‘A big burden for farmers’: Gulf shipping crisis threatens food price shock

The global fertiliser supply chain could face significant disruption if the effective closure by Iran of the strait of Hormuz persists, prompting concerns from analysts about crop production and food security.Passage through the waterway, located off Iran’s southern coast, has mostly stopped since the US and Israel launched their attacks at the weekend.Between a quarter and a third of the global trade in the raw materials for fertiliser passes through the strait, as well as a fifth of seaborne crude oil and gas.The de facto closure of the strait is affecting the transport of ammonia and nitrogen, which are key ingredients in many synthetic fertiliser products.Roughly half of global food production depends on synthetic nitrogen and crop yields would fall without fertiliser

Woolworths shoppers concerned new anti-theft gates may trap them and hit their children

The trial of a security gate in a Woolworths in Sydney has left customers concerned for their safety, with some saying the series of low-height bars have “hit” children in the arms, legs and face.Maria, who was shopping with her two children at Woolworths in Bass Hill in south-west Sydney on Wednesday, told Guardian Australia that she noticed the new entrance “straight away”.“The level that they’ve put it at, is the level of the kids in the pram,” said Maria, who asked that her surname not be published.“If you wanted to enter without hitting your child, you’d have to go in backwards.”Woolworths is trialling the new anti-theft entry gates in six stores, including Sydney’s Bass Hill and Camberwell in Melbourne’s east

Elon Musk takes witness stand in trial over Twitter takeover

Elon Musk took the stand on Wednesday in a trial brought by Twitter investors, who allege the billionaire committed securities fraud as he was buying the social media company in 2022. The class-action lawsuit alleges Musk agreed to buy Twitter but then waffled for months, attacking the company with the goal of bringing down the stock price to get a better bargain.After contentious legal wrangling, Musk did eventually buy Twitter for $54.20 a share, his original offer, totalling around $44bn. Musk testified on Wednesday that he didn’t realize his attacks on the company, mostly done via tweet on Twitter itself, would lower the company’s stock price or hurt its investors

Joy of teaching English in the age of AI | Letter

Your long read (Teacher v chatbot: my journey into the classroom in the age of AI, 3 March) provides human insight into both the craft and purpose of English teaching in the era of developing AI expertise in language. There is no doubt that if the article were fed into AI models often enough, the teacher’s words and techniques could, at some level, be replicated by AI online teachers.However, reading and writing, especially that which explores the writer’s thoughts and feelings, are surely uniquely human activities.As the writer comes to recognise, exploring human experiences through the written word is a highly valuable communal experience. Reading literature aloud in the classroom is the gateway to discussing personal responses to the author’s words

‘It’s a generous deal’: McIlroy’s surprise at Rahm not accepting DP World Tour offer

Dust was yet to settle on Luke Donald’s commitment to a third successive stint as Europe’s Ryder Cup captain when Rory McIlroy highlighted the elephant in the locker room.McIlroy, in a sentiment shared by other European players, finds it hard to fathom why Jon Rahm has not reached agreement to make his participation at Adare Manor next September straightforward. Rahm’s Ryder Cup involvement sits in serious jeopardy amid a dispute with the DP World Tour. McIlroy calmly warned that the biennial contest matters more than any single individual.In news first revealed by the Guardian on Wednesday morning, Donald will seek to back up successful captaincies in Rome and New York with Europe’s Adare defence in 2027

Lou Holtz, legendary college football coach and broadcaster, dies at age of 89

Lou Holtz, one of the most revered coaches in the history of college football, has died at the age of 89. He had entered hospice care in January, shortly after his birthday.A statement from his family said Holtz would be “remembered for his enduring values of faith, family, service and an unwavering belief in the potential of others”.Holtz, whose affable personality helped him build a successful broadcasting career after his retirement from coaching, led Notre Dame to a national championship in 1988. He also had a successful career at Arkansas, where he went 11-1 in his debut season in 1977, upsetting Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl