Titan’s magic island is not an island. So what is it? June 23, 2014 While flying by Titan, Saturn's largest moon, Nasa's Cassani spacecraft spotted a strange dark splodge on its surface, which has since been described as its “mystery island”. But that was last July, and three fly-bys since then have failed to spot this island again, leaving scientists baffled as to what the strange sighting could have [...]
Did the big bang happen? Scientists call theory into question June 20, 2014 The big bang: it is supposedly the cause of our existence, the scientific explanation for everything that is and everything that isn't. But scientists now say that some of the evidence for it is flawed. One of the concepts at the heart of the big bang theory is that of cosmic inflation, which says [...]
BT jumps after Ofcom quashes fibre complaint June 19, 2014 OFCOM yesterday cleared BT over claims it had priced its flagship superfast broadband too high, boosting BT’s shares by almost two per cent. TalkTalk had complained that BT was abusing its dominant position in the way it priced its wholesale offering. BT offers its own broadband service to consumers, as well as charging rival operators [...]
Cinven plumps for public listing of Spire to help exit investment June 19, 2014 SPIRE Healthcare, the 38-hospital private healthcare business, is set to list on the London stock market after ditching plans for a trade sale of the business. The company is owned by private equity giant Cinven and has been working with advisers Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley to plot a sale of group. [...]
My Titania ready to give Oxx another Coronation June 19, 2014 BILL ESDAILE PREVIEWS TODAY’S ROYAL ASCOT ACTION AND THE BEST OF TOMORROW’S RACES IT WAS the fillies off the track who were the stars of the show yesterday on Ladies Day. Now it is the turn of the equine fairer sex to take centre stage in this afternoon’s Coronation Stakes (4.25pm). You will rarely see as [...]
France and Bosnia look World Cup bankers over the weekend June 19, 2014 BEN CLEMINSON PREVIEWS FRANCE V BOSNIA IF YOU like lumping on short-priced favourites then there’s plenty to get stuck into over the weekend. Italy at 4/7, Ecuador at 8/11, Argentina at 1/7 and Germany at 1/4 aren’t really my idea of great value punting, though, and I’m happy to just watch those jollies in their [...]
Inside Track: Centrica’s Conn job on stock award June 18, 2014 TALK of energy suppliers and con tricks, and the assumption might be that the Big Six have been indulging in a reputation-shredding episode of doorstep mis-selling. In the boardroom of Centrica, owner of British Gas, though, the phrase is acquiring a different meaning. Directors have been preoccupied for weeks with prising Iain Conn, the long-serving [...]
Bank of England hints at interest rate hike in committee minutes June 18, 2014 The minutes of the UK's interest-rate setting committee show signs that an interest rate hike could finally be approaching. Members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to hold policy at its 5 June meeting, keeping interest rates at their historic lows and the level of asset purchases unchanged. But the minutes yet again [...]
Tory peer Lord Spicer decides to step down from EnergyUK June 17, 2014 Lord Spicer, the former chair of the Conservative 1922 committee, is stepping down from chairing EnergyUK – the industry’s trade association – just as the domestic energy market is coming under intense political pressure. According to Sky News, Lord Spicer notified EnergyUK’s board earlier this year of his decision. Angela Knight, the former chief executive [...]
How to build influence in your job June 17, 2014 Even small steps can make a big difference to how your colleagues perceive you. “It's not enough to have a bright idea, you have to get all the right people in the boat with you.” Sophie Vandebroek, chief technology officer at Xerox, was speaking about that crucial commodity in the workplace – influence. Difficult [...]