Kids usually have something to say and they need us to hear it. So it’s time to start listening – for their future and ours

Story of Ad Gefrin, a royal complex in Northumberland valley discovered in 1950s, to be told at new attraction“Just here would have been the great hall,” says Chris Ferguson to a Guardian reporter and a dozen indifferent sheep chewing grass in a stunning Northumberland valley.“Over there would have been the royal residence and behind that, a grandstand. We are on top of one of the most important sites of Anglo-Saxon history anywhere in this country.” Continue reading...

Instead of investing to cheat death, we should be trying to make old age livable and dignified for allWelcome to the era of immortalists: scientists, dreamers and – crucially – billionaires, who want us to think of age as a curable disease, and our final end as something that could be indefinitely postponed. According to one estimate, the revenues of the global anti-ageing industry will increase from about $200bn today to $420bn by 2030. One sure sign of its rosy prospects is the involvement of high-profile people in the US who have made vast fortunes from the internet. If many of them can avoid taxes, why not death?“Death is sort of an affront to American life,” wrote Zadie Smith in 2003. “It’s so anti-aspirational.” In tech circles, this kind of distaste for mortality often blurs into the culture of “biohacking” (fasting, closely tracking your vital signs, gobbling supplements and “smart drugs”) which is one manifestation of transhumanism: to quote the definition in the Oxford English Dictionary, “a belief that the human race can evolve beyond its current limitations, especially by the use of science and technology”.John Harris is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

The 15-foot dugout canoe was first noticed by a maritime archeologist and her friend while joyriding on underwater scootersA 1,200-year-old, 15-foot (4.5-metre) dugout canoe has been taken from Lake Mendota in Madison, Wisconsin, after two divers stumbled upon it while riding underwater scooters.The vessel was recovered from roughly 27ft of water and brought to shore this week. Continue reading...

Psychedelics have come a long way since their hallucinogenic hippy heyday. Research shows that they could alleviate PTSD, depression and addiction. So will we all soon be treated with magic mushrooms and MDMA?Imagine a medicine that could help people process disturbing memories, sparking behavioural changes rather than merely burying and suppressing symptoms and trauma. For the millions suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression, such remedies for their daily struggles could be on the horizon. Psychiatry is rapidly heading towards a new frontier – and it’s all thanks to psychedelics.In an advanced phase trial published in Nature in May, patients in the US, Israel and Canada who received doses of the psychedelic stimulant MDMA, alongside care from a therapist, were more than twice as likely than the placebo group to no longer have PTSD, for which there is currently no effective treatment, months later. The researchers concluded that the findings, which reflected those of six earlier-stage trials, cemented the treatment as a startlingly successful potential breakthrough therapy. There are now hopes that MDMA therapy could receive approval for certain treatments from US regulators by 2023, or perhaps even earlier – with psilocybin, the active ingredient of magic mushrooms, not far behind in the process. (A small study at Johns Hopkins University, published last year, suggested it could be four times more effective than traditional antidepressants.) Continue reading...

Estimating ‘excess’ fatalities, a more robust analysis method, puts the pandemic’s grim toll between 10m and 19m people

The winning essay in the Max Perutz science writing award 2021, published below, was written by Vicky Bennett from the department of biology and biochemistry at Bath UniversityIn May, PhD students who are funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC) were invited to enter the Max Perutz science writing award 2021 and write a compelling piece about their research for the non-scientific reader.From the many entries received, the 10 that made the shortlist covered diverse topics, including dementia, childhood adversity, the role of genes in schizophrenia and the use of hypnosis to treat psychosis. Continue reading...

The traveller and TV presenter Simon Reeve on his quest to have a baby after being told he was infertileI still beat myself up about how much of an idiot I was over so many years. I’d always seen having children as a key part of my purpose on this planet, believing that creating new life was part of my biological destiny. It was fundamental to how I navigated the world.I’m slightly jealous, in truth, of those who don’t have that imperative. My wife Anya, for instance, just enjoys life as it comes. Continue reading...

