by Hosted by Savannah Ayoade-Greaves. Narrated by Jan on (#5VTA7)
Ease into the weekend with our brand new podcast, showcasing some of the best Guardian and Observer writing from the week, read by talented narrators.In our first episode, Marina Hyde reflects on another less than stellar week for Boris Johnson (1m38s), Edward Helmore charts the rise of Joe Rogan (9m46s), Laura Snapes goes deep with singer George Ezra (18m30s), and Alex Moshakis asks, “Are you a jerk at work?” (34m40s).If you like what you hear, subscribe to Weekend on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts Continue reading...
by Damian Carrington Environment editor on (#5VSZ6)
Protecting wildlife to stop viruses jumping to humans would save far more than it costs, analysis showsPreventing future pandemics at source would cost a small fraction of the damage already caused by viruses that jump from wildlife to people, according to scientists.Each year on average more than 3 million people die from zoonotic diseases, those that spill over from wildlife into humans, new analysis has calculated. Stopping the destruction of nature, which brings humans and wildlife into greater contact and results in spillover, would cost about $20bn a year, just 10% of the annual economic damage caused by zoonoses and 5% of the value of the lives lost. Continue reading...
Landsat programme began in 1970s and will pass 50th anniversary of unbroken images of Earth this yearLandsat 9 has completed its post-launch assessment and begun its operational phase. Launched from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on 27 September 2021, Landsat 9 is a joint venture between Nasa and the US Geological Survey (USGS).The Landsat programme has been running since the 1970s and will pass its 50th anniversary of unbroken images of Earth from orbit later this year. Landsat 1 was launched on 23 July 1972 and was initially called the Earth Resources Technology Satellite. Continue reading...
Surprisingly little is known about the role played by our 400 or so receptors in identifying specific smellsWhen you are packed on a commuter train, the body odour of fellow passengers can at times be hard to ignore. Now scientists have shed light on how our noses pick up on the stench.While different scents can be highly evocative, only a fraction of our 400 or so odour receptors have been shown to be involved in the perception of specific smells. Continue reading...
Study of twins suggests desire to be in natural spaces is influenced by genetic factorsA person’s love of nature is partially inherited, a large-scale study of twins has found.Scientists from the National University of Singapore studied how much time twins spent in natural spaces compared with each other and found that they shared a similar level of desire to be in nature. Continue reading...
When the wave hit suddenly half the people I knew were sick with Covid – or were they?I was on a walk with my friend Ivan, talking about the time I had Covid, and how it was bad but not too bad, and on the bright side at least now I had some antibodies, before he interrupted me and said: “You didn’t have it.”“What? I didn’t have Covid? Yes I did!” Continue reading...
Nasa confirmed the ISS will plunge into the Pacific ocean to join other decommissioned space stations, satellites and space debrisThe International Space Station (ISS) will continue its operations until 2030 before heading for a watery grave at the most remote point in the Pacific, Nasa confirmed in a new transition plan this week.More than 30 years after its 1998 launch, the ISS will be “de-orbited” in January 2031, according to the space agency’s budget estimates. Once out of orbit the space station will make a dramatic descent before splash-landing in Point Nemo, which is about 2,700km from any land and has become known as the space cemetery, a final resting place for decommissioned space stations, old satellites and other human space debris. Continue reading...
Plan based on simpler version of US-engineered animal used last month in world’s first pig-to-human transplantGerman scientists plan to clone and then breed this year genetically modified pigs to serve as heart donors for humans, based on a simpler version of a US-engineered animal used last month in the world’s first pig-to-human transplant.Eckhard Wolf, a scientist at Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) in Munich, said his team aimed to have the new species, modified from the Auckland Island breed, ready for transplant trials by 2025. Continue reading...
