Ophelia of the Seine | France

FranceOphelia of the SeineThe calmly smiling, beautiful face of this young woman hung in the studios of artists and writers across Europe throughout the late 19th and 20th centuries. She inspired Rilke, Man Ray and Nabokov. And eventually ended up as a first-aid resuscitation model. But who was she? Angelique Chrisafis finds outI came face to face with Anne only once. She was reclining by a swimming pool in south-east England. [Read More]

Polygenic screening of embryos is here, but is it ethical?

The ObserverGeneticsThe first child born using the technique arrived last year. But can it really help reduce diseases in a new generation, or is it ‘techno-eugenics’? The birth of the first IVF baby, Louise Brown, in 1978 provoked a media frenzy. In comparison, a little girl named Aurea born by IVF in May 2020 went almost unnoticed. Yet she represents a significant first in assisted reproduction too, for the embryo from which she grew was selected from others based on polygenic screening before implantation, to optimise her health prospects. [Read More]

Readers recommend: songs about control - results | Music

Readers recommendMusicReaders recommend: songs about control - resultsGetting a firm grip on nominations from last week’s topic blog, RR regular Severin gets into cruise control with a list that lines up James Brown to Massive Attack “My life didn’t please me, so I created my life” (Coco Chanel) There are any number of self-help manuals that tell you how to take control of your life. To stop saying no when you want to run with the wolves and all that. [Read More]

The top 10 monsters in art | Art

Top 10s in artArtThe top 10 monsters in artCrawling cannibals, mummies on the move, werewolves, rat-men, and the inspiration for The Exorcist ... here are all your worst nightmares come to life The top 10 unforgettable faces in art The top 10 criminal artists The top 10 drinkers in art FW Murnau – Nosferatu (1922)This terrifying silent film of Dracula made by Murnau in 1922 is a masterpiece of German expressionist art. [Read More]

Admissions review a harsh lesson for white liberals

TheatreReviewTrafalgar Studios, London When positive discrimination appears to rob a boy of his college place, the racial pieties of America’s left are exposed in Joshua Harmon’s drama The Guardian’s product and service reviews are independent and are in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative. We will earn a commission from the retailer if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more. Joshua Harmon has a gift for provocation. [Read More]

Buff and hulking or small and meek? Courtroom artist on sketching Sam Bankman-Fried

Sam Bankman-Fried in a 10 October courtroom sketch. Photograph: Jane Rosenberg/ReutersSam Bankman-Fried in a 10 October courtroom sketch. Photograph: Jane Rosenberg/ReutersSam Bankman-FriedJane Rosenberg’s viral illustrations paint a changing picture of the crypto mogul as his trial continues A courtroom sketch supposedly drawn of Sam Bankman-Fried made rounds on Twitter this week, giving the alleged cryptocurrency fraudster and self-professed “math nerd” the Hollywood treatment. With his razor-sharp jawline, high cheekbones and artfully messy hair, SBF could have been plucked straight out of a high-end perfume campaign. [Read More]

F1: Bahrain GP 2016 in pictures | Sport

F1: Bahrain GP 2016 – in pictures Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share via Email Nico Rosberg made it five straight wins in Formula One when he took the fluttering flag in Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix. Rosberg is now unbeaten in six months, since Lewis Hamilton won in Austin in October to take his third world championship Mark Wohlwender [Read More]

Perfect prams for perfect parents: the rise of the bougie buggy | Parents and parenting

Two Bugaboos and the ‘Mega Man-Pram’, a spoof baby buggy created by Skoda. Photograph: Matt Alexander/PAHow the rise of the luxury pram capitalised on the status anxiety of a new generation of parents by Linda Rodriguez McRobbieBefore she had a baby, Kari Boiler never noticed what kinds of buggies were on the streets. But when Boiler – an American then working for an advertising agency in Amsterdam – became pregnant with her first child in 2001, she realised that the city’s pavements were dominated by a single buggy: the Frog, a sleek, futuristic stroller designed by a tiny Dutch company called Bugaboo. [Read More]

Rod Stewart: 'I was surrounded by gay men in the 70s' | Rod Stewart

Glam slam: Rod Stewart in 1976, the year The Killing of Georgie was released. Photograph: ITV/Rex FeaturesView image in fullscreenGlam slam: Rod Stewart in 1976, the year The Killing of Georgie was released. Photograph: ITV/Rex FeaturesRod StewartInterviewRod Stewart: 'I was surrounded by gay men in the 70s'Jim FarberForty years ago, Rod Stewart released The Killing of Georgie, a groundbreaking single about the murder of a gay man – now tragically relevant again in the light of events in Orlando [Read More]

Steven Appleby: Why I felt liberated when I started dressing as a woman

Self and wellbeingTransgenderThe author and cartoonist describes his heartfelt sense of freedom when he began to cross-dress openly all the time I am a man who wears women’s clothes. The first time it happened was in the mid-70s. I’d recently left school and was a couple of months into an art foundation course at Manchester Polytechnic. I found myself on my own for a weekend in the flat I shared with two fellow students. [Read More]