If your 2018 hasn't been up to scratch, then count yourself lucky you didn't live to see 536 CE.
Any gripes about modern life pale into comparison when set against a brutal onslaught of volcanic eruptions and mass starvation, with an outbreak of bubonic plague thrown in for good measure.
It is the worst year in history, according to scientists who have analysed the 12 months of utter turmoil.
Now the culprit for a bad year that turned into an even worse century can be revealed, a spewing volcano in Iceland.
According to a new study in the journal Antiquity, it ushered in an era of unprecedented misery.
In the spring of that year, the planet entered a period of global calamities which must have convinced many The End was near – not least because it was.
One eye-witness in the city of Byzantium described how it started: “The sun gave forth its light without brightness, like the moon, during this whole year”.
It started with a volcanic eruption in Iceland which threw billions of tonnes of dust and debris into the atmosphere, bouncing the sun’s light and heat back into space.
The resulting global cooling had devastating effects across the planet. Historical accounts report crop failures from Britain and Scandinavia to Mesopotamia and China. Starvation was rife.
Those who survived then faced another calamity: a pandemic of bubonic plague which spread across the Mediterranean and claimed between 25 to 50 million lives – around 1 in 5 of the world’s population at that time.
Incredibly, even this was not the end. By analysing dust trapped in ice-cores at sites around the world, scientists believe several other volcanic eruptions took place, including one in modern-day El Salvador estimated to have hurled 100 billion tonnes of dust into the atmosphere.
Only now is it becoming clear just how resilient our forebears were in the face of these multiple calamities.
The evidence comes from an ice core extracted from a glacier in the Swiss Alps. Over 70 metres long, it has given scientists unprecedented insight into how humanity has coped with what nature has thrown at us over the last 2,000 years.
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New discovery sheds light on remarkable techniques used by ancient Egyptians to construct the pyramids
New technology set to revolutionise keeping buildings cool
Why more couples are choosing pets over children — and the impact if could have on their health
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Using a laser to create ice slices barely a hair’s breadth wide, a team led by Professor Christopher Loveluck of the University of Nottingham, UK, have developed a means of releasing the air trapped in the core when it blew over the glacier in each year over two millennia.
They have found specks of volcanic debris from the volcanic eruptions of 1,500 years ago, confirming the view that they triggered the original calamity of 536.
And they have also found something else: levels of lead consistent with metal-smelting from ancient coin-making factories.
As such, the ice-core has given them the archaeological equivalent of a stock market index able to chart the ebb and flow of ancient economies.
Prof Loveluck and his colleagues found a sharp peak in the amount of lead trapped in the ice core around the year 640, and another around 20 years later.
Economic demand had reached the point where more coins were needed – suggesting Europe at least was finally emerging from its near-death experience that had lasted an entire century.
As the ice-core shows, humanity has had to face many other calamities. The team found that lead levels plunged again during the mid-14th century – coinciding with the “Black Death”, the return of the bubonic plague which claimed around 20 per cent of the global population.
This new technique provides a new window on the past. But inevitably it also raises questions about what our future holds.
Natural calamities are just as common as they ever were. Some would claim they are becoming more prevalent because of climate change.
We are better at protecting ourselves from some of the old scourges. Vaccination, antibiotics and global health surveillance have stopped pandemics in their tracks. One mass killer – smallpox – has been eradicated. Mass starvation is no longer the threat it was. Even wars are less prevalent than they were.
But the disturbing truth is that we have no more ability to prevent catastrophic volcanic eruptions than the denizens of the Dark Ages. If several strike at the same time, the effects would still be catastrophic . And the laws of probability mean that such a calamity is all but guaranteed to happen – one day.
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Twin%20electric%20motors%20and%20105kWh%20battery%20pack%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E619hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E1%2C015Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETouring%20range%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EUp%20to%20561km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EQ3%20or%20Q4%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh635%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Brief scores:
Southampton 2
Armstrong 13', Soares 20'
Manchester United 2
Lukaku 33', Herrera 39'
What is hepatitis?
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, which can lead to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer.
There are 5 main hepatitis viruses, referred to as types A, B, C, D and E.
Hepatitis C is mostly transmitted through exposure to infective blood. This can occur through blood transfusions, contaminated injections during medical procedures, and through injecting drugs. Sexual transmission is also possible, but is much less common.
People infected with hepatitis C experience few or no symptoms, meaning they can live with the virus for years without being diagnosed. This delay in treatment can increase the risk of significant liver damage.
There are an estimated 170 million carriers of Hepatitis C around the world.
The virus causes approximately 399,000 fatalities each year worldwide, according to WHO.
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
RESULTS
West Asia Premiership
Thursday
Jebel Ali Dragons 13-34 Dubai Exiles
Friday
Dubai Knights Eagles 16-27 Dubai Tigers
Results:
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m | Winner: Eghel De Pine, Pat Cosgrave (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m | Winner: AF Sheaar, Szczepan Mazur, Saeed Al Shamsi
6pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (PA) Group 3 Dh500,000 1,600m | Winner: RB Torch, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (TB) Listed Dh380,000 1,600m | Winner: Forjatt, Chris Hayes, Nicholas Bachalard
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup for Private Owners Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 1,400m | Winner: Hawafez, Connor Beasley, Ridha ben Attia
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 80,000 1,600m | Winner: Qader, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roaulle
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
All%20The%20Light%20We%20Cannot%20See%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESteven%20Knight%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EMark%20Ruffalo%2C%20Hugh%20Laurie%2C%20Aria%20Mia%20Loberti%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E1%2F5%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
