch from scratch. Take inspiration from our ideas for ready-made extras and by all means pick up a store-bought dessert.
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
The years Ramadan fell in May
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