Stanton Williams wins £30m Paddington science hub competition

Science and Health

The proposed £30 million research and public engagement centre on the historic west London hospital campus forms part of the wider Fleming Initiative plans, which aims to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR) around the world.
Stanton Williams beat four other finalists in the two-stage contest for the job, organised by the RIBA on behalf of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.
Also shortlisted were Allford Hall Monaghan Morris, Allies and Morrison, Grimshaw and WilkinsonEyre partnering with White Architekter.Advertisement

A three-day design exhibition in November showcased the five shortlisted concept designs. The RIBA said that feedback from more than 300 visitors ‘helped guide the final selection’.
It added that Stanton Williams’ concept design for the Fleming Centre ‘embraces the heritage of its proposed location on the site of The Bays’, a set of industrial warehouses from around the 1850s which were used for transport and distribution before being incorporated into the hospital in 1983. 
Source:Stanton Williams Stanton Williams’ competition-winning design for a new Fleming Centre at St Mary’s Hospital, in London’s Paddington
The Stanton Williams design retains and adapts The Bays while inserting new elements, including the Fleming Discovery Centre, and ‘offering views into laboratories and curated exhibition spaces’ for the public. It also prioritises sustainability, with a water-source heat pump, PV panels, biodiverse landscaping and a low-carbon structure. 
The RIBA said the next phase of the project will involve detailed design development, public consultations, and submission of a planning application to Westminster City Council.
The new building will occupy a waterfront site overlooking the Regent’s Canal and will be the first new building to open at St Mary’s as part of ongoing plans for the site’s wider redevelopment, under the government’s New Hospital Programme..Advertisement

Its opening date is scheduled for 2028, marking 100 years since Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin at St Mary’s. 
Ara Darzi, executive chair of the Fleming Initiative, led jointly by Imperial College Healthcare and Imperial College London, said Stanton Williams’ ‘bold vision’ for the new Fleming Centre had ‘brought [the initiative’s] ambitions to life’.
He said the concept reflected the centre’s ‘unique purpose and global significance’ and could make the building ‘a global beacon for change in healthcare’. 
Imperial’s president Hugh Brady said that, as well as bringing together world-leading researchers to tackle AMR head-on, the Fleming Centre would form ‘a key part of the Paddington Life Sciences development and Imperial WestTech Corridor vision’.
St Mary’s Hospital, a mix of historic and post-war buildings, is located immediately next to Paddington station. Allford Hall Monaghan Morris and HOK became the latest architects to be appointed to work on a planned £1.7 billion redevelopment of the site two years ago.
The hospital redevelopment was one of the 40 new hospitals the previous government committed to rebuilding by 2030. Farrells drew up a masterplan for a new Paddington Health Campus on the site in the late 1990s, but the proposed PFI project was scrapped in 2005 after more than £15 million of public money had been spent on it. David Morley Architects later drew up a new masterplan but this project also never came to fruition.
In September 2024, a search was launched for an architecture and landscape architecture team to work with site owner Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust to win planning permission for a major mixed-use development at the campus.
The competition’s judges included Darzi, Jo Wright of Perkins & Will, acting as RIBA architect adviser; Lisa Jamieson, public engagement consultant and former head of engaging science at Wellcome; and David Halpern, director and chief executive of the Behavioural Insights Team.

US Eases Missile Technology Restrictions for Certain Allies Under New Policy

Technology

“On January 3, President Biden issued a National Security Memorandum to update policy guidance for the U.S. Government’s implementation of the Missile Technology Control Regime … These policy changes will help the United States advance shared defense objectives with close allies, including the implementation of AUKUS, while maintaining a strong leadership role on nonproliferation and export control policy,” the White House said in a statement on Tuesday. The changes were made on January 3, when US President Joe Biden issued a national security memorandum aimed at modernizing the MTCR, the statement added. Now, the US authorities must show greater flexibility in considering each specific case of export of such technologies, and facilitate the transfer of “certain MTCR Category I military missiles, Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), and Space Launch Vehicle (SLV) systems to certain partners with strong export control systems.” The Missile Technology Control Regime is an informal group of 35 states, including the US and Russia, to prevent missile proliferation.

