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Stephen Hawking: In the Footsteps of Sir Isaac Newton

To grasp the size, shape and nature of the universe requires a vast mind such as only very few possess. However, in order to truly understand space, and how it came about, a mind the size of Stephen Hawking’s is

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Pope Francis: Repairing the Roman Catholic Church

Is he merely a window dresser or could he actually be the great reformer most Roman Catholics have been patiently waiting for? Since his election in March 2013, Pope Francis – formerly known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio from Argentina –

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Temple Grandin: Autism Drives Academic Excellence

The lady thinks like a cow. In the case Temple Grandin (66), that is a compliment. Dr Grandin has singlehandedly changed and much improved the way livestock is handled in the US and across the globe. Her redesigned feedlots, stockyards

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Mo Farah: Running for Fun, Profit and Charity

Mo Farah runs for his life. It is what he does and he is pretty good at it too. On the 10,000 and 5,000 metres, Mo Farah is the Olympic, world and European champion. He runs in a great number

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Joanna Lumley: Nepal’s National Treasure

Considered a “national treasure” in Nepal for her support of the Gurkha Justice Campaign, Joanna Lumley has few if any qualms when it comes to using her fame to promote good causes. As a high-profile activist, she backs Survival International

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JK Rowling: Inspiring Words Matched to an Inspiring Life

When the first edition of a book published in 1997 already fetches upward of twenty-thousand pounds, it is sure to have represented a literary milestone. Such is indeed the case with JK Rowling’s peerless masterwork Harry Potter and Philosopher’s Stone

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PJ O’Rourke: One of the Last of the Gonzo Journalists

A gonzo-style journalist par excellence, PJ O’Rourke will seldom fail to tackle serious societal issues with sarcastic humour and some well-placed digs at authority. Formerly managing-editor of National Lampoon, an avant-garde US satire magazine published from 1970 to 1998, Mr

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Hernando de Soto: Unlocking the Riches of the Poor

Most of the world’s poor may be slightly less destitute than it appears. However, officialdom often unwittingly conspires to keep the modest wealth of the poor – a shack, a building plot, a sewing machine, or marketable skills – locked

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Elif Shafak: Exposing the Moralising Slappers

Born in 1971 to a diplomat mother and philosopher father, Elif Shafak was destined for intellectual greatness. She did not fail to heed the call and today is Turkey’s most widely read and celebrated female author with thirteen books to

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Sir Timothy Berners-Lee: Catching the World in a Web

He may not have invented the Internet, former US vice-president Al Gore did that (…), but British computer scientist Sir Timothy Berners-Lee made the World Wide Web (www) as we know it today possible by coming up with the HyperText

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