On 1st January 2015, Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas and becoming the 19th Eurozone country.
Despite indications of recovery, the global economy remains in a fragile state.
The use of bioinformatics in healthcare is growing exponentially during this time, thanks in large part to the falling cost of genome sequencing. This is creating a new generation of personalised diagnosis and treatments that can be specifically tailored to an individual's own DNA.
The thyroid is one of the largest endocrine glands. Found in the neck, it controls how quickly the body uses energy, makes proteins and controls how sensitive the body is to other hormones. It does so by producing thyroid hormones which regulate metabolism and affect the growth and rate of function of many other systems in the body.
The Universal Exposition is held in Milan this year, the first time the city has hosted the event since 1906. The main theme of the exposition is the future availability of food and water supplies and the state of nutrition and health in the years to come.
Exponential improvements in processing power (doubling every 18 months) are enabling the creation of highly lifelike graphics and 3D environments.
Solar Impulse is a Swiss long-range solar-powered aircraft project, led by Swiss psychiatrist and aeronaut Bertrand Piccard (who co-piloted the first balloon to circle the world non-stop) and Swiss businessman André Borschberg. In 2015, they aim to achieve the first circumnavigation of the Earth by a piloted fixed-wing aircraft using only solar power.
This NASA probe was launched in 2006 and has travelled more than 4 billion kilometres through space.
On 10th September 2015, Elizabeth II becomes the longest reigning monarch in British history – surpassing the record held by Victoria, her great-great grandmother.
Due to rising sea levels, the inhabitants of the Carteret Islands in Papua New Guinea are being forced to abandon their homelands.