Rocket scientist V Narayanan named new chief of India’s space agency

Science and Health

Ammon News – India appointed rocket scientist V. Narayanan as the new head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the government said on Tuesday, a key role as India works to become a space superpower.Narayanan takes over from S. Somanath, who became chairman in 2022 and has been credited with making the 54-year-old space agency more approachable and opening it up to engage with the next generation.Former colleagues describe Narayanan, who joined ISRO in 1984, as a mild mannered but “strict” scientist with a track record of getting things done.”The appointment is a surprise because we were expecting an extension for Somanath, but the choice makes sense, given Narayanan’s track record,” said a former ISRO scientist and colleague, who did not want to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media.Narayanan, who has a doctorate in aerospace engineering, will take charge as ISRO sets sights on building its own space station by 2035, and putting an Indian on the moon by 2040.Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called on ISRO to make India a profitable space superpower, and the agency has responded by looking to work with the private sector.The Indian government estimates its share of the market is currently just $8 billion, but it is aiming to increase that to $44 billion over the next decade.The $400 billion global commercial space market is expected to be worth $1 trillion by 2030.Somanath and Narayanan did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Narayanan, who has worked on the key rocket launches such as ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle and led the centre that designs and develops liquid propulsion systems for the agency, will take over on Jan. 14 for a two-year term.He was also the head of the analysis committee tasked with looking into the failure of Chandrayaan-2, where ISRO lost contact with a spacecraft it was trying to land on the moon. Reuters

‘Space Adventure Cobra: The Movie’ Blu-Ray Review: Suitably Groovy

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

The original Cobra manga by Buichi Terasawa is a classic, but Osamu Dezaki’s movie adaptation is legendary, and this ultra-HD Blu-ray doesn’t disappoint.
Released in 1982, the movie covers the first arc of the manga, which started in 1978. It features the titular, roguish Cobra, who has undergone facial reconstruction to hide from his enemies. His enemies are the criminal Pirate Guild, who have put the biggest bounty ever on Cobra’s head.

However, Cobra is by no means your typical rogue. Despite his seemingly goofy charm, his left arm can change into the terrifyingly potent Psychogun. It’s this weapon that gives away his new identity as he is, naturally, chasing after a lady called Jane Royal.

While Jane is a bounty hunter who was after Cobra, she decides the better of it and falls in love with him instead. All the while, the leader of the Pirate Guild, the surreal Crystal Bowie, is now aware of his quarry’s new identity and so everything kicks off.

The manga itself was and is curiously strange, and Dezaki’s adaptation in anime form tries to imbue that. Much of the dialogue feels dreamlike in delivery and is somewhat untethered to the characters.
The visuals can also feel quite disconnected and almost trippy at times, but the overall effect is quite special and unique in terms of anime.

As the story progresses, Cobra meets more ladies, and the scope of the conflict grows, too, with the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance.
Cobra, as a character, is also very typical of the era, and while a rogue, he is also quite upbeat. Comparisons to the likes of James Bond and Han Solo feel off, but Cobra is more of a cheerful and cheeky character.

The setting also makes for a fascinating take on space opera, as you have all these wonderfully designed aliens, almost Lensman-esque in their variety, but also a weirdly groovy undertone. Even Crystal Bowie as a villain is pretty out there when it comes to science fiction.

I also remember watching a rather awkward dub of this movie when it finally received an international release. However, the updated musical score by Yello was interesting. So, it is very much appreciated to have this movie in insanely high quality, as it was originally intended. This release also includes the aforementioned dub and Yello score, which is a nice touch.
Overall, Space Adventure Cobra: The Movie is a trippy and groovy classic, not only as an anime but also because of how it adapts the manga. Dezaki is rightly revered, but I genuinely think this is one of his best movies, and at this level of fidelity, it’s not to be missed.
Space Adventure Cobra: The Movie is currently available from Amazon for $34.95.
Disclosure: I was sent this Blu-ray for the purposes of this review.
Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.