New discoveries are constantly reshaping and enriching the story of our pastThe novelist and philosopher Iris Murdoch once wrote that the study of early Greek history “sets a special challenge to the disciplined mind. It is a game with very few pieces, where the skill of the player lies in complicating the rules.” The same could be said of the study of Britain’s Roman period, a long, often overlooked span lasting nearly 300 years. Every year, archaeological discoveries are made that complicate the rules of the game. Sometimes, these are so significant and surprising that they completely overthrow what everyone thought they knew – as when, in 1960, a workman cutting a water main trench at Fishbourne, near Chichester, stumbled across remains that the archaeologist Prof Sir Barry Cunliffe would later establish were those of a stupendously luxurious Roman villa, confounding notions that the province of Britannia was, essentially, a bleak and grim imperial outpost entirely lacking in Mediterranean creature comforts.The past 12 months have been a good period for Romano-British archaeological finds – more drips of exciting new information that intriguingly mess with the rules of the historical game. Last week, archaeologists working on the site of a demolished medieval church near Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire announced their discovery of remarkable sculptures of a man, a woman and a child, probably made in Britain, the woman’s hair in an elaborate braided style. As the site’s lead archaeologist, Dr Rachel Wood, said, it “leads us to wonder what else might be buried beneath England’s medieval village churches” – it being no secret that many Norman churches were built atop Roman buildings, from York Minster right down to the parish church of Woodchester in Gloucestershire, under whose graveyard lies a vast mosaic of Orpheus surrounded by animals and trees. Continue reading...

Experimental antiviral pill taken at home is highly effective at preventing deaths, trial suggests

Period underwear is branching out into leak-proof exercise clothes, swimsuits, sleepwear – even blankets. Is this finally the end of tampons and pads?I suppose everyone who has ever got their period has the same nightmare, though for most of us, it’s come true. Mine happened a couple of years ago while reporting at a festival on New York’s Governors Island. It was August, hot and sticky, and I was wearing a white linen dress and thin cotton underwear. I was interviewing people all day. Later, a woman came up to me. I thought she wanted to speak about the festival. It turned out she had something else on her mind.“I brought you a bottle of water because I think you may have sat in something,” she said. Inside a portable toilet, I found a stain the size of a child’s football, the colour of rust and red grapes. I had got my period and hadn’t even noticed it until that dear woman saved me. It was the worst-case scenario, worthy of the “embarrassing story” section in a teen magazine, and yet I had been menstruating for 25 years. Who knows how long I had been walking around like that? I continue to be mortified by this story, and it’s a long way of saying that I should probably be someone who invests in period-wear. Continue reading...

Children ate less healthily, took less exercise and had more emotional problems, say researchersChildren in the UK ate fewer vegetables, took less exercise and experienced worsening emotional difficulties following the Covid outbreak, according to a research study.A biennial survey conducted by investigators at Cardiff University found that primary school-age children reported a sharp increase in “elevated or clinically significant emotional difficulties” in early 2021, compared with the same survey conducted in 2019. Continue reading...

The aurora alarms were going off as we grabbed our head torches and headed SOUTH!

The Science Weekly podcast is in Glasgow, where we are bringing listeners daily episodes from Cop26. Each morning you will hear from one of the Guardian’s award-winning environment team. Today, host Madeleine Finlay talks to the Guardian’s energy correspondent Jillian Ambrose about plans to end coal use. And as Cop26 week one draws to a close U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry gives his thoughtsMore than 40 countries agreed to phase out their use of coal-fired power, the dirtiest fuel source, in a boost to UK hopes of a deal to “keep 1.5C alive” at the Cop26 summit on Thursday.Major coal-using countries including Canada, Poland, South Korea, Ukraine, Indonesia and Vietnam will phase out their use of coal for electricity generation, with the bigger economies doing so in the 2030s and smaller economies doing so in the 2040s. However, some of the world’s biggest coal-dependent economies, including Australia, China, India and the US, were missing from the deal, and experts and campaigners told the Guardian that the phase-out deadlines countries signed up to were much too late. Continue reading...

UK government’s latest Covid case figures show 37, 269 people tested positive; only 61% of Latvian adults are fully vaccinated, less than EU average of 75%

Scientists make ‘promising’ breakthrough on fast-growing DIPG type of tumourScientists have successfully combined two existing cancer drugs to create a treatment for children diagnosed with deadly brain tumours.Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a rare and fast-growing type of brain tumour in children, can mutate and evolve to resist treatment with a single drug. There is currently no cure and many children found to have the disease die within months. Continue reading...

Immune defences in lungs can vary with ethnicity – but doubts remain over data quality and socio-economic factors

Fall for under-18s, logged by Zoe app, may be half-term glitch and older groups still ‘dominate’ hospital cases say other scientists

Finding could partly explain excess deaths seen in some communities in the UK and in south Asia

Pill can be taken twice daily at home and priority will be given to elderly patients and those with health vulnerabilities

Two people tell us about their experiences with CBT and how it changed their livesThe psychotherapist Aaron Beck, known as the father of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), died on Tuesday aged 100 at his Philadelphia home. CBT is a form of treatment that helps patients to analyse and manage negative thinking patterns rather than focusing on past conflicts. Here, two people tell us about their experiences with CBT and how it changed their lives. Continue reading...

