The greatest Beatles song of all time, according to science

(Credits: Far Out / Apple Corps) Sat 18 January 2025 12:00, UK How on earth do you measure the impact of The Beatles? The size and scope of their success are barely reconcilable. We might view Taylor Swift as a giant of modern times thanks to the 114 million albums she has sold, but the Fab Four have flogged in excess of 600million. And when the young Liverpudlian lads burst on the scene, the world’s population was only 3.1billion, remarkably about 38.75% of what it is today. That places The Beatles at their pomp at around 14 times more popular than Swift is presently. Imagine that. It’d be borderline insufferable. Stranger still, you could easily argue that the band were paradoxically non-commercial. At least in their later days, they were as experimental as anyone else on the scene. Take, for instance, ‘I Am the Walrus’: there is no way that a song inspired by the sexual kinks of Eric ‘The Eggman’ Burdon, a working-class Geordie singer, transmuted in the drug-addled mind of John Lennon, a Jesus Christ-defiling oddball, run through the wringer of an avant-garde collision of rock and classical orchestration, taking on the ground-breaking compositional structure of a harmonic Moebius strip, should reasonably expect to be a hit that lives on for centuries.You could say the same for ‘A Day in the Life’, too. A self-professed free-form musical “orgasm”, working its way through a newspaper from the potholes in Lancashire to the apparent suicide of a Guinness heir, going on to be a huge hit? Unlikely. Certainly not on the BBC’s watch—they even tried to ban it. It was subversive and radical yet catchy and palatable. It was cool and aloof but had such a common touch it even kept up with the local papers. It was neo-classical and had differing time signatures and keys throughout, yet the crux of the first melody is effortlessly simple. Is it rapturous, or is it comforting?Whatever it is, it certainly wasn’t built to meet conventional standards—it challenged understandings of pop, transcending them and soared forth as a sonic experiment that reshaped what music could be. And that is why it is considered the greatest song that The Beatles ever offered, according to science. What is The Beatles’ best song?The science in question is the combined song study by critics and experts. Acclaimed Music compiled critics’ takes across the ages, musicologists’ findings, and every other accredited opinion on the song, crowning it The Beatles’ greatest achievement. It sits about ‘Strawberry Field Forever’ in second and ‘Hey Jude’ in third as the anthem, showcasing the reputation of the second half of their tenure atop the pop tree with each of those masterpieces arriving within not much longer than a year. Imagine that! It’d be borderline mind-blowing. And so, we see why one informed the other—how the wild success and supreme experimentation actually fuelled each other. They were doing things with such skill, in such a rapid advancement, that the public were forced to take note. As David Bowie said of John Lennon, and pretty much his mates by extension, “I just thought he was the very best of what could be done with rock ‘n’ roll.” However, it was the specific element that he highlighted next that had the biggest bearing on music. “He would rifle the avant-garde and look for ideas that were so on the outside on the periphery of what was the mainstream and then make them apply in a functional manner to something that was considered populist and make it work,” the ‘Starman’ happily shared.That’s the magic of what the Fab Four achieve together on ‘A Day in the Life’. You utter the lyric, “I heard the news today…” and whether it’s your 90-year-old grandad from Khazakstan or your eight-year-old niece from Huddersfield, they’re likely to reply, “Oh boy”. And I’ve also wager you’ve got a fairly interesting family history. It is this epic mix of searing musicality and sweet and soulful resonance that has ensured it has remained a timeless addition—a track that science and critics have rightfully placed at the top of the Fab Four’s tree. Still, it’s no ‘Africa’ by Toto which science discouraging championed as the greatest song of all time. Make of that what you will.[embedded content]Related TopicsSubscribe To The Far Out Newsletter

Charli XCX to Star in Aidan Zamiri’s A24 Film ‘The Moment’

Charli XCX is all set to headline an exciting A24 picture! The Cinemaholic can reveal that the celebrated singer-songwriter will lead Aidan Zamiri’s feature directorial debut, ‘The Moment.’ The project is slated to enter production in New York and Los Angeles, California, in March. Zamiri and Bertie Brandes wrote the screenplay. The plot and the rest of the cast of the film have yet to be disclosed.

‘September 5’ fact check: Is the Munich Olympics movie accurate?