Therapists, psychologists and nurses who are autistic say it has made them better at their jobs, but that misconceptions about the condition are forcing them to keep their diagnosis a secretSteph Jones jokes that she used to think she was psychic. The psychotherapist says she can often tell instinctively what a client’s issue is before they’ve even sat down. “I can say to them: ‘All of a sudden my throat is tightening,’ or: ‘I feel dizzy,’ or: ‘I can see a particular image – does this mean anything to you?” she says. This is because Jones has the ability, she explains, to experience not just other people’s emotions but their physical sensations in her own body. And it is a skill that has been invaluable for her work.It was only after she was diagnosed with autism that she realised this was simply part of her neurodiverse profile. “It’s called mirror-emotion or mirror-touch synaesthesia and is part of what being autistic means for me, as well as having hyperawareness, hyperperception, hyperempathy and hypermemory – all of which come in very handy as a therapist,” she says. Continue reading...
People with long Covid face an uphill battle convincing skeptics their malady is real – but discrediting uncommon conditions is hardly a new phenomenonBefore the coronavirus pandemic swept through New York City like a foaming white storm surge in the spring of 2020 and irrevocably displaced the trajectory of her life, Hannah Davis was an expert in artificial intelligence and machine learning. She gave talks on her projects, which included working with a computer program that generated music from literature, at Ted conferences, technology expos, even the Library of Congress.Toward the end of March 2020, as the first wave was gathering speed and the number of new cases in the US was inching upward toward 20,000 a day, Davis was living in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn – an area that would become one of the hardest-hit communities in the borough. She was stocking up on supplies one final time at a local grocery store before sheltering in place when she believes she got infected with Covid-19. Continue reading...
Few corals are safe from warming oceans, a new study warns, but studies are finding surprisingly hardy corals, natural sunscreens and how coral ‘IVF’ can regrow reefs
by Presented by Ian Sample and produced by Madeleine on (#5VQPZ)
Extreme fatigue, brain fog, sleep disturbances, chest pain and skin rashes. These are just a few of the on-going symptoms of long Covid, a disorder that can persist for many months after an initial Covid infection. With such a vast range of symptoms, and health organisations stretched to capacity by the acute stage of the disease, long Covid has continued to remain something of a mystery.But with numerous studies trying to understand what exactly people are suffering from, progress is being made. Ian Sample speaks to Prof Akiko Iwasaki about what we do and don’t know about long Covid, and how the vaccine could reveal clues about what’s behind the disorderArchive: Channel 4 News, Sky News Continue reading...
Risk 2.5 times greater for those with multimorbidity at age 55, long-term study of 10,000 Britons revealsHaving two or more chronic health problems in middle age more than doubles the risk of dementia, according to a study that researchers say underscores the importance of good health earlier in life.More than 900,000 people are living with dementia in the UK, and about 57 million people are affected globally. The worldwide toll is predicted to nearly triple to 153 million by 2050. Continue reading...
Increased light exposure during daytime is shown to help improve blood sugar controlBoosting exposure to bright light during the daytime and dimming the lights in the evening could help to improve blood sugar control in people with pre-diabetes, data suggests.Light plays a key role in synchronising the body’s internal or circadian clock – which controls the timing of multiple biological processes – to the 24-hour day-night cycle. Continue reading...
Attempts to study the deteriorating Florida-sized glacier that could raise sea levels by 2ft if it breaks off are being frustratedAntarctica’s so-called Doomsday Glacier, nicknamed because it is huge and coming apart, is thwarting an international effort to figure out how dangerously vulnerable it is.A large iceberg has broken off the deteriorating Thwaites glacier and, along with sea ice, it is blocking two research ships with dozens of scientists from examining how fast its crucial ice shelf is falling apart. Continue reading...
Cancer-killing cells still present 10 years on, with results suggesting therapy is a cure for certain blood cancersTwo of the first human patients to be treated with a revolutionary therapy that engineers immune cells to target specific types of cancer still possess cancer-killing cells a decade later with no sign of their illness returning.The finding suggests CAR T-cell therapy constitutes a “cure” for certain blood cancers, although adapting it to treat solid tumours is proving more challenging. Continue reading...
