Rosé wines are becoming increasingly popular all year round and that was even before Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt put their money in Château Miraval, their summer home in Provence where rosé dominates the wine scene. Fruity cool refreshment, a desire to conjur up long sunny days and growing wine consumption amongst women may be […]
A tomato a day keeps the doctor away!
Tomatoes! Juicy, colourful and delicious. We all know that tomatoes are good for us and we should include them more in our diet. But what are tomatoes and why, specifically, are they such a healthy food? The tomato is the fruit of the Lycopersicon esculentum plant.Although tomatoes are closely associated with Italian cuisine, they are […]
Plastic flags
Swiss National day is a relatively new public holiday, having only been officially established in 1969 (despite being mooted as early as 1889). With impressive fireworks displays, massive bonfires across the country and somewhat incongruous plastic flags, the holiday celebrates the establishment of the Confederation by what are now the cantons of Uri, Schwyz and […]
Green really does mean go!
Getting hammered by “les flics” for racing a red light seems fair enough in the thrust and parry of Swiss urban traffic. But did you know that if you fail to move forward when the light turns green you can also be fined? Simply put, the law says that failure to obey traffic signals is […]
EPFL’s cement discovery
LAUSANNE Ten per cent of the earth’s CO2 emissions are emitted by industrial processes related to the creation of cement. The widely used construction material negatively impacts on the environment at all stages of its production. The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation has now granted more than CHF 4 million to a project instigated […]
From Millennium to Sustainable Development Goals
GENEVA Given the world’s failure to eradicate poverty and hunger by 2015, governments and development specialists are seeking a new continuum with a greater emphasis on sustainability. According to a 23 May Geneva Environment Network roundtable, the new Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, should fully integrate environmental concerns since health, food security and other crucial […]
Promoting health & sex education in developing countries
Switzerland’s Federal Council has submitted a report emphasising the country’s commitment to promote health and sex education in developing countries. The report focuses on the importance of sexual and reproductive health for the future of global development. Prior to 1994 most programmes emphasized the need for governments to impose family planning measures and distribute free […]
The Lake Geneva region: A writers’ pole for creativity
Perched at the foot of the Jura mountains, the Maison de l’Écriture rises as a strident intrusion of modernity with its vaulting, white pillars, panoramic windows and perforated roof. Yet this is not the first time that a New Age phenomenon has imposed itself on the area. Back in the 1890s, when the Morges to […]
Solar Impulse 2 test success
PAYERNE Bertrand Piccard’s and André Borschberg’s second solar-powered plane, Solar Impulse 2, successfully completed a two-hour maiden flight above La Broye on 2 June. This remarkable feat of engineering and ingenuity has captivated enthusiasts across the world — a suitable global acclaim considering the plane’s ability to reach far-off destinations without having to land. In […]
Benedict Cumberbatch Generator
Benedict Cumberbatch Generator. Generates any number of equally tortuous and unique names using the power of the internet and a splash of mischief. Aspiring sci-fi writers can now produce names such as Whippersnatch Coggleswort, Fragglerock Cragglethatch and Pallettown Crackerjack without doing anything more than click.