Spoiler alert! We’re discussing details from the movie “September 5” (in theaters now), which tells the story of the hostage crisis at the 1972 Munich Summer Games. Beware if you haven’t seen it yet.Movies about real events have to walk a fine line between the documented truth and the needs of storytelling. That becomes particularly difficult when the subject matter involves crime.“September 5” walked that fine line spades as it set out to retell the story of Sept. 5, 1972, when eight Palestinian Black September terrorists took 11 Israelis hostage at the Munich Summer Games. The terrorists demanded the release of more than 300 Palestinians and non-Arabs who were imprisoned in Israel on various charges. Ultimately, five terrorists and all 11 athletes and coaches were killed. Though the movie hews very close to what happened that day, the timeline is compressed.“If we did this movie in real time, it would have been 22 hours long,” says director Tim Fehlbaum.The filmmaker elected to re-create that terrible day in a taut 95 minutes, focusing specifically on how the team from ABC Sports pivoted to a horrific news story for the ages.Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY’s movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox.Were Roone Arledge and Geoff Mason real ABC Sports staffers?Yes. Roone Arledge went on to become a legend at ABC, ultimately overseeing the network’s news division before he died in 2002 at age 71. Geoffrey Mason has won dozens of Emmys for his work in sports event production, working for a range of networks over his long career.In “September 5,” Arledge is played by Peter Sarsgaard, and Mason is portrayed by John Magaro. Fehlbaum says Mason provided invaluable assistance for his film.But some characters in the drama were composites, a decision made to keep the story moving. For example, a German staffer hired by ABC Sports named Marianne Gebhardt (Leonie Benesch) proves invaluable because she is able to translate German radio reports about the unfolding crisis. But that job was actually done by a variety of employees that day, Fehlbaum says.“There were many instances where certain functions (of the television production) were handled by various different people,” he says.Did Roone Arledge really defy orders from ABC headquarters to hand the story over to New York?Yes. The ABC Sports team was in position to cover the Olympic Games when the hostage news broke, but after a few initial reports, Arledge was instructed to hand the story back to the network’s New York headquarters.But Arledge, whose quick thinking catapulted him to success in ABC’s news division, resisted. He ordered massive cameras tethered by long cables into the streets to better capture the hostage area; gave the green light for staffers to pose as Olympians to smuggle footage in and out of the Olympic Village; and pushed back on orders to relinquish the story to a news desk 4,000 miles away when the drama was unfolding within eyesight.Is that real ABC Sports anchor Jim McKay in ‘September 5’?Actual ABC footage of legendary sports host Jim McKay is interwoven into the film.This comes into play primarily when TV monitors in ABC Sports’ Munich control room are showing the same events the network broadcast in 1972, including updates and interviews by McKay.The lone news reporter in the mix, future ABC News anchor Peter Jennings, is played by Benjamin Walker, who has a scene in which he argues to be sent into the field close to the condo where the hostages are being held.Did news reports incorrectly suggest the hostages had been freed?Yes. Around midnight on Sept. 5, German officials erroneously announced there had been a successful police operation at a nearby airbase, where the hostages and kidnappers had arrived to board a plane to Cairo.But a few hours later, Reuters and other news agencies had to correct that information: The hostages and terrorists had been killed in a firefight with German police at the airfield.McKay told his global audience: “They’re all gone.”Is the broadcast equipment shown in ‘September 5’ the real thing?The biggest sleight of hand in the film belongs to production designer Julian Wagner, who scoured the internet to buy as much gear as possible that was used in and around 1972, no small task because such equipment was junked decades ago.“Nothing we found worked, so we had to refurbish it all so that it did,” Wagner says. “For a while, we were worried (the equipment) would either explode on camera or be too loud during filming. But it worked out. At one point I asked my team, ‘Do we have it all?’ And they said, ‘There’s nothing else out in there in existence that we don’t have.’ So that felt good.”Does ‘September 5’ show actual footage of the hostage crisis at the 1972 Munich Summer Games?In addition re-creating the team’s cramped newsroom, Wagner also carved out smaller rooms in which Fehlbaum could “trap the actors” for intense discussions in the heat of the broadcast moment.Some of those talks focus on big-picture journalism questions, from whether to actually have live cameras trained on potentially deadly scenes to debates over whether showing terrorists in action actually played into their desires.When it came to showing images of the terrorists in “September 5,” Wagner says, Fehlbaum went with a combination of now-famous images from the real event and filmed re-creations.“It’s a wild mix, and some of the actors couldn’t even tell which was which,” Wagner says. “But we felt we had a responsibility to the real victims, so you won’t see any real images of them. That was the only and the right thing to do.”