With the rise in dog ownership has come a rise in doggy noise. Could interpreting their growls and yelps make life more harmonious? And how do you stop them barking at delivery drivers?The interview begins in uneasy silence, as we stare across at each other from our comfy armchairs. It is not exactly Frost/Nixon, because he is a dog. Being up on the furniture should be a treat for him, but we lost that battle long ago.I repeat my question again: “Why do you bark so much?” Continue reading...
Ten-year study of a town in Turkey showed poor construction caused more than 90% of landslipsBadly built roads can generate more hazard than a significant earthquake, research shows. Hakan Tanyaş, from the University of Twente in the Netherlands, and colleagues monitored the size and number of landslips in the Arhavi area of north-eastern Turkey between 2010 and 2020. During this period several roads were constructed through the region to access a new hydroelectric scheme.The scientists show that development had a shocking impact on the stability of the hillsides, with road construction responsible for more than 90% of the observed landslips in the region. Continue reading...
Chincha people put their dead back together after colonisers disturbed graves when looting silver and gold, research saysInvasion. Disease. Death. The 16th-century Europeans arriving in Peru brought with them all manner of havoc and destruction.But they did not only pillage the living. They also looted graves. Continue reading...
Experts may be able to predict risk of developing ovarian, breast, womb and cervical cancers using cells from routine smear testScientists are developing a “revolutionary” test to predict a woman’s risk of four cancers using a single sample collected during cervical screening.Using cervical cells from a routine smear test, experts may be able to spot ovarian and breast cancer or predict their likelihood of developing, according to two papers published in the journal Nature Communications. Further results are due on the ability of the WID-test – women’s cancer risk identification – to predict womb and cervical cancer, researchers said. Continue reading...
Our culture doesn’t understand burnout – including the fact that we can get burnt out on a perfectly ‘normal’ 40-hour work weekA few years ago, I found myself really burnt out. Well, at the time, I wasn’t actually sure that’s what it was. At first “burnout” seemed like a dramatic way to describe what I was experiencing. But I was really, really tired. I was struggling to motivate myself and looking at my calendar started filling me with a sort of low-grade dread.But the confusing part for me was that on the surface there wasn’t any obvious reason why I would be so tired. It didn’t seem warranted. I didn’t deserve to be so tired. Sure, I was busy, but no more busy than anyone else. So what was wrong with me?Caroline Dooner is the author of The F*ck It Diet and the forthcoming book Tired As F*ck: Burnout at the Hands of Diet, Self-Help, and Hustle Culture, and the host of The F*ck It Podcast Continue reading...
by Presented by Madeleine Finlay with Linda Geddes, p on (#5VMXB)
There have never been more products and services devoted to helping women through the menopause, from hormones and supplements to apps and even laser treatments. But is all this choice actually helpful? And what’s the evidence that any of them actually work?Madeleine Finlay speaks to the Guardian science correspondent Linda Geddes about the great menopause gold rush – and how women can get the help they need.Archive: British Menopause Society / ITN Productions, ITV, goop, NBC News Continue reading...
It’s crucial we understand living with the virus isn’t the same thing as ignoring the virusWe have experienced many bumps in the road since 2020 and one would have to be extremely brave to predict what the pandemic may throw at us next.But, in terms of the endgame, many experts believe Covid will eventually become an endemic disease. Continue reading...
Jane Campion, Benedict Cumberbatch and Sandra Oh all say they have used a coach to harness the power of their dreams and say the results have been extraordinaryName: Dream work.Age: People have been dreaming since people have been people. This is more about the exploration of dreams. Continue reading...
Government adviser, who says museum ‘inspired me to pursue a career in science’, will take on role in 2023The government’s chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, is to become the next chair of the Natural History Museum, a position he is understood to be taking on in addition to his current roles.Vallance has been a key figure in informing the government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, most notably around understanding the risks and mitigation of the virus and prioritising vaccine development. He said he had loved the museum since he was a young boy. Continue reading...
