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Member states of the United Nations have reached an agreement after years of negotiations to protect the "high seas", the sea area beyond the national Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) which occupies about two-thirds of the ocean. This area is part of international waters, outside national jurisdictions, in which all states have the right to fish, sail and do research; but it plays a vital role in supporting fisheries, providing habitats for species vital to the health of the planet and reducing the impact of the climate crisis. No government has so far taken responsibility for the protection and sustainable management of the resources of the High Seas, which makes these areas vulnerable, and some of the most important ecosystems on the planet are at risk, resulting in the loss of biodiversity and habitats. According to estimates, between 10% and 15% of marine species are already at risk of extinction. After nearly twenty years of negotiations and a final 38 hours of discussions,...

  Everyone in America knows that the Super Bowl is one of the most important sports events: as we wait four years for the European football championship, Americans wait every year for this big tournament. If the people of the New Continent know perfectly what it is, well… we don't. So, what is it? The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (the NFL) to appoint the League champion. The first game was played in 1966 and it is assigned the year after the ongoing season (for example, the team that won the Super Bowl of this year is the winner of the 2022 season). The biggest ambition is to win the "Vince Lombardi Trophy", named after the Italian-American coach Vince Lombardi who won the first two Super Bowl editions. This year, in the State Farm Stadium of Glandale, Arizona, Kansas City won the game, but well, the Super Bowl is not only known as a game, not at all. A lot of companies take advantage of this competition to get advertisement...

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the brainpower displayed by computer machinery. Over the last few years we’ve all seen its steady development, a process that is still ongoing to this day. Usually AI is mentioned when talking about sci-fi movies, Blade Runner or Ex-Machina to name some of the most well-known and acclaimed ones; however recent events have once again brought it into the spotlight for a very different reason.   In November 2022 a revolutionary chatbot was launched by OpenAI, a research laboratory based in San Francisco and founded in 2015 by Sam Altman and other associates including Elon Musk. The object in question is Chat GPT (Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer) , a brand new AI capable of a wide variety of things thanks to its ability to learn and correct its answers based on the requests. To program this particular website it was necessary to give it access to a vast range of vocabulary and be closely trained by a group of researchers. For these reasons ...

Gloria! You can say this while listening to this fantastic, brand-new studio album by Sam Smith. After three years, they released another incredible masterpiece! So so so, what is Gloria about? Well, Gloria talks about Smith in these last years of feeling lost in themselves because of their identity: they had to fight with gender questioning, self-love, and changes, and I think they have done such a fantastic job! When it comes to ourselves, it can be hard to understand who we are, and Sam Smith gave us their story, their path through questions, pain and joys. “Gloria” has the same effect as a comforting hug, a place where you can stay as much as you want: it says "everything is okay, you’re perfect, your flaws are perfect and the world is yours". Every song tore me apart positively because I felt more understood by these songs rather than by people in my entire life. Thank you for making me believe more in myself in this album, Sam. For loving us, actually, because you’re l...

Stream it, no doubts. It is not the best crime thriller series ever filmed, but it represents a completely new way of telling stories. With this show, about a big-money heist, Netflix (with the director Eric Garcia) has completely revolutionised the world of storytelling. Indeed, you can watch the 8 episodes in any order you like: there are no episode numbers, each instalment has a colour instead. Some episodes are flashbacks, others are set in the aftermath of the heist and one is actually about the crime itself. There are 5,040 ways in which you can experience Kaleidoscope and it works quite well in each of them. Also, Netflix serves up a randomised order for every subscriber, even though the series finale, ‘’White’’, is placed at the bottom of the order for everyone (but you can still decide to watch it whenever you want, Netflix just suggests watching it at the end). Surely, one of the best aspects of the series is the performance of the cast: in particular, Giancarlo Esposito, who...

Have you ever listened to Ms Lauryn Hill? If your answer is no, well then you should go for it! And  let me tell you why:  because  Lauryn Hill is one of the most influential and talented artists  of our generation!  In fact, Ms Hill has become a legend just by releasing only one solo studio album, all written, arranged and composed by herself, earning a well deserved 10th position in the Rolling Stone 100 greatest albums. With her work Lauryn Hill is often credited as the artist who popularized the technique of blending rap and melodic singing together, sometimes referred to as melodic rap. Thanks to her musical features she also influenced many contemporary artists such as Nicky Minaj, Lizzo and Kanye West as well as their music, becoming one of the most sampled artists in modern music. From the album Miseducation on, I believe we could set the beginning of the new Millennium’s era, at least in music matters, as she contributed to creating our current pop...