Our View: Book’s removal sends a chill across library shelves

Kent Pekel became superintendent of Rochester Public Schools in June 2021. Since then, he’s effectively steered RPS through some perilous waters, and the Post Bulletin’s editorial board has lauded his leadership on several occasions. After two of his predecessors left the district in disgrace, he’s brought a calm, steady and capable hand to the helm.But now he has made an unforced error — and a somewhat puzzling one at that.

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Last February, the parent of a Franklin Elementary student complained about a book in the school library. “The Rainbow Parade” describes the experience of a young girl and her two mothers at a pride parade in San Francisco. It includes small illustrations of a nude woman (seen from behind) and a man wearing what we assume are supposed to be leather chaps and a dog collar attached to a leash that is held by his similarly-attired partner.On that page, the text states “Everyone is wearing whatever makes them feel most like themselves, even if that means wearing hardly anything at all.”On Dec. 10, the district removed the book from the library’s shelves. Pekel himself ordered this action, which he later justified in a memo that stated: “I believe that the depiction of public nudity makes the book inappropriate for the open shelves of a media center in an elementary school where students as young as kindergarten can access the book without adult supervision or guidance.”We are certain that Pekel came to his decision after much deliberation. It’s a complex situation, and when our editorial board members took up this issue for discussion, we went around and around (and down more than a few rabbit holes) as we sought consensus.Below are some of the key points that came up during our 90 minutes of spirited debate:The book’s presence in the school library was intentional. Franklin’s media department chair, Tammy Van Moer, said the book was purchased in 2023 “due to a need to represent authentic family structures and experiences of underrepresented people in our school, community and the world.” A 10-member review committee, which included community members, a secondary student, teachers, media specialists and equity specialists, has voted 9-1 in favor of keeping the book.The Rochester Public Library has strongly defended the prize-winning book and finds “intrinsic value in having this authentic representation of a pride parade on elementary media center shelves.”Last spring, Gov. Walz signed a law that prohibits K-12 schools, college and public libraries from removing/banning a book “based solely on the viewpoint, content, message, idea, or opinion conveyed.”Given all of the above, we concluded that the more appropriate course for Pekel would have been to reverse his decision last week when this topic came to a boil during a school board meeting — or, better still, he initially could have trusted the judgment of the media specialists to keep the book.So why did he dig in his heels? Why overrule the very professionals who are paid to make these tough calls? Why attempt to thread such a tiny legal needle, saying that it wasn’t the book’s subject matter that crossed the line, but rather its depiction of public nudity? Does that mean Pekel wouldn’t object to illustrations of nudity inside a home?

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We’ve read the 30-page book, and while we don’t think it would have been much the worse for omitting the unclad woman and the leather-wearing men, we’d point out that these are two tiny drawings that the average second-grader would scarcely notice nor understand — and if they did, their response would probably be a giggle, or maybe an assumption that the people are in bathing suits. Parents who watch any prime-time TV are likely exposing their kids to far more sexualized content via commercials for the latest crop of reality TV shows. And most parents today are quite familiar with the aptly-named children’s book series “Captain Underpants.”“The Rainbow Parade” doesn’t promote indecent exposure or sexual bondage. It doesn’t tell kids to be gay. Its message is one of acceptance, tolerance and being comfortable with oneself and one’s family — even if that family doesn’t have one mom and one dad.Should this book be required reading for every second-grader? Of course not, but neither should it be forbidden fruit, or available only to kids who are brave enough to ask the librarian to get it out of a locked case.Libraries (even elementary school libraries) are marketplaces of ideas. For a lot of kids, a library offers a first chance to stretch intellectual wings, to sample ideas, stories and experiences that haven’t been pre-approved and spoon-fed to them by their parents. It’s a big, interesting world, and a well-stocked library is a great way for kids to begin exploring it.Some parents, however, don’t want their kids to read about lifestyles and cultures that conflict with their family beliefs. These parents aren’t wrong, but their opinions on child-rearing, religion and/or sexuality shouldn’t dictate what other kids are allowed to read. Such parents can opt to home-school their children, or send them to private schools that match their beliefs – or those parents can go to their public school library, see what’s there and let the librarians and their kids know which books are off-limits.We think Pekel was wrong to ban “The Rainbow Parade.” Whether he meant to or not, he sent a chilling message to the gatekeepers who decide what is on library shelves — and in the eyes of some parents, he’s just declared open season on every book that contains a photo, illustration, painting or sculpture that reveals “taboo” parts of the human anatomy.

