Researchers say best scientists are taking posts overseas because of lack of job stability at homeHundreds of early career researchers have warned the UK will lose a generation of scientists after the announcement of significant cuts to physics projects and research facilities.Scientists working in particle physics, astronomy and nuclear physics have been told their grants will be cut by nearly a third, with project leaders asked to report back on how their research would fare with cuts up to 60%. Continue reading...
Researchers say blood sample strip, which can be used at home, can pick up virus that causes cervical cancerA pioneering test of period blood for signs of cervical cancer could be a convenient, non-invasive and accurate way of screening for the disease, researchers have said.A regular sanitary pad topped with a blood sample strip can pick up human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes most cases of cervical cancer, and could be used by women at home, the results of a study indicate. Continue reading...
While labels list dozens of possible risks only four are supported by evidence, say researchersAlmost all side-effects listed for statins are not caused by the drugs, according to the world's most comprehensive review of evidence.Other than the well-known risks around muscle pain and diabetes, only four of 66 other statin side-effects listed on labels - liver test changes, minor liver abnormalities, urine changes and tissue swelling - are supported by evidence. And the risks are very small, according to the systematic review and meta-analysis published in the Lancet. Continue reading...
Brain activity suggests newborns can detect and predict patterns relating to rhythm, study saysNewborn babies can anticipate rhythm in pieces of music, researchers have discovered, offering insights into a fundamental human trait.Babies in the womb begin to respond to music by about eight or nine months, as shown by changes in their heart rate and body movements, said Dr Roberta Bianco, the first author of the research who is based at the Italian Institute of Technology in Rome. Continue reading...
by Sarah Marsh Consumer affairs correspondent on (#73C29)
Giveaway' competitions on WhatsApp and Telegram for retatrutide and other drugs described as extremely dangerous'Hidden-market promoters of weight-loss drugs are running social media giveaway" competitions that offer powerful, unlicensed medicines as prizes.The Guardian has been monitoring WhatsApp and Telegram groups promoting substances such as retatrutide - a medicine unlicensed in the UK. Some groups have posted competitions for existing customers, claiming they have just 24 hours" to enter giveaways or claim injections. Continue reading...
As fewer people choose to pair up, let alone marry, it could be that our species' mating patterns are moving closer to the natural orderMonogamy, you may have heard, is in crisis. Fewer people are in relationships, let alone opting to be in one 'til death. And even those who have already exchanged vows seem to be increasingly looking for wiggle room. Quiet divorce" - mentally checking out of your union, rather than going through the rigmarole of formally dissolving it - is reportedly on the rise, as is ethical non-monogamy" (ENM) and opening up a relationship to include other partners.This is borne out by my experience on mainstream dating apps. About one profile in every 10 I come across seems to express a preference for ENM" or polyamory, or mentions an existing wife or girlfriend. The best you can hope for, if you're prepared to accept those terms, is that the primary partner" really is across the arrangement as described.Elle Hunt is a freelance journalist Continue reading...
by Presented and produced by Madeleine Finlay, with P on (#73BM5)
On a recent trip to Lake Geneva in Switzerland, biodiversity reporter Phoebe Weston witnessed the impact of one of the planet's most potent invasive species, the quagga mussel. In just a decade the mollusc, originally from the Ponto-Caspian region of the Black Sea, has caused irreversible change beneath the surface of the picturesque lake. While ecologists believe invasive species play a major role in more than 60% of plant and animal extinctions, stopping them in their tracks is almost impossible. Phoebe tells Madeleine Finlay how invasive species spread, how conservationists are trying combat them and why some think a radical new approach is needed.It's an open invasion': how millions of quagga mussels changed Lake Geneva for everSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...
by Anna Bawden Health and social affairs corresponden on (#73BA6)
By age 20 diagnosis rates for men and women almost equal, research finds, challenging assumptions of gender discrepancyFemales may be just as likely to be autistic as males but boys are up to four times more likely to be diagnosed in childhood, according to a large-scale study.Research led by the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden scrutinised the diagnosis rates of autism for people born in Sweden between 1985 and 2020. Of the 2.7 million people tracked, 2.8% were diagnosed with autism between the ages of two and 37. Continue reading...
Two-decade study indicates a diet rich in foods such as olive oil, nuts and vegetables can cut risk of every type of strokeA Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of every type of stroke, in some cases by as much as 25%, a large study conducted over two decades suggests.A diet rich in olive oil, nuts, seafood, whole grains and vegetables has previously been linked to a number of health benefits. However, until now there has been limited evidence of how it might affect the risk of all forms of stroke. Continue reading...
