Sorry for the late update! Here are five news highlights of the week. 🙂

1. Five-seater self-flying taxi unveiled

A German start-up has unveiled what it says is the world’s first five-seater self-flying taxi. It said the craft, which is electric powered, is capable of travelling up to 300km in just 60 minutes. Daniel Wiegand, co-founder and chief executive of Lilium, said: “Moving from two to five seats was always our ambition as it enables us to open up the skies to many more travellers.” It will now undergo more tests, the next goal being to make it move from vertical to horizontal flight. Lilium says it hopes to go into mass production by the mid-2020s.

2. Pound sinks to a 4-month low after Brexit talks end

Reportedly, on the afternoon of 17th May 2019, the pound was 0.33% lower against the dollar at $1.2756 and on track for its worst week in a year. The pound is 1.85% lower this week, its steepest decline since February last year when it fell by more than 2%. Eimear Daly, a foreign exchange strategist at Macquarie Bank, has said, “While talks with Labour were ongoing, the market was slightly more reassured that an EU customs union or something similar to the status quo would be the outcome. Now the focus turns to the Prime Minister’s ability to retain leadership of the Conservatives, or perhaps a more eurosceptic Tory Party leader.”

As of 17th May 2019

3. Big Bang Theory says their final farewell

The show had first premiered in 2007, and the cast is known to be among the highest paid TV stars in history. The Big Bang Theory has become one of the most successful comedies to be known as it has won seven Emmy Awards.

4. Scientists invent artificial life form using synthetic DNA

“UK scientists have created an artificial version of the stomach bug E. coli that is based on an entirely synthetic form of DNA.” They call it the Syn61 and it has been altered in a way that improves its function(s) and can manufacture catalysts, drugs, proteins and materials. The new work was conducted by a small team at Cambridge’s world-famous Laboratory for Molecular Biology, and could readily be scaled up to bigger genomes in any well-equipped lab, according to team leader Dr Jason Chin. Syn61’s 4 million genetic letters make this the largest entire genome to be synthesised from scratch.

5. Louvre pyramid architect dies aged 102

Pei’s designs are famous worldwide for their emphasis on precise structures, geometry, simple surfaces and natural lighting. He created one of the most famous masterpieces in his 80s – the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar. He was one of the 20th Century’s most prolific architects and has designed municipal buildings, hotels, schools and other structures across North America, Asia and Europe.