How to read Rebecca Yarros’ books in order — and what to know about the Empyrean series ahead of Onyx Storm

If you’re a reader who’s even slightly acquainted with the romance genre, you’ve likely heard of Rebecca Yarros. 
The novelist was catapulted to worldwide fame when her spicy fantasy novel Fourth Wing — the first of five in her Empyrean series — became a bestselling sensation and one of the hottest reads of 2023. 

But Yarros’ writing goes beyond tales of dragon riders falling in love and fighting wars; she has a large stable of series and novels in the contemporary romance genre to tide fans over while waiting for the next Empyrean installment. 

Here’s a guide to all of Yarros’ books in order, grouped by series, plus what’s next for her dragon riders when Onyx Storm arrives on Jan. 21, 2025.

The Flight & Glory series

Entangled: Amara

Yarros’ first book series, Flight & Glory, tells the stories of several couples who either serve in the military or are in military families. Full Measures follows army brat Ember as she finds solace in her hockey star neighbor Josh after her father dies in Afghanistan. Then there’s Beyond What Is Given, in which aspiring Apache helicopter pilot Grayson develops feelings for his roommate, Samantha. These romance novels explore the conflict between one’s duty to their country and their heart (and libido).

The Flight & Glory series in order
Full Measures (2014) Eyes Turned Skyward (2014) Beyond What Is Given (2015)Hallowed Ground (2016)The Reality of Everything (2020)

The Legacy series

The Legacy series’ main draw is the romance novel Reason to Believe, which follows the big-hearted Harper as she falls in love with her brother’s best friend Knox in a tiny Colorado town. The pair is rebuilding after losing Knox’s elite firefighter crew, including his and Harper’s fathers. 

If you’re looking for more small-town firefighting romance, the novellas Point of Origin and Ignite are also set in Legacy, Colo., and take place before Harper and Knox’s love story unfurled.

The Legacy series in order
Point of Origin (2016)Ignite (2016)Reason to Believe (2022)

The Renegades trilogy

While this romance series can be read in any order, each novel concerns a member of the Renegades — elite, extreme athletes — falling in love. They risk it all for their sport, will they risk it all for love, too? (I’m sorry, I’ll see myself out.) 

Anyway, expect a little opposites attract action at sea, ex-lovers fighting persistent feelings, and forbidden love on a college campus, all with some extreme steam. Bet you’ll never look at the X Games the same way again.

The Renegades trilogy in order
Wilder (2016) Nova (2017)  Rebel (2017)

The In Luv duet

Jay Crownover and Rebecca Yarros

Langley and Iker are an unlikely pairing — she’s a socialite witnessing her evil step-sister marry her first love, and he’s a soldier with secrets. 

The first In Luv novella, co-written with romance novelist Jay Crownover, sees Langley enlist Iker to be her plus-one at this nightmare of a wedding. They soon catch feelings, but Iker’s emotional baggage complicates things. 

The second installment is set nine months later when Iker returns from deployment and reconnects with Langley. You’ll have to read both books to see if the age-old fake dating trope scores another happily ever after.

The In Luv duology in order
Girl in Luv (2019)Boy in Luv (2019)

Rebecca Yarros’ stand-alone romance novels

In addition to various series, Yarros has written eight stand-alone romance novels. Her most recent is Variation, a story about injured ballerina Allie and Coast Guard rescue swimmer Hudson. The couple fell in love as teens but were pulled apart until years later when they’re forced to confront their past. 

And don’t sleep on The Last Letter, a fan-favorite tear-jerker and the Yarros novel most likely to be thrown across a room. It concerns a young infantryman named Beckett who fulfills his fallen war buddy’s last request to help his struggling sister. Tragedy and romance ensue, you’ve been warned.

