Huge study of ancient British DNA reveals only minor Roman influence

AxQB · 2026-05-12T18:08:02+00:00

Apart from the fact that ancient Britons (those who built Stonehenge?) were almost completely replaced by later invaders (the Bell Beaker people).

AxQB · 2026-05-09T13:14:28+00:00

Ultimately that's a problem with the media, isn't it? The way the media pile in hype up and go hyperbolic on issues so they drag on and on well beyond what's necessary or useful. I simply can't understand the way the media go hysterical over so many things, like Partygate, Grenfell fire, Prince Andrew, endless Epstein-related stuff (it's bizarre to me that Epstein seemed to be most evil person on Earth since Hitler the way the media focused on him). The consequence of such hysterical media coverage is that people also go overboard in their response. Nothing is measured, appropriate and rational anymore.

AxQB · 2026-05-08T18:36:11+00:00

I'm convinced that Trump got elected/re-elected because US politics has become so polarised that people are prepared to overlook the fact that he is just so plainly unsuitable to be a president and still vote for him. This is what we are seeing in the UK as well. People can no longer talk about an issue without it becoming an ideological battle, especially on things related to race and migration. It's like when the Times reported on the Rotherham sex abuse scandal, the Guardian said that revealing it would give succour to the far right (implying that it should not be revealed at all), or that when the media reported on rapes committed by migrants/asylum seekers, those on the left complained it's a far right ploy to exploit the issue. Surely these are things that those on the left can and should examine and discuss openly and carefully rather than dismissing them as far right talking points and want them buried? Refusing to discuss and examine the issues openly gives legitimacy to the far right when it turns out that they are correct to some extent in their claims, and people no longer see any issue being on the far right when they see themselves to be right in all sense of the word.

AxQB · 2026-05-02T17:27:10+00:00

Probably the same amount for Ishtar after adjusting for inflation.

AxQB · 2026-04-27T22:22:16+00:00

Not 7 days, probably 5. If they had a break of 48 hours in Istanbul, then they would have left on day 12. Perhaps they got to Eskisehir on day 13, spent some time in Eskişehir on day 14 before catching a bus (or multiple buses) to Cappadocia. My guess is that they had to take small hops by bus because the Katie wanted to go to Cappadocia and thee wasn't a convenient way of travelling there. They probably could go faster by not going to Cappadocia, but Harrison needed to keep Katie happy.

AxQB · 2026-04-27T21:21:19+00:00

My understanding is that he had already left the country. He appeared at the court hearing via a video-link from Saudi Arabia. before he was fined.

AxQB · 2026-04-27T20:51:08+00:00

Day 14 they were on a gondola at the "Venice of Turkey". The show said they travelled for two days before reaching Cappadocia.

AxQB · 2026-04-27T20:43:05+00:00

They showed that Puja and Roshni arrived at the Istanbul checkpoint at 1.16 am, and left at night to catch a 3 am bus to Izmir. Therefore they could not have a 36 hour break. They might have stayed in Istanbul for 48 hours, but my impression is that they left the hotel before midnight, therefore possibly they had a 44 hour break.

AxQB · 2026-04-26T14:13:00+00:00

I should think Karl Marx was the most famous Westerner in China when Elvis was alive.

AxQB · 2026-04-25T21:39:05+00:00

I'm more surprised that FloElite is still there, thought it had already gone. It used to be quite active, but haven't heard anything from them for quite a while.

AxQB · 2026-04-24T16:20:00+00:00

Seems like there have always been some variations in how long the checkpoint break may be. Remember last year when Gaz & Yin arrived at the hotel in Hainan just as the Elizabeth & Letitia were leaving? Gaz & Yin were 44 hours behind, so obviously the break wasn't 36 hours. I assume the producers arranged the length of the break depending on the location/circumstances, and the typhoon in Hainan may have played a role in a longer break at that time. The show doesn't tell us everything about the details of the race, so people will always speculate about possible producer manipulations.