Mahout charged after ‘stressed’ elephant kills Spanish tourist in Thailand

Travel

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read morePolice in Thailand have charged a mahout with negligence after an elephant under his care gored a Spanish tourist at a sanctuary last week.Theerayut Inthaphudkij, 38, is the caretaker of the female elephant, called Pgang Somboon, responsible for the fatal injury to the tourist, Phang Nga Tourism and Sports Office said.Blanca Ojanguren Garcia, 23, a student holidaying with her boyfriend in southern Thailand, was attacked by the animal while she was giving it a bath on 3 January. She died in hospital later.The mahout faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of 200,000 baht (£4,642).According to eyewitnesses, the elephant was startled when Garcia moved in front of it and pushed her into the concrete edge of the pond with her tusk.Animal behaviour experts said the elephant likely got stressed from interacting with visitors outside its ecosystem.A couple rides an elephant at the Nong Nooch Tropical Garden in Chonburi province of Thailand

China Trading Desk presents findings on Chinese outbound travel sentiment

Travel

China Trading Desk said this influx of first-time travellers presents both an unprecedented opportunity and a unique challenge for travel retailers looking to capitalise on the world’s largest outbound tourism market in 2025.The resurgence of Chinese outbound travel in 2024 has reinvigorated global travel retail, and according to China Trading Desk’s latest Travel Sentiment Survey for Q4 2024, one statistic stands out: 40% of Chinese travellers this year embarked on their first international trip.
The demographic composition of these first-time travellers offers insights into their purchasing behaviours and motivations.
A significant proportion are 18–29 years old and hail from Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities.
This digitally savvy group heavily relies on social media platforms like Xiaohongshu and Douyin for inspiration and guidance.
Many are middle-income earners, with a household income of 10,000–20,000 RMB ($1366, €1327, £1100) per month, leading them to prioritise affordability while still aspiring to indulge in shopping and experiences that reflect international travel.
Shopping remains a critical component of their travel experience.
In Q4 2024, 77.8% of travellers researched shopping activities before departure, and nearly 23% prioritized shopping as a key purpose of their trip.
Key retail drivers
The shopping habits of first-time travellers reflect a mix of excitement, curiosity, and the desire to make their trips memorable.
Over 25% of Chinese travellers cited ‘buying for family and friends’ as a primary motivation for luxury purchases.
For first-timers, the opportunity to bring back gifts that showcase their travel experiences plays a significant role in purchase decisions.
Competitive pricing, tax-free shopping, and discounts remain major draws for first-time travellers. In Q4, 46% of travellers named affordability as a top consideration, highlighting the importance of promotions and perceived value in driving sales.
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First-time travellers often gravitate toward global luxury brands due to their reputation and the aspirational nature of such purchases.
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Over 23% prioritized shopping for luxury goods in destinations like Japan, Singapore, UAE, where tax-free options make luxury items more accessible.
Remaining challenges
Catering to first-time travellers also comes with specific challenges.
First-time travellers use shopping experience enhancement tools such as digital wallets and mobile payments (19%), followed closely by WeChat mini-programs (18%), to navigate issues such as duty-free regulations, tax refunds, or product authenticity.
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Many first-time travellers prefer digital payment options like Alipay and WeChat Pay, with 43.6% using these platforms while shopping abroad.
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China Trading Desk noted retailers must ensure seamless integration of these payment methods.
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First-time travellers tend to rely heavily on real-time support for decision-making.
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The main services tourists value the most during overseas shopping are language and customer service (17%), followed by travel and shopping packages (14%)and after-sales service (13%).
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The physical appeal of cultural events and pop-ups is also an important driver of engagement for 12%.
Impact on global travel retail
The rising number of first-time Chinese travellers represents a shift in global travel retail dynamics.
With 40% of travellers venturing abroad for the first time, retail locations in airports, shopping malls, and tourist districts are poised to see higher footfall and increased demand for guided shopping experiences.
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Regional favourites like Singapore (16%), Japan (14%) and Thailand (12%),will continue to benefit from first-time travellers’ comfort with familiar cultural elements, but destinations like the UAE and Australia (8%) will see growth as they market exclusivity and tailored experiences.
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As first-time travellers rely heavily on digital tools for research and purchases, integrating technology into the shopping experience will be a game-changer.
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Travel apps such as Ctrip/Qunar (20%), Xiaohongshu (18%) and Douyin(12%) are the preferred channels for outbound trip planning.
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“The influx of first-time Chinese travellers in 2024 marks a pivotal moment for global travel retailers. These shoppers bring not only enthusiasm but also specific needs and expectations that require retailers to adapt quickly,” commented Subramania Bhatt, founder of China Trading Desk, on the demographic insights from the latest survey.
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“By combining cultural sensitivity, digital engagement, and value-driven promotions, travel retailers can build lasting relationships with this growing demographic, securing their place in the evolving landscape of global tourism. As 2025 starts, the focus on first-time travellers is not just an opportunity but a necessity for travel retailers looking to thrive in this rapidly changing market,” he continued.
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READ MORE: Essential Communications partners with China Trading Desk
READ MORE: CDFG announces spate of successful downtown bids amidst policy boost
READ MORE: CDFG reopens Dalian duty free shop as region enters ‘new chapter’

