All posts tagged: decision

NSS welcomes St Albans council decision to end prayers

NSS welcomes St Albans council decision to end prayers

Published by skeptic

The National Secular Society has expressed its support for a council’s decision to end prayers before meetings. Last week St Albans City and District Council voted 25-20 in favour of a motion to end prayers before full council meetings. The motion, proposed by Liberal Democrat councillor Sinéad Howland (pictured), said the inclusion of prayers before the meetings “may inadvertently exclude or alienate individuals of different faiths or those without religious beliefs”. This contradicts the council’s “commitment to equality and inclusivity” and “disrupts the start of the meeting”, the motion said. The motion noted that despite the intention to hold prayers in a separate session before the meetings, this separation “has not been consistently or effectively achieved”. This had led to councillors of other religions and beliefs feeling “the need to wait outside, disrupting the process of preparing for the meeting”. The motion also noted the Equality Act 2010 includes a Public Sector Equality Duty on public bodies to “eliminate discrimination and foster good relations between people with different characteristics”, including both religious and nonreligious beliefs. …

George Clooney reveals his decision Amal will ‘hate’ and make their twins, 7, ‘laugh at me nonstop’

George Clooney reveals his decision Amal will ‘hate’ and make their twins, 7, ‘laugh at me nonstop’

Published by skeptic

We’re now days away from George Clooney’s long-awaited Broadway debut, with the opening of the adaptation of Good Night, and Good Luck at the Winter Garden Theatre. The 63-year-old actor will star in the play, based on the 2005 Oscar-nominated film which he co-wrote, directed and starred in, set to begin previews on March 12 and open officially on April 3 before concluding on June 8. In the original film, George played the role of producer Fred W. Friendly, but in the play, he will play lead Edward R. Murrow, played by David Straithairn in the film. Recommended videoYou may also likeWATCH: George and Amal Clooney’s Love Story For the role, the star will be turning back the clock to a much younger character, and for the purpose, will be dying his famous salt-and-pepper locks black. However, in a recent interview with the New York Times, the actor alluded to at least three people not being a fan of this decision — his wife Amal Clooney, and their seven-year-old twins, Ella and Alexander. “My wife is going to …

Wendy’s customers bitter over ‘garbage’ decision to employ AI bots — but some are relieved

Wendy’s customers bitter over ‘garbage’ decision to employ AI bots — but some are relieved

Published by skeptic

Sign up to IndyEat’s free newsletter for weekly recipes, foodie features and cookbook releases Get our food and drink newsletter for free Get our food and drink newsletter for free Wendy’s is employing AI bots at its drive-thrus — and customers have mixed feelings about it. The CEO of Wendy’s, Kirk Tanner, discussed the company’s move to use AI to take drive-thru orders during an earnings call last Thursday. According to Tanner, there are 100 U.S. Wendy’s restaurants, including the flagship one in Columbus, Ohio, that are using AI at the drive-thrus, and he’s “really liking the results.” Tanner explained that the AI order taker — dubbed FreshAI — will continue to expand, with 500 to 600 restaurants expected to have the system by the end of 2025. Nationwide, Wendy’s has more than 6,700 restaurants. During the call, Tanner said he’s tested the AI system himself nearly four times a week, and the experience is “exceptional.” He said the one thing he could share about the drive-thru add-on is that it is enhancing sales. “It …

King Charles makes surprising decision at 76: ‘It’s behind me’

King Charles makes surprising decision at 76: ‘It’s behind me’

Published by skeptic

King Charles is a busy man, travelling the world in the name of duty, and gamely getting stuck into all manner of activities during public engagements, so it’s easy to forget that the monarch is approaching 80 – and no longer the young man he once was. During a visit to Teesside on Thursday, the King reminded the public he’s not quite so nimble as he once was, telling a Swiss man he met, “I think my skiing days are behind me.” © Photo: Getty ImagesKing Charles was a keen skier in his youth Once a keen skier, regularly taking to the slopes with his sons, Princes William and Harry, it’s a shame the King no longer feels comfortable taking to the mountain – and it’s not the only passion he’s admitted he has retired from. WATCH: King Charles skis with Prince Harry and Prince William In October, during a visit to the Australian National Botanic Gardens, a young royal fan asked King Charles his favourite sport, to which the King replied: “I can’t do …

The Repair Shop expert faces ‘impossible’ decision in shock restoration first

The Repair Shop expert faces ‘impossible’ decision in shock restoration first

Published by skeptic

The Repair Shop expert Steve Fletcher faced a difficult decision in a recent episode of the beloved BBC series, leaving both the owner of a treasured item and viewers at home deeply moved. The horologist, who has restored countless timepieces in his time on the show, was tasked with bringing a 1950s alarm clock back to life. But this restoration came with a unique challenge—one that led to an emotional dilemma. WATCH: The Repair Shop’s Steve faces a tough decision A sentimental family heirloom © BBCThe Repair Shop’s Steve fixed an alarm clock The clock belonged to Karen, who brought it into The Repair Shop hoping Steve could restore the cherished timepiece. The vintage alarm clock had once belonged to her grandfather, David Alfonso Butler, a member of the Windrush Generation. David, who worked gruelling shifts in a foundry, relied on the alarm clock to wake him every afternoon after long nights of hard labour. For Karen, the clock was more than just a household object—it was a reminder of the man who had shaped …