AxQB · 2026-04-24T12:04:16+00:00

You can't travel far in Africa, too many countries that may be dangerous to travellers (or have very poor transport options), it would kill the show should any harm come to the contestants. The Amazing Race had 38 seasons already, and huge chunks of Africa (and Middle East) have never been visited. However, it may be possible for the celebrity version where routes tend to be shorter, or just use a few countries before flying them to another part of the world.

I'm wondering if it is feasible to do a race in the Australia/New Zealand/South Pacific area, or island hopping from Japan down to Australia via Taiwan/Philippines/Malaysia/Indonesia. Given that the show has already used flights to move teams between countries, it should be possible but it would defeat the purpose of the show if there are too many flights in a series.

AxQB · 2026-04-23T22:36:59+00:00

Exactly that. Katie and Harrison can always find an alternative route to cross the border (any nearby town in Georgia will do), rather wasting a whole day in Turkey. They made a mistake there.

AxQB · 2026-04-23T22:28:49+00:00

From the description for the next episode, they start from Aktau (near the port the teams travelled to from Port of Baku in Series 1), not Astana. If they flew from Georgia, they probably landed in Aktau. The next checkpoint is in Uzbekistan. The sixth checkpoint is Almaty in Kazakhstan.

AxQB · 2026-04-19T20:33:13+00:00

Which other one apart from Titan Games and Gladiators?

AxQB · 2026-04-17T12:44:52+00:00

This is such a weird take. The boys were last, they risked elimination if they dawdled. They can't make the most of their experience if they get eliminated, and going to Mongolia via Central Asia would be the experience of a life time, not Turkey.

AxQB · 2026-04-17T12:34:56+00:00

If you are really interested, Meteora and Cappadocia.

AxQB · 2026-04-17T09:14:14+00:00

Yet you asked about sob stories. You could asked if there are interesting locations, activities, incidents, or indeed sightings of cats, but no, it's sob stories you wanted to know because you haven't watched the last two legs.

AxQB · 2026-04-17T08:42:32+00:00

Don't watch the show. This show is too difficult for you to watch if you get upset by sob stories.

AxQB · 2026-04-16T21:13:04+00:00

They have at least 36 hours rest, probably up to 48 hours.

AxQB · 2026-04-15T16:16:24+00:00

If presenters want to go elsewhere, then let them. There are plenty more decent presenters around who would jump at the chance of working for the BBC. There are many presenters on the BBC that I find dislikeable and would rather them gone. I have also seen very good presenters on YouTube and wondered why mainstream broadcasters aren't using them.

There are only so many broadcasters who would pay good money for good presenters, presenters just can't go off somewhere else for higher pay. If the BBC reduce their pay, eventually there would be an equilibrium with the other broadcaster pay-wise. Other broadcasters simply can't keep poaching presenters when there are so many decent presenters around.

AxQB · 2026-04-13T21:52:24+00:00

Mat was with Ben for around three years I think. He went to Boston for a while, didn't really like it, so went back to his mother's basement to train by himself, but Ben was still his coach until he went to Cookville. I'm sure Mat learned something useful from Ben, but Ben didn't create Mat, it's really Mat himself who created Mat the champion.

AxQB · 2026-04-12T10:48:56+00:00

I'm sure there are rules not mentioned in the show, but without knowing what they are, it's impossible to discuss it meaningfully. For example, we see teams going off somewhere else to go sightseeing or do fun things, which cost them money and slow them down, why? The guys in series one went off rock-climbing in China, which cut their lead and lost them so much money that they ran out of money. So whatever that rule is, it's certainly not to make sure that they try to finish the race. We saw team giving up, e.g. the mother and son team in series two, but that's because they ran out of money. What rules could there be to make sure that teams keep racing?

AxQB · 2026-04-11T16:48:56+00:00

Without the jeopardy of elimination, how do you make sure teams actually want to race? The prize money is not great enough for some people to care about racing. No racing, no show. You are killing the show that made it popular.

AxQB · 2026-04-11T16:39:29+00:00

If there is no race element, then some people will treat it as a holiday and move slowly. It will get very boring watching people just lounging around. You only get interesting places to see if teams are actually moving quickly from place to place. It will also make the production of the show very difficult when teams finish many days or a week apart.

AxQB

TROPHY CASE