Among under-18s, vaccine uptake is low, and there is a growing issue with misinformation spread on social media and at school. Is there anything a concerned caregiver can do?Throughout the pandemic, Anna has worked for the NHS. She has seen the effects of Covid-19 first-hand and, although she worked remotely because she was in a vulnerable group, other colleagues – she is a physiotherapist – were deployed to Covid wards at the height of hospital admissions. “At the trust I work for, they’re setting up a long-Covid service,” she says. She comes home and her son Sam, 16, listens to her talk about it – and yet he is adamant that the coronavirus isn’t happening or that, if it is, it’s not serious. “You know: ‘Covid is a load of rubbish – it’s all about control’,” she says. “It’s all very conspiracy theory, a lot of his stuff.” He was adamant from the start that he wouldn’t be having the vaccine if and when it became available for his age group, and he has stuck to it. “He is very resistant,” says Anna. “He is pretty determined not to conform anyway. Part of it, I think, is him being a teenager, and the other bit of it is conspiracy theory: ‘It’s all a big con.’” His main source of information since the start of the pandemic has been social media, says Anna. “He watches a lot of YouTube.”Just over a month ago, YouTube announced it would remove videos that spread misinformation about all vaccines, and would ban the accounts of anti-vax activists; it had already banned content with false claims about Covid vaccines last year. Facebook did the same in February this year, though a quick search reveals misinformation is still easy to find (one post I found within minutes claimed 80% of vaccinated women had miscarriages). On TikTok, “unvaxxed” content racks up hundreds of thousands of views. Last month, NewsGuard, an organisation that rates the credibility of news organisations and monitors misinformation, found Covid conspiracy theories were being viewed by millions on TikTok, and, in its research, children under 13 – the lower age limit – were able to access the app. Continue reading...

The Science Weekly podcast is in Glasgow, where we are bringing listeners daily episodes from Cop26. Each morning you will hear from one of the Guardian’s award-winning environment team. Today, host Madeleine Finlay talks to the Guardian’s biodiversity and environment reporter, Patrick Greenfield, and shadow Cop26 president Ed Miliband about the announcements from finance dayOn Wednesday, hundreds of the world’s biggest banks and pension funds, with assets worth $130tn, committed to a key climate goal. The finance pledge, known as the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), will mean that by 2050 all assets managed by the institutions will be aligned with net zero emissions. But experts cast doubt on the significance of the move, pointing out that the banks are still free to pour cash into fossil fuels in the next decade. Rishi Sunak announced that London would become the world’s “first net-zero finance centre”, but environmentalists reacted with scepticism.Today, Science Weekly host Madeleine Finlay talks to the Guardian’s biodiversity and environment reporter, Patrick Greenfield, about these announcements from finance day, plus they catch up with Ed Miliband, who discusses whether the proposals amount to much – or are just more greenwashing from the financial industry. Continue reading...

Researchers say leaves of the matalafi plant could also potentially be used to treat cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseasesLeaves from a plant which can be found “in back yards across Samoa” could be as effective as ibuprofen in lowering inflammation and could even be used to treat illnesses such as Parkinson’s and cancer, a new study has found.For centuries, the leaves of the psychotria insularum plant, known locally in Samoa as matalafi, have been used in traditional medicine to treat inflammation associated with fever, body aches, swellings, elephantiasis, and respiratory infections. Continue reading...

Microsoft founder says research and development budgets should focus on weaknesses exposed by rapid spread of Covid

Oxford researchers arrive at virus’s toll in 31 countries by looking at deaths and age they occurred

My friend, Hester McFarland Solomon, who has died aged 78, dedicated her professional life to the treatment of psychological illness, as a noted Jungian psychoanalyst of the developmental school. She rose to the heights of her profession as an analyst, author, teacher and administrator, and in 2007 became only the second female president of the International Association for Analytical Psychology (IAAP).Hester was American by birth. She came from a modest background in New Haven, Connecticut, and was a war baby who started life in a garage, later upgraded to a log cabin on a hillside dotted with virgin forest. She was the elder of two children born to Emily Tutak, a nurse, and Orrin McFarland, who was in the building trade. Continue reading...

Guardian readers share their frustrations at trying to obtain a third coronavirus vaccinationHaving read your report (No 10 concerned as 4.5 million eligible people fail to get Covid jab boosters, 2 November), I wonder how many people’s experience mirrors mine? I received a letter from the NHS advising me to contact my GP about a booster, as I am it seems clinically vulnerable, as well as being elderly. My GP could not take action, having run out of vaccines and not knowing when there would be a further supply. The NHS letter told me that – presumably because of my medical condition – I am not able to book a vaccination via the NHS website or phone. Doubtless the same applies to the new walk-in centres. I am not sitting on my hands and ignoring the call. If the government is serious about getting people like me a third jab, perhaps it should look closer to home for the reasons for delay, rather than seeking to shift blame.