On the 15th of December, the second chapter of the Avatar saga was released in Italy: Avatar, The Way Of Water. It’s a good film with very detailed CGI and visual effects, the plot is intriguing and the characters are a bit different from the first Avatar because of Metkayina, the water tribe with visible physical differences such as thicker legs and arms muscles, tail and a different skin pattern and colour. But we’re not here to talk about the film itself, but about an effect that affects a lot of people after watching both feature films: I’m talking about the PADS, Post Avatar Depression Syndrome. A team of psychologists used a couple of social media asking people: “Are there any other people out there who think humanity is slowly getting in trouble?" and thousands of people replied with the same affirmative answer.  But what is PADS?  Post Avatar Depression Syndrome is the feeling of sadness, loneliness, frustration and  desolation in some viewers.  Why do people...

The Simpsons Even though the last seasons of ‘’The Simpsons’’ were not as successful as the first ones, we all must recognize that this series has been a cornerstone for comedy in the last three decades. The creator’s brilliant idea was to fill every minute of screen time with funny gags, cultural references, social commentary and hilarious situations. But what kept millions of spectators glued to the screen for over thirty years were the cartoon characters that somehow represent ourselves. It is quite easy  to identify with  the characters of the show, who experience hundreds of absurd  moments in a seemingly ordinary American town.  I think ‘’The Simpsons’’ must be included in this list because this series has surely marked a new way of doing comedy, combining , in a single show, light and funny jokes and the serious problems of our society. Friends   I am sure you have heard about this one, even if the last season was broadcast in 2004.  Luckily, this se...

Jane Eyre is a novel set in the 1800 in England. It's about emancipating yourself, and finding the love you deserve. It’s motivating, it’s about tenacity, about not giving up on doing right.  On a foggy evening, along muddy streets, Jane Eyre arrives at Thornfield Hall.  She is eighteen and she doesn't know that her life is at a turning point. She is an orphan, she was raised by an aunt that was anything but loving and then sent to boarding school, where she stayed for eight years, first as a pupil, then as a teacher.  Her strong and independent character, the same one that earned her the reputation as a rebellious girl during her childhood, prompted her to leave the oppressive walls of Lowood to seek work as a nanny.  At Thornfield Hall, Jane will take care of little Adele, Mr Rochester's protégé, a man in his forties, with hard features and an authoritarian appearance. For Jane, this becomes a new home. She knows independence and a tranquility never enjoyed before....

Hello everybody! Here’s Charlie and today I’m going to talk about American politics, specifically the “midterm elections”. The outcome was a tie because it still has to be seen what will happen in Georgia, on the sixth of December: that will be the most important result for both parties. Yeah, I know, it sounds so dull, lots of Italian broadcasts haven’t talked about it, so… let me explain them to you. For me, it’s essential to know a bit about foreign policy, especially when it comes to such an important country as the United States of America. I’m not going to talk about the 2022 midterm election, but I’m going to focus on all the mechanisms that make American democracy so far away from ours.  Let’s start with the very first thing: how does the political system work? Well, it could be summed up as “majority doesn’t win”. “What does it mean?”. Don’t worry, I’m here to answer all your questions. The political system of the States relies on three fundamental principles: republic, re...

Animal Farm is a social and political allegory  which symbolically discusses the history and the rhetoric of the Russian revolution. It was  written by George Orwell between 1943 and 1944, almost at the end of the Second World War. The first title of this classical novel was “Animal farm: A fairy story”, because the structure of the story is the same as the one of  fairy tales, with talking animals and a moral. Though very simple, the plot hides some deep and complex  themes and reflections . Basically it’s the story of a group of farm animals who every day had  to obey their farmer  until one day, guided by some pigs, they decided to rebel, hoping to create a better and more egalitarian society. The initial ideas of the animals were simple and could be summed up in the  seven commandments which were written on a wall in the barn: all those rules revolved around  the most important one: “all animals are equals”.  Time passed and with the revo...