My wife, Lelia Duley, who has died aged 67, was an obstetric epidemiologist who studied health outcomes related to pregnancy, childbirth and its aftermath.Working alongside frontline clinicians, she designed large-scale trials to test commonly used, but under-evaluated, treatments for pregnant women. Continue reading...
We don't have a single verb to express smelling something nice. Welsh and Croatian, by contrast, are never caught short when something fragrant gets right up your noseI remember the first time I remembered a smell. This was remembering to the extent that it stopped me in my tracks, taking me back to a specific moment, a specific place and a specific feeling. The smell was that of a bike shop. Mainly rubber, with notes of oil and plastic and a strong hint of sheer excitement. In that instant I was about 10 years old, in Bache Brothers Cycles at Lye Cross, near Stourbridge, in the West Midlands. My grandad was next to me, with the shop man. I was getting a bike for my birthday.When I was talking about the power of smell on the radio, Speth, a Welsh speaker from Manchester, got in touch to say that in Welsh you can hear a smell as well as smell it. At first this sounded charming, if far-fetched. But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. While I can't - in English, anyway - exactly hear the smell of that Black Country bike shop in 1977, I can smell, hear and see it very clearly. I can feel it too. I can feel the shop man's grip as he lifts me into the saddle. And I can hear him saying to my grandad: Blimey, he's a lump, isn't he?" Ever sensitive about my weight, that was a sour note. But I'll let it pass, because all I can feel, then and now, is the general joy. Continue reading...
Novo Nordisk share price plunges after blaming lower US drug prices, patent protection issues and rising competitionThe maker of Wegovy and Ozempic, Novo Nordisk, has predicted a sharp drop in revenues this year owing to what its boss described as a painful" push by Donald Trump to lower US weight-loss drug prices, rising competition, and the loss of important patent protections.Denmark's Novo, once the poster-child for the growth in weight-loss treatments, said sales this year were likely to fall between 5% and 13%, ending years of double-digit gains, despite the promising launch of its new Wegovy pill in the US. Continue reading...
A genomic entrepreneur's guide to the coming revolution in biology raises troubling questions about ethics and safetyThe prophet Ezekiel once claimed to have seen four beasts emerge from a burning cloud, sparkling like the colour of burnished brass". Each had wings and four faces: that of a man, a lion, an ox and an eagle. Similarly, a creature called Buraq, something between a mule and a donkey with wings and a human face, was said to have carried the prophet Muhammad on his journeys; while the ancient Greeks gave us the centaur, the mythical human-horse hybrid recently rebooted by JK Rowling in the Harry Potter books.The impulse to blend the anatomical traits of other species with those of humans appears to be hardwired into our imagination," notes Adrian Woolfson in his intriguing and disturbing analysis of a biological revolution he believes is about to sweep the planet. Very soon, we will not only dream up imaginary animals - we will turn them into biological reality. Continue reading...
Researchers say waste dumping and climate breakdown have contributed to rise in brick, concrete and glass on beachesAs much as half of some British beaches' coarse sediments may consist of human-made materials such as brick, concrete, glass and industrial waste, a study has suggested.Climate breakdown, which has caused more frequent and destructive coastal storms, has led to an increase in these substances on beaches. Six sites on the Firth of Forth, an estuary on Scotland's east coast joining the River Forth to the North Sea, were surveyed to better understand the makeup of urban beaches". Continue reading...
Artemis II mission was due to begin as early as next week and astronauts have spent almost two weeks in quarantineNasa has postponed its historic mission to send astronauts around the moon and back again, after issues arose during a critical test of its most powerful rocket yet.The US space agency had planned to launch the Artemis II mission from Kennedy Space Center in Florida as early as next week, but announced overnight that it would be delayed until March, without specifying a date. Continue reading...
by Presented and produced by Madeleine Finlay, with L on (#739RE)
Just like men, women are increasingly being told by online influencers that the classic symptoms of middle age could be down to low testosterone. In the second part of this miniseries exploring the hormone, Madeleine Finlay finds out what testosterone supplementation is doing for women. She hears from science journalist Linda Geddes, who is taking testosterone for low libido, and from prof Susan Davis, a consultant endocrinologist and head of the Monash University Women's Health Research Programme. Susan explains what the evidence really shows about the benefits and risks of women taking testosteroneFrightening' how easily women can get hold of testosterone, say doctorsSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...
by Kat Lay Global health correspondent on (#739QA)
UPFs are made to encourage addiction and consumption and should be regulated like tobacco, say researchersUltra-processed foods (UPFs) have more in common with cigarettes than with fruit or vegetables, and require far tighter regulation, according to a new report.UPFs and cigarettes are engineered to encourage addiction and consumption, researchers from three US universities said, pointing to the parallels in widespread health harms that link both. Continue reading...
