The Know Daily - Monday 5 June 2023

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Llanymynech Golf Club in Wales has embarked upon a new project to transform surrounding scrubland into a biodiversity hotspot, giving a much-needed boost to butterfly numbers. The £91,000 project aims to restore flower-rich grassland and help rare butterfly species - plus it’ll also provide golfers on the course with some pretty stunning views!

🇵🇱 Poland protests

Hundreds of thousands of protestors gathered in the Polish capital of Warsaw on Sunday to march against the country’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party.

What’s the story?
An estimated 500,000 people attended the pro-democracy rally, which was led by Poland’s opposition parties. Among those in attendance were former PM Donald Tusk - Poland’s main opposition leader and head of the centrist Civil Platform (PO) party - and former president Lech Walesa.

Why did the rally take place?
The march was convened to mark the 34th anniversary of Poland’s first partially-free elections. Tusk said that yesterday’s march was the biggest political gathering since Poland regained independence after the communist period.

What were people protesting about?
“A wide variety of issues brought protests together,” said the BBC, which included “frustrations over inflation, costs of living, and rights for women and LGBT [people]”. Since the nationalist PiS came to power in 2015, it has attacked the independent judiciary and implemented a near-total ban on abortion.

Although the demonstrations were planned, the opposition had been “galvanised” in recent days by the passing of a controversial law which would “allow a government commission to ban people from public office if it believes they were agents of Russian influence”, reported The Guardian. Although Poland’s president suggested amendments to the new law following a fierce backlash, the measure is widely seen as targeting opposition leader Tusk.

What happens next?
An election is set to take place in the autumn, although polls suggest that neither PiS nor the main opposition Civic Platform are likely to gain enough votes to form a government alone. “The election outcome could hinge on how smaller parties fare and who is able to form a workable coalition,” said The Guardian.

 🌱 More peas, please

As demand for plant-based food increases, a new research project is exploring whether flavourless peas could replace imported soya beans as a more environmentally-friendly, home-grown meat substitute.

Wait…flavourless peas?
Yep! While many of us may be partial to the taste of protein-rich peas, they’re certainly not for everyone - and their flavour is hard to mask when used in large quantities (especially when compared to soya beans). With demand for meat alternatives increasing by 30% a year, scientists are now exploring whether UK-grown “peas that don’t taste like peas” could be the solution.

And the science is already there. Researchers discovered a gene for pea flavour around three decades ago, but had no need for it at the time. “Now it could be the basis of a new industry,” said the BBC.

What’s so good about peas?
Pea crops are great for soil health as they put nitrogen and other nutrients back into the earth, reducing the need for fertilisers as farmers rotate their crops.

But the big draw is that they could reduce the UK’s dependence on soya beans. According to government figures, the UK imports around four million tonnes of the staple a year, mainly from South America, where soy production is linked to mass deforestation.

Not everyone is over-the-moon about the prospect of more peas on our plates, however. Pea allergy sufferers have warned that tasteless peas could pose a danger to some consumers.

How might this story develop?
The aim of the research project - led by Belfast-based plant breeding company Germinal - is to produce a commercially viable alternative to soya that also has higher levels of digestible protein and is easier to harvest than current pea varieties.

Once a suitable variety is identified, the plant will then undergo trials to see whether it could be an effective substitute for soya and make money for farmers under real-world conditions.

🇺🇦 Ukraine war latest: Russia says it thwarted a major Ukrainian offensive in the Donetsk region but the claims have not been independently verified. Ukrainian officials have not commented and it is unclear whether the alleged attacks represented the country’s long-awaited counteroffensive.

⚖️ Duke of Sussex in court: Prince Harry is set to testify tomorrow in a London court for a lawsuit against the Mirror newspaper group which he claims invaded his privacy by hacking his phone more than a decade ago.

❌ Tuberculosis warning: Experts are warning that imported cases of the ancient deadly disease have started to increase in England after a decade-long decline, and that TB is overtaking Covid-19 as the world’s most deadly infectious disease.

🫁 Lung cancer hope: A once-a-day pill called osimertinib can cut the risk of dying from lung cancer by 51%, according to the “thrilling” results of a decade-long global study.

💗 Barbie’s world: The production team behind the upcoming live-action Barbie movie needed so much pink that they caused an international run on the fluorescent shade of Rosco paint. “The world ran out of pink,” said the film’s production designer.

Trivia answer: C) The firm hasn’t yet created a cherry sundae-inspired coffin - but you can check out some of their whackiest designs here.

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