Latest news with #Aberystwyth
BBC News
4 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Williams to miss Tour de France and nationals
Welsh cyclist Stevie Williams will miss the 2025 Tour de France and British National Road Race 29-year-old, who won the 2024 Tour Down Under in Australia, has a knee problem and is left hoping to "be back on the start line soon".Williams posted on social media: "Since the start of my season in Australia, I've had an issue with my right knee, a quadriceps tendonopothy, which is very tricky to manage, and it hasn't resolved. "I was able to come back for Giro d'Abruzzo and the Ardennes but since then, things still aren't completely right."Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to race the national championships in Wales, or the Tour de France. I'm gutted to miss them, especially racing Nationals in front of a home crowd."The UK road race title will be on the line between 26-29 June in Ceredigion, west Wales, which includes Williams' home town Aberystwyth. The Tour de France starts on 5 July in added: "As a cyclist, the only thing you want to do is race so this season has been incredibly frustrating, but I know that these things can't be rushed."
The Sun
10-06-2025
- Science
- The Sun
Huge number of horses' facial expressions revealed as scientists discover equine ‘language'
HORSES have their own 'language' with more than 800 facial expressions, scientists have found. Researchers set out to unravel the mystery of the creatures' long faces and find how they exhibit a range of emotions. Aberystwyth University observed horses when they were friendly, angry or tense, attentive and playful. They then analysed individual muscle movements, created a list of facial expressions among horses and matched them to moods of other animals. During friendly interactions, horses pointed their ears forward and extended their nose. To show dominance, they flattened their ears, dilated their nostrils and lowered their heads. When horses were alert, scientists noticed they put their ears forward and increased blinking. 'Play faces' resembled primates and dogs — as horses opened their mouths, raised chins and had visible eye whites. Lead researcher Dr Sebastian McBride said: 'We found horses use a wide range of facial movements, which vary depending on the social context. "What's particularly fascinating is some of these facial behaviours, especially during play, mirror those seen in chimpanzees and dogs, supporting the hypothesis facial behaviours may be deep rooted in mammalian biology.' Scientists indentified the AUH21 'facial tightener' movement, previously only seen in humans and gibbons. It could help vets detect pain in horses. The research team also said the study would change how we interact with horses, 'leading to better care and stronger human-animal relationships'. 1
The Guardian
09-06-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Country diary: Shy gull chicks get nowt
The harbour at Aberaeron has been the scene of substantial change over the last couple of years as the flood defences are upgraded to reduce the very real risk of the town being inundated again. Long stretches of quayside have been fenced off, leaving me to peer through the mesh of the barriers at the scene below. Pwll Cam, the sheltered inner harbour, would usually be bustling with small boats at this time of year. Today it is empty and almost dry, with house martins skimming the remaining pool of water while wagtails glean along the edge of the exposed mud. On the edge of the quayside, where in normal times folk dangle their legs and eat chips, large iron rings provide an anchor for mooring ropes. In this newly protected habitat behind the fence, herring gulls have built a nest inside one of the rings, where two eggs are being incubated by an adult bird. Apart from the iron ring, the nest is mostly plant debris from the harbour, a cosy-looking fringe of moss and a few rotted strands of rope scavenged from the tide line. I watch as the other parent returns and they swap duties, with the new arrival tidying the nest before settling over the eggs. Some 16 miles to the north, a second family of herring gulls is also taking advantage of our built environment. At Aberystwyth railway station, between the beer garden and the ticket office, an area of granite ballast lies fenced off. Tucked against the red brick wall of a disused platform, a nest has been established over several seasons – but when I visit today it is empty. Fearing their predation I look more closely and realise that three chicks have already hatched and left the dubious protection of the scrape to hide – with perfect camouflage – in the shelter of a rail, while an adult bird stands guard nearby. The second parent arrives with much social noise, and the chicks immediately trot over – with impressive speed – and begin to beg. Perhaps predictably, the chick that is already the largest manages to get the biggest meal. There is probably a moral in there somewhere. Under the Changing Skies: The Best of the Guardian's Country Diary, 2018-2024 is published by Guardian Faber; order at and get a 15% discount