The answers to today's problemsEarlier today I set you these three problems about the number 11. Here they are again with solutions.1. Funny formationodd positions: 9,7,5,3,1 sum to 25;even positions: 8,6,4,2,0 sum to 20. Continue reading...
Puzzles one louder than tenIt's two decimal digits long, it's prime, it's a palindrome and it's the number of players in a football team.Let's hear it for legs" eleven! Continue reading...
Straddling the celestial equator, the constellation is visible in both hemispheresOrion, the hunter, one of the most recognisable constellations in the night sky, is well placed for observation from the northern hemisphere during February. Straddling the celestial equator - the projection of Earth's equator on to the night sky - the constellation is also visible from the southern hemisphere.From the UK this week, Orion rises in the east shortly after sunset and is highest in the south at about 2100 to 2200 GMT. By late evening, the constellation dominates the southern sky before setting in the west after midnight. The chart shows the view looking south from London on 2 February at 2000 GMT, although the view will be mostly unchanged for the entire week. Continue reading...
Every second, 11m bits of information enter our brains, which then efficiently prioritise them. We need to learn to work with the process, rather than against itIt's believed that we have about 50,000 thoughts a day: big, small, urgent, banal - Did I leave the oven on?". And those are just the ones that register. Subconsciously, we're constantly sifting through a barrage of stimuli: background noise, clutter on our desks, the mere presence of our phones.Every second, 11m bits of information enter our brains. Just 0.0004% is perceived by our conscious minds, showing just how hard our brains are working to parse what's sufficiently relevant to bring to our attention. Continue reading...
We are living longer and longer, but many of us are unprepared for the challenges age brings, says the novelist and psychotherapist Frank TallisWe have never lived so long, so well, nor had more available advice on how to do so: don't smoke, don't drink, don't eat ultraprocessed foods; lift weights, get outside, learn a language. Cosmetics - or surgery - have never been so available, so advanced, nor so widely used; we take for granted medical procedures that previous ages would have considered miracles. And something's clearly working: average global life expectancy is the highest in recorded history. The fastest growing demographic is now the over-80s.There is much public hand-wringing about the burdens this ageing population will place on health and care systems, and on younger people. But what is far less talked about, argues the clinical psychologist Frank Tallis in his new book, Wise, is how to get older well: not just in physical, but in mental good health. Continue reading...
by Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editor on (#738B2)
Nick Carter says easing controls on MDMA will allow drug to be used as alternative treatment for those with PTSDA former head of the British military is calling for the government to ease restrictions on the party drug MDMA so that it can be tested more cheaply as a treatment for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).Sir Nick Carter, who was chief of the defence staff until 2021, said existing regulations meant a single gram of medical grade" MDMA cost about 10,000 compared with a street price of about 40, inflating the cost of trials. Continue reading...
Researchers tell human story' about crisis during plague of Justinian, which killed millions in Byzantine empireA US-led research team has verified the first Mediterranean mass grave of the world's earliest recorded pandemic, providing stark new details about the plague of Justinian that killed millions of people in the Byzantine empire between the sixth and eighth centuries.The findings, published in February's Journal of Archaeological Science, offer what researchers say is a rare empirical window into the mobility, urban life and vulnerability of citizens affected by the pestilence. Continue reading...
Weather service research concludes that less accurate probability-based predictions are still considered helpfulThe Met Office is to lean into one of Britain's favourite pastimes - talking about the weather - by launching a new two-week forecast.At present, the publicly funded weather and climate service offers a seven-day forecast on its website and app with an hourly breakdown for the first five days and then a three-hourly breakdown for the final two days. Continue reading...