Rebecca Yarros’ stand-alone romance novels in release order
1984: Against All Odds (2016)The Last Letter (2019) Great and Precious Things (2020) Muses & Melodies (2020) *Part of the Hush Note trilogy with Sarina Bowen and Devney PerryThe Things We Leave Unfinished (2021)A Little Too Close (2022) *Part of the Madigan Mountain trilogy with Sarina Bowen and Devney PerryIn the Likely Event (2023)Variation (2024)

The Empyrean series

Entangled: Red Tower Books

Okay, here’s the big one. Rebecca Yarros is well known for the Empyrean books, a bestselling romantasy series that will eventually consist of five novels. Its highly anticipated third installment, Onyx Storm, arrives on Jan. 21, 2025. The epic adventure follows Violet Sorrengail, a new cadet and wannabe dragon rider at the deadly Basgiath War College. 

The first novel, Fourth Wing, starts with Violet surviving her lessons — where other classmates can murder you — fighting to bond with dragons, and navigating feelings for a certain wingleader named Xaden Riorson (if you know you know). Soon, Violet’s problems get much bigger as world-altering secrets are exposed. But don’t worry, there’s still time for spice. Just mention “the throne scene” to anyone who’s read Iron Flame and they’ll know exactly what you mean.

The Empyrean series in order
Fourth Wing (2023)Iron Flame (2023)Onyx Storm (2025)

When does Onyx Storm come out?

Rebecca Yarros/Instagram; Entangled: Red Tower Books

The third novel in the Empyrean series, Onyx Storm, comes out on Jan. 21, 2025. 

Though plot details are very hush-hush, the story will pick up after the bonkers cliffhanger at the end of Iron Flame (no spoilers!). Violet Sorrengail has already suffered great loss as an unfathomable war decimates her homeland, and regardless of her growing powers and her elite dragons, it looks like more tragedy may loom on the horizon. Sounds like fun, right?

Apple suspends its controversial AI news service after proving that even tech giants can’t control the bots

Apple has suspended a new artificial intelligence (AI) feature that summarized its news headlines, after a slew of complaints about repeated factual errors.The tech giant – which recently pushed back against pressure to repeal its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs – has responded to calls to withdraw the service, which sent users news notifications with inaccurate headlines that appeared to be from the news organizations themselves, using logos and titles.The BBC complained to Apple in December, and reports that it didn’t reply until December, promising a software update and clarification on its use of AI in creating the summaries – which are optional and only available with newer iPhone models.Apple Faces Criticism Over AI-Generated News Headline Summaries https://t.co/Og0xXg53tb pic.twitter.com/KtOqRE0w2ZDecember 19, 2024″We are working on improvements and will make them available in a future software update,” an Apple spokesperson told the BBC.The BBC was among other groups to complain after an alert generated by Apple’s AI inaccurately told users that Luigi Mangione – the man accused of murdering United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson – had shot himself.The feature also inaccurately altered headlines from Sky News, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, according to reports from journalists on social media.Journalism organization Reporters Without Borders has said in a statement that the situation highlights the danger in rushing out news features, adding that “innovation must never come at the expense of the right of citizens to receive reliable information.”The best camera deals, reviews, product advice, and unmissable photography news, direct to your inbox!📰 Apple Pulls AI News Summaries After False HeadlinesApple temporarily disabled its AI news summary feature following major factual errors, including fabricated stories. Criticism from the BBC and Washington Post highlights trust issues in journalism and AI products. Apple now… pic.twitter.com/Y69ukekLChJanuary 17, 2025On one level there is something amusing about these mistakes. For example, anyone who decided to watch the Russell Crowe epic Gladiator on BBC iPlayer over Christmas was treated to the subtitles from Aardman’s Chicken Run.However, when it comes to current affairs, there is a more sinister issue of misinformation when it comes to more intermediate uses of AI, that can seriously further damage trust in the mainstream media.’Hallucinations’ refer to when AI models make things up, and are a “real concern” according to Jonathan Bright, head of AI for public services at the Alan Turing Institute. “And as yet firms don’t have a way of systematically guaranteeing that AI models will never hallucinate, apart from human oversight.””With the latest beta software releases of iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, and macOS Sequoia 15.3, Notification summaries for the News & Entertainment category will be temporarily unavailable,” an Apple spokesperson said.Despite Apple retracting the inaccurate service, it speaks worrying volumes that an industry leader, with all its billions of dollars and expertise, still can’t control the AI it releases on its consumers.You might also like…Feel like escaping the digital world for a while? Take a look at our guides to the best film cameras, the best 35mm film, and the best dumb phones.