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Nigel Farage to Attend Trump Inauguration, Will Attempt to Mend Ties With Musk During Washington Trip

Technology

Brexit leader Nigel Farage has confirmed that he will attend the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump this month and will seek to mend ties with fellow Trump ally Elon Musk.
Donald Trump’s longest international supporter and ally, Nigel Farage, said Tuesday that he plans to attend the inauguration on January 20th and is set to stay in Washington D.C. for around “four or five days”.

Speaking to LBC radio, the Reform party leader said that his recent spat with X owner Elon Musk would not affect his longstanding friendship with the incoming president.
“I’ve been a friend of Donald Trump’s for a decade, I’ve been very supportive of him, he’s been very supportive of me,” Farage said. “I can’t see that changing for a moment.”
The Clacton MP said that he will attempt to mend ties with Musk during his time in America. While the tech billionaire initially backed Farage, having met with him last month at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida amid rumours of a large donation to Reform, Musk abruptly called for new leadership of the party.

The move against Farage was apparently inspired by Farage’s refusal to consider letting currently imprisoned English activist Tommy Robinson into his party. Farage has long had a policy of blocking members of street protest groups from joining his parties as part of his campaign to detoxify the right and mainstream sovereigntism, something he sees as essential to actually capture enough votes to make an impact in the British electoral system.
Musk has vocally supported Robinson and praised him for his history of highlighting the abuse faced by young white British girls at the hands of Muslim Pakistani child rape gangs.

Striking a conciliatory tone, Mr Farage said Tuesday: “I have no desire to go to war with Elon Musk. I’m not going to, and I haven’t done. I’m a huge admirer of him, I think he’s a heroic figure.
“I think the sort of tech changes that he’s bringing to the world are incredible I think buying Twitter actually has bought a lot of free speech back even if some people don’t like what’s being said, well you know what, tough,” he added.
The Reform leader also noted that “despite what Elon said when he woke up the other morning, you know, that I was no good or whatever — he’s not alone with that opinion, clearly — And then yesterday, he retweeted me twice with positive messages, so I don’t know.”
All other top members of the party rallied around their leader over the weekend, and the Reform boss may have come out stronger as a result of the spat, having demonstrated to the public the ability to stand up to one of the most influential figures in the world and a willingness to forgo financial gain in favour of principles.
It comes as Reform continues to gain ground in the British political landscape. After having a relatively minor footprint just months ago, Farage’s return to the party’s helm has seen Reform reportedly surpass the centuries-old Conservative Party in paid memberships and has surpassed the governing Labour Party in a national poll as voter sentiment has soured on the fledgling leftist government of Sir Keir Starmer.

Follow Kurt Zindulka on X: Follow @KurtZindulka or e-mail to: [email protected]