Exclusive: Liquid biopsy blood tests being offered to patients who have exhausted other optionsThousands of NHS cancer patients who have exhausted all other options are being offered liquid biopsy blood tests to match them to personalised medicines.The groundbreaking genetic analysis gives patients a better chance of successfully trying new treatments. A pioneering scheme piloted at the Christie NHS foundation trust in Manchester proved so successful it is being rolled out across the UK, the Guardian can reveal. Continue reading...
Singing to a child is as important to the singers as the listeners – something parents should remember as we seek to quell our raging anxietyWhen my eldest daughter was just a few months old, I threw her in a carrier and took her on a train to visit my friend, the chorus of Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves looping in my head. I arrived, giddy and smug in the notion that my adorable new addition hadn’t disrupted my life one bit, placed her in the crib set up in my friend’s guestroom, put my hand on the doorknob – and that’s when she started to scream. Which she did for the entire night.Twelve hours. Fourteen hours? Could have been 18. I lost count. I’d never seen her so furious. I’d never seen her so continuously awake.Tender shepherd,Tender shepherd, Continue reading...
When the pandemic hit, David Ngwerume began creating pieces to inspire and raise awareness. Now, one of his pieces will feature in the Beijing biennaleWhen the pandemic first hit the world, Zimbabwean stone sculptor David Ngwerume took his hammer and chisel and started work on the first of a collection of Covid-inspired pieces.Almost two years and 14 sculptures later, one has made its way to China after being selected for the ninth Beijing International Art Biennale, an exhibition showcasing work from thousands of artists from more than 100 countries. Continue reading...
On a good night, up to 10 stars can be seen in cluster known as the seven sistersThis week’s challenge is a longstanding rite of passage for amateur astronomers. It is also a quick and easy way to gauge the quality of a night’s observing conditions whenever the constellation of Taurus, the bull, is visible.It involves counting the number of stars in the Pleiades. One of only a handful of star clusters visible to the naked eye, the Pleiades is particularly special because we can resolve some of the stars that makes it up. Another name for the cluster is the seven sisters – but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you can see seven stars. Continue reading...
New passion for reviving country’s monuments is returning Little Theatre of Epidavros to heart of communityFor nearly two millennia, the Little Theatre of Epidavros lay underground. Its engraved seats, concentric and tiered, belonged to a world of roots; in this case the roots of an olive grove owned by Christos Zafiris, a local farmer. “They say that had it not been for pigs digging at the soil, we might never have known of its existence,” says Prof Vassilis Lambrinoudakis. “Until the appearance of the stones in 1970, the theatre was a secret hidden under the earth for 18 centuries.”The classical archaeologist, renowned for his work at Athens University, has spent more than four decades ensuring the chance find would not go to waste. Excavations have not disappointed. Inscriptions discovered at the site, on the slopes of a peninsula overlooking the sea, have shed light on the history of those who may have commissioned the theatre. Evidence of multiple phases of construction, starting in the mid-fourthcentury BC, have further illuminated the ancient city of Epidavros that once surrounded the architectural gem. Continue reading...
by Mark Brown North of England correspondent on (#5VK1B)
Carvings can be seen more clearly thanks to painstaking removal of sediment and water damageThere are carvings of dolphins, horses, boar, salmon, mermaids, a magnificently endowed leopard, George and the dragon, and a fox preaching to some chickens – a 500-year-old warning not to trust people in authority.The carvings, about 300 of them, at Carlisle Castle are the subject of a restoration project to save them from the elements and allow them to be seen more clearly than they have been for generations. Continue reading...