Champion of respiratory medicine who was passionate about building bridges between academics and cliniciansMike Morgan, who has died aged 75, was a leading figure in respiratory services in Leicester for more than 30 years. He also championed respiratory medicine at the highest level. It had long been a poor relation compared to other areas of medicine but, as the national clinical director for respiratory disease at NHS England from 2013 to 2019, Morgan ensured it was prominent in the national long-term strategy set out in NHS England's 10-year health plan in 2019. The aim was to transform outcomes by diagnosing diseases earlier with greater access to spirometry (a lung function test) and to increase provision for the key treatment, pulmonary rehabilitation.When Morgan began working as a consultant respiratory physician at Glenfield hospital in Leicester in 1988, he joined a small team, with two other doctors (today there are more than 20 respiratory specialists). They faced a huge challenge: respiratory diseases such as chronic pulmonary obstructive disease (COPD) were widespread. Not only can they result in disabling breathlessness and blight sufferers' lives, they are also a leading cause of death. Continue reading...
by Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent on (#736VV)
Swedish study of 100,000 women found higher rate of early detection, suggesting potential to support radiologistsThe use of artificial intelligence in breast cancer screening reduces the rate of a cancer diagnosis by 12% in subsequent years and leads to a higher rate of early detection, according to the first trial of its kind.Researchers said the study was the largest to date looking at AI use in cancer screening. It involved 100,000 women in Sweden who were part of mammography screening and were randomly assigned to either AI-supported screening or to a standard reading by two radiologists between April 2021 and December 2022. Continue reading...
by Anna Bawden Health and social affairs corresponden on (#736P6)
Agency updates guidance after increase in reports of condition to its yellow card schemePatients on weight-loss jabs and diabetes injections should be aware there is a small risk of developing severe acute pancreatitis, the UK medicines regulator has said.About 1.6 million adults in England, Wales and Scotland used GLP-1 medication, such as semaglutide (Wegovy, Ozempic) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro), between early 2024 and early 2025 to lose weight, according to recent research. Continue reading...
New study into heritability' shows that 50% of the variation in human lifespan could be down to geneticsSome people who live to a great age put it down to an evening tot of whisky, others to staying out of trouble. Now scientists think they may have unlocked a key secret to long life - quite simply, genetics.Writing in the journal Science, the researchers described how previous studies that had attempted to unpick the genetic component of human lifespan had not taken into account that some lives were cut short by accidents, murders, infectious diseases or other factors arising outside the body. Such extrinsic mortality" increases with age, as people often become more frail. Continue reading...
Light scattering creates the shade we see when we look skyward, and studies show the process varies around the worldOn holiday the sky may look a deeper shade of blue than even the clearest summer day at home. Some places, including Cape Town in South Africa and Briancon in France, pride themselves on the blueness of their skies. But is there really any difference?The blue of the sky is the product of Rayleigh scattering, which affects light more at the blue end of the spectrum. The blue we see is just the blue component of scattered white sunlight. Continue reading...
by Presented and produced by Madeleine Finlay, sound on (#7364F)
If TikTok influencers are to be believed, testosterone, or T, is the answer to everything from fitness frustrations and fatigue to low libido. But doctors are warning that social media misinformation is driving men to seek testosterone therapy that they don't need. This in turn comes with risks for health and fertility. In part one of a miniseries exploring the popularity of testosterone, Madeleine Finlay hears from Prof Channa Jayasena of Imperial College London, who is chair of the Society for Endocrinology, about how this craze is manifesting in NHS clinics, and from Sam' who tells Madeleine about his own journey with the hormoneSocial media misinformation driving men to seek unneeded NHS testosterone therapy, doctors saySupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...
The Earth-size planet HD 137010 b has a 50% chance of residing in the habitable zone' of its sun-like star, scientists sayAstronomers have discovered a potentially habitable new planet about 146 light-years away which is Earth-sized and has conditions similar to Mars.The candidate planet, named HD 137010 b, orbits a sun-like star and is estimated to be 6% larger than Earth. Continue reading...
AlphaGenome can analyse up to 1m letters of DNA code at once and could pave way for new treatmentsResearchers at Google DeepMind have unveiled their latest artificial intelligence tool and claimed it will help scientists identify the genetic drivers of disease and ultimately pave the way for new treatments.AlphaGenome predicts how mutations interfere with the way genes are controlled, changing when they are switched on, in which cells of the body, and whether their biological volume controls are set to high or low. Continue reading...
World's richest person targeting symbolic date in June for flotation of rocket companyElon Musk's SpaceX is considering a flotation valuing the rocket company at $1.5tn (1.1tn) that will reportedly be timed for early summer to coincide with a planetary alignment and the multibillionaire's birthday.The world's richest person is targeting a symbolic date of mid-June for the initial public offering, according to the Financial Times. This would be around the same time as Jupiter and Venus appear in close proximity to each other and shortly before Musk turns 55 on 28 June. Continue reading...
