Like it or not — more of us are bagging our own groceries

Like it or not — more of us are bagging our own groceries

Lawrence Barker says he’s frustrated that cashiers at major grocery stores he shops at no longer voluntarily bag his goods. Barker finds bagging a hassle, as he feels pressured to quickly pack items into his reusable bags before the next customer’s goods slide down the conveyor belt.  So he opts for self-checkout, where he can bag at … Read more

Researchers say oxygen is being produced on the ocean floor. The mining company funding them isn’t happy

Researchers say oxygen is being produced on the ocean floor. The mining company funding them isn’t happy

Oxygen is being produced on the ocean floor — seemingly by ancient lumps of metal — according to a new study. That discovery is putting the scientists behind it at odds with the Canada-based mining company that funded them. “We were the worst critics of this paper for a long time,” Andrew Sweetman of the Scottish … Read more

Canada’s foreign student push ‘mismatched’ job market, data shows

Canada’s foreign student push ‘mismatched’ job market, data shows

Canada’s recruitment of international students has tilted strongly toward filling spots in business programs, while doing little to meet the demand for workers in health care and the skilled trades, according to a CBC News analysis of federal data. CBC obtained figures from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) showing the fields of education chosen … Read more

Are you renting with no plans to buy? Here’s what the federal budget has for you

Are you renting with no plans to buy? Here’s what the federal budget has for you

The federal government tabled its annual budget on Tuesday with a promise to open the door to homeownership for millennial and Gen Z renters. You’ll have to read the fine print to find measures for young renters who can’t buy a home — or just don’t want to. In her budget document, Finance Minister Chrystia … Read more

All eyes are on the future of freshwater after a winter of record heat

All eyes are on the future of freshwater after a winter of record heat

Quirks and Quarks19:36Water, water, everywhere. But will we have enough to drink? After a winter that smashed heat records, researchers around the world are taking a close look at how human disturbances and the rapidly changing climate are affecting the world’s freshwater supply. “We’re reducing both water quantity and water quality,” says Katrina Moser, an associate professor … Read more

Love Lies Bleeding is a bizarro, acid-tinged western set in the ’80s

Love Lies Bleeding is a bizarro, acid-tinged western set in the ’80s

Where Love Lies Bleeding ends up — full of psychedelic visions, blood-covered bodies and more than a fair amount of screaming — is very different from where the movie starts out.  That’s because the Kristen Stewart-led, Rose Glass-directed bodybuilding crime epic is a genre send-up in just about every way. The film follows Lou (Stewart), a 20-something gym manager … Read more

Helium startups on the Prairies hope to keep domestic supplies afloat

Helium startups on the Prairies hope to keep domestic supplies afloat

To the untrained eye, the collection of pipes and structures rising out of the prairie 200 kilometres east of Calgary looks like any other natural gas processing plant in southern Alberta.  But the Steveville plant isn’t focused on extracting hydrocarbons. Instead, the prize it’s seeking deep underground is helium.  The element is most commonly associated with … Read more