We’ve all been there: driven half mad by the colleague who micromanages, the boss who bullies, the co-worker asleep on the job… So how do we navigate the messy world of office politics?Twenty years ago, the American psychologist Tessa West began arriving early to the department store at which she worked, so she could avoid the salespeople she spent most of her time with. Really, she was hoping to escape just one colleague – someone with whom she disagreed about shop-floor etiquette. (Her: don’t steal clients. The co-worker: why not?) In the early mornings, West could be sure they wouldn’t run into each other, saving her from stress and anxiety, which can lead to ill health. “It’s not that I thought anything bad was going to happen,” she recalls, via Zoom. “It was the not-knowing what would happen,” and “the increase in heart-rate” that comes with that uncertainty. Soon the situation became so preoccupying that West quit, not so much resolving the conflict as bypassing it altogether. “Did it work? Sure. But how much energy did that take up? A lot.”West, who is now 40, is a professor of psychology at New York University, where she runs the West Interpersonal Perception Lab, a research unit that studies, broadly, how we deal with each other, and how those interactions affect our mental and physiological states. “I spent the first 10 years of my career doing basic science on how people communicate,” she says, which included “a lot of time in labs evoking horrible experiences to see what people do.” (One study involved West sitting participants in a chair and “being mean” to them, to measure their stress responses.) Before long, she noticed that a lot of what she was observing could be captured in the workplace: how individuals influence groups, how status affects persuasion and morale, how anxiety affects everyday relations. And the more she researched, the more she realised that, like her younger self, very few of us know how to resolve everyday conflict at work. Continue reading...
If you see the majestic stones on Salisbury Plain as an emblem of England, think again. A major new British Museum exhibition connects them to many points and cultures across Europe through 1,500 years of immigrationAmong the many treasures in the British Museum’s forthcoming Stonehenge exhibition is a collection of carved and polished spherical stones, each about the size of a cricket ball. The stones are 5,000 years old and have mostly been found singly in Scotland. The most famous of the 400 or so discoveries is a beautiful polished black sphere from Towie, Aberdeenshire, with three bulbous surfaces, tactile as a miniature Henry Moore. The sphere is carved with precise geometric whorls and spirals. In common with the much weightier neolithic monuments that the Stonehenge exhibition celebrates, the longer you look at the stones, the more mysterious they seem: what and why and how?If the answers to those questions remain unknowable, one thing that the balls – and the culture that prized them – make clear is their creators were people of enormous curiosity and skill, prepared to invest untold hours in making a perfect object, because they could. They were connoisseurs of stone. Continue reading...
Ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, the cures in question, have proven to be ineffective in preventing or treating Covid-19Republican state lawmakers across the United States have proposed – and in some cases passed – legislation that they say keeps the government from interfering with doctors who want to prescribe ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine to help prevent and treat Covid-19.But those treatments have not proven effective at preventing or treating Covid and infectious disease experts see the bills as examples of right-wing lawmakers politicizing medicine – a trend that is increasing as the pandemic wears on in America in to its third year amid an increasingly fraught political atmosphere. Continue reading...
The geneticist offers a short, sharp, illuminating overview of the science, politics, uses and abuses of human gene editingAdam Rutherford begins this sharp and timely study of the science that dare not speak its name with an account of the professor who, in 2018, attempted to genetically modify the embryos of twin daughters, removing them from a woman’s womb and then reimplanting them. “China’s Frankenstein”, He Jiankui, had planned to give the children genetic immunity from HIV/Aids, a disease from which their father suffered. Though his efforts seem to have failed – the girls may not have that immunity and he was jailed for three years and fined three million yuan – the case provides one stark answer to Rutherford’s opening question: “If you have children, you will surely want them to live well. You hope that they are free from disease, and that they fulfil their potential … what are you willing to do to ensure this?”Ever since Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein in response to the new sciences of physiology and galvanism, that question has haunted human imaginations. After Darwin and before the Third Reich, eugenics was a science that was embraced, as Rutherford notes, by “suffragists, feminists, philosophers and more than a dozen Nobel prizewinners … [and] was a beacon of light for many countries striving to be better, healthier and stronger”. Continue reading...
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