Virus primarily spreads from animals to humans, has a high fatality rate and there is no vaccineAirports across Asia have been put on high alert after India confirmed two cases of the deadly Nipah virus in the state of West Bengal over the past month.Thailand, Nepal and Vietnam are among the countries screening airport arrivals over fears of an wider outbreak of the virus, which can spread from animals to humans and has a high fatality rate. Continue reading...
Island's mineral and resource wealth is result of mountain building, rifting and volcanic activity over 4bn yearsAs recent manoeuvres over Greenland have made plain, this mostly ice-covered island contains some of the greatest stores of natural resources in the world, with huge volumes of oil and gas, rich deposits of rare-earth elements and rocks bearing gems and gold. So why did all the planetary goodies end up here?Writing in The Conversation, the geologist Dr Jonathan Paul from Royal Holloway, University of London, explains how this mineral and resource wealth is tied to the country's geological history over the past 4bn years. Greenland is a bit of a geological anomaly, with land that has been pummelled in three different ways: mountain building, rifting and volcanism. Continue reading...
by Presented and produced by Madeleine Finlay, with P on (#73496)
Last week, a UN report declared that the world has entered an era of global water bankruptcy' with many human water systems past the point at which they can be restored to former levels. To find out what this could look like, Madeleine Finlay speaks to the Guardian's diplomatic editor, Patrick Wintour, who has been reporting on Iran's severe water crisis. And Mohammad Shamsudduha, professor of water crisis and risk reduction in the department of risk and disaster reduction at University College London, explains how the present situation arose and what can be done to bring water supplies back from the brinkEra of global water bankruptcy' is here, UN report saysClimate crisis or a warning from God? Iranians desperate for answers as water dries up Continue reading...
Researchers say artificial intelligence system matches human expert classification about 90% of the timeExperts have created an app that uses artificial intelligence to identify dinosaurs from the footprints left behind after they stomped across the land tens of millions of years ago.When we find a dinosaur footprint, we try to do the Cinderella thing and find the foot that matches the slipper," said Prof Steve Brusatte, a co-author of the work, from the University of Edinburgh. But it's not so simple, because the shape of a dinosaur footprint depends not only on the shape of the dinosaur's foot but also the type of sand or mud it was walking through, and the motion of its foot." Continue reading...
My mother, Barbara Hurman, who has died aged 100, was an archaeologist specialising in the identification and illustration of finds - the items disinterred during the course of excavations.She worked on a number of sites for the Bucks Museum, in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, the Milton Keynes Archaeological Unit, the Department of the Environment and the Museum of London, and in her late 70s completed four summer seasons as the finds supervisor and ceramic analyst on Nottingham University's excavation of the Roman site at Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria. Continue reading...
Traditional bodybuilding advice has been to push workouts to the point of failure, and that soreness is an indicator of effectiveness. But recent studies show there's another wayUntil pretty recently, the conventional wisdom about building muscle was that it worked via a system you might think of as tear and repair" - the idea being that working out causes microtears in the muscle fibres, which trigger the body's repair processes, encouraging the muscles to come back bigger and stronger.That's why many old-school trainers will tell you that there's no gain without pain, and why a lot of bodybuilding advice includes increasingly byzantine ways of pushing your biceps and triceps to the point where you can't do another repetition: the more trauma you can cause, the thinking goes, the more swole" you can become. Continue reading...
Seven sisters constellation's brightest members will be hidden from view for about an hourOn the night of 27 January, the moon passes in front of the Pleiades star cluster, temporarily hiding (occulting) some of its brightest members from view.The Pleiades, also known as the seven sisters, lie about 440 light years away in the constellation Taurus, the Bull. They are one of the most recognisable structures in the winter sky. The stars were all born from the same giant cloud of molecular gas. Although in time they will be dispersed through the galaxy, at only 100m years old, they remain a relatively tight-knit community of stellar siblings. Continue reading...
Researchers observed the primates switching social groups and passing information on where to find the ripest fruitSpider monkeys share tips about where to find food by changing their social groups in a clever system for sharing insider knowledge", research has shown.They were observed to frequently switch subgroups of three or more individuals in a way that enabled them to share information about the location of fruit trees and timing of when they would ripen. Continue reading...