Labour’s breakfast club delay is the right policy decision

Labour’s breakfast club delay is the right policy decision

Published by skeptic

More from this theme Recent articles They called it the great catch-up. The government’s £1.12 billion National Tutoring Programme was meant to be the answer to children’s lost learning after Covid lockdowns closed the classroom doors. Yet what followed offers a sobering lesson for the new government as it prepares to launch its own flagship education policy: a £365 million-a-year programme of universal breakfast clubs in England’s primary schools. The National Tutoring Programme’s failures were as expensive as they were comprehensive. It fell short of its 6 million hours tutoring target. The disadvantaged pupils it was meant to help largely missed out, with less than half of the children receiving support coming from poorer backgrounds. Delivery descended into chaos. MPs denounced the funding system as “spaghetti junction“. Tutoring groups branded the management by global outsourcing firm Randstad as “shambolic“. When the programme ended in 2024, barely one in six school leaders said they would continue offering tutoring without government money. All this while the attainment gap between rich and poor pupils has grown to its widest since 2011. Our analysis at The New …

Coast and Vale merger decision due

Coast and Vale merger decision due

Published by skeptic

Delta boss Paul Tarn took over Coast and Vale Learning Trust as chief executive in April Delta boss Paul Tarn took over Coast and Vale Learning Trust as chief executive in April More from this theme Recent articles Merger plans that would create England’s second-biggest multi-academy trust are due to be decided next month – by a board its chair sits on and with its chief executive already in charge of the other chain. Delta Academies Trust boss Paul Tarn took over Coast and Vale Learning Trust as chief executive in April. Paul Tarn It followed an “in-principle agreement” between the two trusts to join forces. The proposals – which will take Delta’s tally to 63 schools – will go before the Department for Education’s Yorkshire and Humber advisory board in two weeks. But leaders have warned of the risks attached to such a move. One trust chief executive, who asked not to be named, said: “The advisory board is in a very difficult position because they [the trusts] are so far down the line. …

Humanists UK welcomes UK Government decision to add folic acid to flour to reduce birth defects

Humanists UK welcomes UK Government decision to add folic acid to flour to reduce birth defects

Published by skeptic

Humanists UK has welcomed the UK Government’s announcement that folic acid will be added to non-wholemeal flour. This is a significant public health benefit which is expected to save lives and lead to fewer cases of serious and fatal foetal abnormalities. Folic acid is crucial in the early stages of pregnancy for the proper development of the neural tube and reducing incidents of neural tube defects (NTD) like anencephaly, which is usually fatal in the womb, or causes death shortly after birth. Around 80% of women who receive such a diagnosis choose to terminate their pregnancy. Until now, the onus was on women who were hoping to become or who were pregnant to take folic acid supplements in the UK. This meant that many women, including those on low incomes or who were not aware that they were pregnant, were not getting enough folic acid. As a result, the UK is believed to have the highest rate of NTDs in Europe. Humanists UK has long advocated this measure, recognising it as a positive step towards …

Can you sleep your way to better decision making? Here’s what the science says

Can you sleep your way to better decision making? Here’s what the science says

Published by skeptic

The author John Steinbeck said: “It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.” Many others have claimed they formulated breakthroughs and innovations in dreams. Recent studies on the science of sleep suggest these claims are supported by modern science. A 2024 study suggests that sleep can help us make more rational, informed decisions, and not be swayed by a misleading first impression. To show this, researchers at Duke University in the US had participants take part in a garage-sale game. In the experiment, participants rummaged through virtual boxes of unwanted goods. Most items in the box weren’t worth much, but a few special objects were more valuable. After searching through several boxes, participants were asked to pick their favourite box and would earn a cash reward equivalent to the value of the items in the box. When participants had to decide on a box right away, they tended to judge the boxes not by their entire contents, but …

The “McNamara fallacy”: When data leads to the worst decision

The “McNamara fallacy”: When data leads to the worst decision

Published by skeptic

Sign up for the Big Think Business newsletter Learn from the world’s biggest business thinkers Notice: JavaScript is required for this content. In 2014, I took a weekend break to York. York is a lovely city in the north of the UK, with an ancient cathedral, quaint cobbled roads, and an interactive Viking experience. It was a great weekend. But when I first got off the train there, I was hungry and disoriented. I’ve never been much of a trip planner — a habit that worsened with the invention of iPhone apps. So, I got my phone out and used TripAdvisor to search “Best places to get lunch in York.” Up popped a variety, but leading the list was a curiously named restaurant called Skewers. Skewers had a variety of professional-quality photos of mouth-watering food. After a short walk, I found myself outside Skewers. It turns out that Skewers is not a restaurant but a kebab van. It looked like a nice kebab van, populated by two friendly Turkish men, but it wasn’t quite the …