I am sure you have heard about the latest Netflix’s original production Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Since it came out, a couple of months ago, the miniseries about the Milwaukee cannibal has been in the top ten most watched series on Netflix and millions of pictures, videos and memes started circulating on social media such as Twitter or Instagram. Since the very beginning, the wide appeal of the series has been clear. As the fame of the series grew, many people started being concerned about was perceived as an unethical approach and wondering about what really brought Netflix to produce a true-crime series for the umpteenth time: is it a way to give victims a voice or just a way to make easy money by profiting off trauma? As a matter of fact, there is no doubt at all that in the last few years  the interest for true crime has grown, so the success of this product was almost certain. But is all this ethical? Actually, I wouldn’t say so. I think that the story behind Monster ...

Words, oh, cruel words! Why are you still stuck in such a throat!  You rest and run in my cords, but you don't dare take a step out   and hurt me like wards. You block and suffocate my light, blasting my brain with ballads and burdens but then; depriving me of a way to fight and express with ink what I should say with blood. Such a paradox! An Oxymoron! That's what I'm doing now! That's what my brain is thinking about! But why, why do I still feel like you’re stuck? Why are you still killing me? Words, oh, cruel words! Matilde Avallone

There are many people who love watching scary movies, while others try to avoid them at all costs. In theory, we should stay away from things that scare us, but the popularity of the horror genre proves otherwise! So it is quite logical asking ourselves why we like horror movies: why do we like something whose biggest goal is to induce fear? There are many theories about that actually, so keep reading to find out the answer!  The Journal of Media Psychology published an article about the main reasons why people like the horror genre. According to this study, there are three principal motives: tension, relevance and unrealism. We all agree with the fact that watching a scary movie can be an overwhelming experience due to the mystery and the shock, so many people are in some way ‘’attracted’’ to this feeling of great anxiety. As a matter of fact, according to Dr. Brownlowe (who works at the Ohio State University in the Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry), the experience of our b...

Nowadays it is generally believed that working hard is the key to success and that this is the only way to be productive. We all tend to emphasise the importance of embracing hustle culture (the lifestyle of someone who continues to work and only rests for a short time, feeling a great pressure and thinking that this will make them more successful) and I am sure you have heard or read statements like ‘’no days off’’ at least once in your life. While wisely organising our time table and putting forth our best skills and talents, we should not forget that we need fun, too.  So basically, if you want to be the most successful and productive version of yourself, you have to take some time off! Having fun and experiencing pleasure is truly important, even though experts recognise three main reasons why we tend not to prioritise it: guilt (because others around us are not having fun), perceived inappropriateness (because others around us can not have fun) or, in most cases, lack of time ...

I am sure you all have seen at least one of Van Gogh’s paintings in your life and, if you have not, you will easily find  one on the Internet. As a matter of fact, he is now considered one of the most important artists of all time: his exhibitions draw people like magnets and his works are  worth several million dollars. But it has not always been like that, actually.  For several decades, Van Gogh has been considered a ‘’tortured genius’’, as if his artistic talent was the result of poor mental health, or even madness. But this perspective is definitely out of date now. Immediately after Vincent’s death (that occured in 1890 under very mysterious circumstances), his unique style was seen as a symptom of mental illness. It was only after World War II that Van Gogh was studied and seen in a more sympathetic way, as a hero who struggled against all odds to be appreciated as an artist and to create his own art. And yes, he struggled a lot indeed. He was considered a good-for...

Over the last few years you will have come to realize that various personalities in the world, especially on social media such as Instagram pages and people on Twitter, have begun to use symbols that are typically foreign to Italian; the asterisk, the snail and last but not least the "ə" (schwa). This is a historical period that has been going on for several years in which we have come to realize that in the past years we have always misrepresented different categories of people: homosexuals were once represented as stereotypical caricatures, in the United States they were always white actors impersonating non-white Anglo-Saxon roles, without mentioning the whole grotesque world of black faces and fervent racism not so old fashioned. Or even transgender people, if you remember some Italian films, even the masterpieces of Italian comedy, have always been represented as borderline people who must be kept isolated on the edge of society, somehow outcasts. And other categories of...