Was it a sudden death? A ritual sacrifice? Or maybe they were prehistoric, star-crossed lovers who took their own lives? Dubbed the 'Lovers of Valdaro', this Stone Age couple were found outside Mantova, Italy, in 2007. Their eternal embrace has captured the hearts of romantics everywhere.

Is it OK to buy goosedown or duckdown duvets and pillows?

By Leo Hickman

Down, the soft lining found under the exterior feathers of waterfowl such as ducks and geese, has been prized for centuries for its insulating properties and its softness, which makes it ideal for use in bedding. In theory, as the down moults naturally from these birds, they shouldn't mind if we take it. But the reality is that down is almost always the by product of keeping millions of birds around the world in battery-cage conditions for cheap meat, or foie gras.

In the following extract from her inspiring memoir Raising Tiffany, writer and life-coach Deborah Trenchard shares some heartfelt realisations about the true meaning of motherhood

The best in me was born out of having a child with complex developmental challenges, with special needs. ‘How could that be?’ Someone asked recently, eyeballing me quizzically from head to toe.  And without a moment’s hesitation I shared some of the deepest realisations I’ve had over the years as I mothered Tiffany.  

Gone are the days when chocolate was regarded as just another food baddie, to be avoided along with sweets, crisps and fizzy drinks.

Do you trust everything you are told or do you think there is usually truth in conspiracies?

Psychologist Dr Patrick Leman, of the Royal Holloway University of London, has devised a test to see how conspiratorial you are.

TAKE IT HERE

By observing events at the scale of single atoms, Cornell researchers have found evidence that the mechanism in high-temperature superconductors may be much more like that in low-temperature superconductors than was previously thought.

 

"This came as a huge shock," said J.C. Séamus Davis, Cornell professor of physics, who with colleagues reports the findings in the Aug. 3 issue of the journal Nature.