By Valentina Magri    "Computers double their speed and memory capacity every 18 months. The risk is that computers develop intelligence and take over. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, couldn’t compete, and would be superseded”. Stephen Hawking's prediction of the future of the human race has rattled a few people. The physicist, who has motor neurone disease and uses a system designed by Intel to speak, essentially grounded sci-fi prophecies of robots out-thinking humans that have been...

A new survey has found that London has the highest number of family fall-outs while playing games over the Christmas period with a shocking eight out of ten people in London who play family games ending up falling out. Gibsons, the UK’s oldest puzzle and games company, conducted the study to reveal ways in which feuds can be avoided, with cheating (36 per cent) coming out on top of the naughty list followed closely by competitive teammates (33 per cent) and people making...

Satire by Jack Peat  Nigel Farage is set to release a new book entitled '1,000 Ways to Blame Immigrants; the must-have guide for a guilt-free Christmas'. Part funded by the UK Independence Party, the book has been described as the 'perfect way to fuel your xenophobia this Christmas' and includes such classics as 'immigrants clogged the M4' and 'a foreigner burnt the roasties', as well as a pull out pocket guide on 'how to camouflage your racism'. Ahead of the...

A new infographic has been created by CurrencyFair looking at the world of alternative finance to unveil historical innovations in making payments. From crowdfunding, peer-to-peer, online payment, cryptocurrency, contactless payments and the bitcoin system, most of us have heard of alternative methods of finance, but might not have a good idea what they actually are and how they function. This infographic explains some of the popular methods of payments, and also a brief history of each.

By Anna Power  TLE Film Editor  @TLE_Film  The British Independent Film Awards are upon us and we're livestreaming them here from 8pm tonight! It's been an outstanding year for British and Irish Independent Film from giants like Mike Leigh's Mr Turner and The Imitation Game, to Abrahamson's Frank and McDonagh's Calvary and first time feature director Yann Demange's '71 to name a few. We hope you'll join us and the dazzling array of talent from the best of British film...

By Stephen Mayne @finalreel    What do you do when your highly complex, specific skillset is no longer needed? As the heyday of British manufacturing disappears far into the distance, it’s a question many are left facing. The answer in Kevin Macdonald’s claustrophobic submarine thriller is not likely to bring much comfort either. Black Sea opens with Jude Law’s Robinson receiving his marching orders from Agora, the heartless employer that offers a derisory parting package before telling him to clear...

By Emma Siverthorn  @HouseOf_Gazelle From its opaque start through to its ambiguous denouncement Robin Campillo's Eastern Boys is a brilliantly complex exploration of power dynamics. In the opening scenes, the Eastern Boys, (hailing from the Ukraine, Russia and Romania), roam the Gare Du Nord, their purpose and intention unclear but their sense of pack protection obvious. Yet as the film progresses this sense of immigrant solidarity quickly darkens and shifts to something more akin to captivity than camaraderie. The leader...

By James Mackney  @JimMackney Open Bethlehem is as much Leila Sansour’s film as it is Bethlehem’s. It chronicles Leila’s mission to ensure that Bethlehem is a free and open city and not one at the whim of Israeli pressure. Leila herself left Palestine and Bethlehem at age 18 and returned several years later to film this documentary however the documentary states that her family is depleting around her. They are feeling the pressures of the regime that is keeping Palestine...

DOES TRAVEL BROADEN THE MIND? NOT ACCORDING TO NEW RESEARCH By Neil Kook 60% admit that a “gap year” did NOT broaden their mind 29% are sick of their friends travelling “stories” 14% admit travelling made it harder to get a job in the UK  Travel broadens the mind, according to the age-old-adage. However, new research from student shipping specialist, 1StopShip, reveals a gap-year could in fact harm your employment prospects, and in some cases, lose you friends! The study questioned...