In the news this week, astronauts have found evidence that life could be present on Mars. In other news, Northern Ireland’s case to have their abortion law changed was dismissed and US celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain has sadly died.
Could There Be Life On Mars?
A recent expedition to Mars has made the discovery that life could be present on Mars. NASA’s ‘Curiosity’ rover recently came across organic matter preserved on Mars that could suggest it was once home to life. Experts say that this discovery should lead NASA to look for more evidence of alien life living on the planet right now, or at least in the past.
The matter was found preserved where it is thought a lake bed used to exist over three billion years ago. Although the surface of Mars is not hospitable today, it was almost certainly home to liquid water in the past which could have helped sustain some form of life. NASA headquarters in Washington say:
I’m confident that our ongoing and planned missions will unlock even more breath-taking discoveries on the Red Planet.”
Northern Ireland’s Abortion Case Rejected
Pressure has been put on the government recently to reform Northern Ireland’s restrictive Abortion Laws after the supreme court concluded that they are incompatible with human rights legislation.
Although Southern Ireland recently voted to change their abortion law, this did not stretch to Northern Ireland and neither do the current laws in the rest of the UK. The Human Rights Commission brought a case to the supreme court stating that Northern Ireland’s abortion laws are incompatible with human rights in the case of fatal fetal abnormality and sexual crime.
The case was dismissed by the supreme court due to a technicality, but many judges agreed that the current law was incompatible. The court have now put pressure on the government to address the issue and have said that they “would have required the case to have been brought by a woman who was pregnant as a result of sexual crime or who was carrying a fetus with a fatal abnormality.”
Celebrity Chef Found Dead
Anthony Bourdain was an American Chef, author and TV personality who was renowned around the world for his cookery and thought to be one of the world’s most influential chef’s. Bourdain was found dead in France after an apparent suicide, soon after fellow celebrity Kate Spade who also commit suicide recently. CNN made the statement:
It is with extraordinary sadness we can confirm the death of our friend and colleague, Anthony Bourdain.”
Bourdain worked as a chef in New York City restaurant Brasserie Les Halles before finding fame after sending a piece of writing to The New Yorker about the restaurant world. The article was published and caught the attention of numerous book editors, which then led to “Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly,”.
The book granted him celebrity chef status and gave him the opportunity to start a television career. Bourdain famously appeared in an episode of “Parts Unknown” with president at the time Barack Obama. Tributes are being made by fellow chefs and friends including Nigella Lawson and Gordon Ramsey.