BBC News
05-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
National Library of Wales is missing 2,200 items
About 2,200 items are missing at the National Library of Wales - an increase of 84% in two the archives and manuscripts missing are deeds of 13th Century Powis Castle, and "rolls" and "pedigree" documents from Gwrych Castle in Abergele, Conwy county, which twice hosted ITV's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!Among missing books are the history of the national library building itself in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, by Daniel Huws, and books by George Bernard Shaw and Virginia library is creating a new "collection care" department and is currently recruiting a head of the department, as well as a head of unique collections. The number unaccounted for is significantly higher than the 1,200 items that were missing when BBC Wales gained figures through a Freedom of Information request in September 2023. A spokesperson said the increase is due to "new stock checking processes".The library is a legal deposit library, which means it is entitled to a copy of every print publication in Britain and Ireland, and no items are allowed to be taken from the the 2,206 missing items, the request under the latest Freedom of Information Act by BBC Wales showed that:1,708 books and magazines are missing, some since 1999 393 maps, some since 193982 in the "archives and manuscripts" category, some since 1978 21 "screen and sound" items, some since 2019two items in the "pictures and photographs" category, one since 2009 and the other since 2023Missing archives include papers of J Glyn Davies whose songs for children include Cerddi Huw Puw (1923), which are based on sailors' songs he had heard during his have been described as bearing "the marks of a genius".Also missing are papers relating to Chirk Castle near Wrexham, the construction of which began around 1295 during the reign of Edward sound recordings include the satirical song "Carlo" by Dafydd Iwan which was written for the investiture of Charles as Prince of Wales in 1969, and a recording by Treorchy Male journals include issues of the library's own journal, Welsh History Review, Flintshire Historical Society, Gwent Local History and The Carmarthen books cover topics from Owain Glyndŵr, the last native-born Welshman to claim the title Prince of Wales, to a biography of Keir Hardie, the first parliamentary leader of the Labour 1818 edition of 'The Pleasures of Imagination' by Mark Akenside is missing, as is Lady Charlotte Schreiber's journals (1911), the "confidences" of a collector of ceramics and antiques.A book by Phil Thompson and Tommy Smith called "Do That Again Son, and I'll Break Your Legs: Football's Hardmen" is also not accounted maps include a malt whisky map of Scotland, and several maps relating to Gogerddan, the principal estate of the old county of Cardiganshire in the 17th century. The library's head of communications, Rhodri ap Dyfrig, said that staff had "introduced new stock checking processes for published collections and therefore we fully expected that there would be an increase in the items recorded as not being in their correct location".He added: "The thorough process of monitoring of misplaced items takes place continuously and these checks are a normal and integral part of maintaining standards and good practice in the library sector."Due to this constant monitoring and work, the data we provide is a snapshot of a specific period in time, and this figure fluctuates regularly as items are found and relocated."The library carries out an annual audit of items worth more than £10,000 and no missing items that cross that threshold were found over the last library's collections include seven million books and newspapers, 1.5 million maps and 950,000 photographs located across 160 miles of Welsh government said: "The care and management of its collections is a matter for the National Library. "In doing so, it meets the Archive Service Accreditation – the UK-wide standard for archive services."
BBC News
04-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Aberystwyth appoint McKenzie as manager
Aberystwyth Town have appointed Callum McKenzie as their new manager following relegation from the JD Cymru who succeeds Antonio Corbisiero, was sacked as manager of mid Wales rivals and fellow relegated side Newtown in April with two games of the season Seasiders have been placed in the JD Cymru South for next season after their 33-year stay in the top-flight came to an end."I'm really excited to start working with the players and I'm hopeful that along with the other technical staff, we will be able to be as competitive as possible in the Cymru South next season," McKenzie said.
