The rapture and the river

Buried under the hyperbole of the headline is one interesting item: a quarter of land in the Netherlands is already below sea level. Readers will be fascinated to hear that Dutch society has not collapsed as a result, nor has there been mass drowning, plagues, pestilence, food riots or anything else.

Interestingly, on the theme of secular armageddon Slate magazine recently asked are environmentalists wishing for the end of the world - or at least the end of people they don't approve of?

The BBC News Magazine, meanwhile, reports on Rosie Koska, an artist who leads an itinerant lifestyle living in a van.

Koska, who uses low-energy lighting and very little water, says: "I'm not alone in living in something like this. I have a number of friends with well-paid jobs who have to live in caravans, yurts and vans - usually in part to save or pay back debt."

It's left open to readers to decide whether Koska is a pioneer or a victim of a worsening housing crisis in Britain.