Exclusive: study raises hopes that Covid-related damage to sense of smell may be more superficial than previously feared

AXA1125 targets cell power plants that may be dysfunctional in long Covid patients with severe fatigue

Fast food boxes and wrappers contain toxic chemicals known to interfere with our reproductive systems and contribute to attention and learning disordersIt’s no surprise that fast food is generally bad for your health. But now there’s a new reason to worry: according to a new study out of George Washington University, fast-food containers (such as wrappers used for burgers and burritos) contain toxic chemicals known to interfere with our reproductive systems and contribute to attention and learning disorders. Put simply, our hamburgers and burritos are wrapped in toxic waste.Many convenience foods come with an ingredient list showing consumers what went into the product they’re eating or drinking. Of course, this list doesn’t include the chemicals used to make the box, bag or wrapper encasing the food, or other materials that come into contact with our meal – like the plastic gloves used to handle the sandwich toppings. But these compounds make their way into our food and we ingest them.Norah MacKendrick is an associate professor of sociology at Rutgers University and the author of Better Safe Than Sorry: How Consumers Navigate Everyday Toxics Continue reading...

Parents alarmed as children held overnight before some sent to centralised quarantine for two weeks

Holmes honoured for ‘transformative role’ in Covid response, while Prof Anthony Weiss takes innovation prize for work on biomaterials to assist wound healingProf Edward Holmes of the University of Sydney has won the prime minister’s prize for science, for his “transformative role in the scientific response to Covid-19”.Holmes, an expert on the evolution of viral diseases, publicly shared the genome sequence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus for the first time in January last year, publishing it on behalf of a consortium of Chinese scientists. Continue reading...

Curious report suggests calm thousand millennia of ‘Boring Billion’ was more lively than thoughtToday our planet is a lively place: the climate swings from greenhouse to icehouse and back again, while earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain ranges and ocean trenches are all signs of its restless surface. But if you go back far enough, you reach a period where Earth was a very dull place. Nicknamed the “Boring Billion”, the period between 1850m and 850m years ago appears to have had hardly any plate tectonic movement, very little change in climate and a stalling of biological evolution. But was this period more interesting than we think?Geologists have been studying the geochemistry and makeup of continental rocks from the Boring Billion. The geochemistry suggests that the continental crust was hot and thin (40km or less) – not suitable for plate tectonics or building mountain ranges. But curiously the structure and composition of continental rocks indicate that crust did shimmy around and that low mountain ranges existed. The findings are published in Geophysical Research Letters. Continue reading...

The Science Weekly podcast is in Glasgow where we will be bringing listeners daily episodes from Cop26. Each morning you will hear from one of the Guardian’s award-winning environment team. Today, host Madeleine Finlay, talks to Jon Watts about a significant announcement made by global leaders on forest and land use, and we hear from an indigenous leader in Guyana about why it might not be enough.The third day of Cop26 was dominated by what some are saying is a very positive announcement on forests and land use – the so-called Glasgow Agreement. Host Madeleine Finlay talks to the Guardian’s global environment editor, Jonathan Watts about what world leaders have pledged. She also speaks to indigenous leaders and rights activists from Guyana and Indonesia about their thoughts on the new deal.Plus, senior Guardian reporter for the US, Nina Lakhani reports from a memorial acknowledging the lives of those who have died trying to save their communities and the forests which they live in and that we all so crucially depend on. Continue reading...

Analysis of 400 studies found risk of secondary cancer ranges from 6% to 22% depending on different factorsWomen diagnosed with breast cancer under the age of 35 face a higher risk of it spreading, according to the first global study of its kind.Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer, with 2.3 million people diagnosed every year. Survival rates are generally good, which is largely because of screening, early diagnosis and improved treatment. Continue reading...

Cop26 countries must take action to stop record heat becoming an annual event, say experts

Dutch physicist who helped to identify the links between human-induced climate change and extreme weather disastersGeert Jan van Oldenborgh, who has died aged 59 of multiple myeloma, was co-founder and member of a team of scientists who identified — at speed and while politically a hot topic — the links between human-induced climate change and forest fires, heatwaves, drought, flood and other specific meteorological catastrophes.This is trickier than it sounds. Extreme events have always happened, and for decades most climate scientists were not willing to say that this or that flood or heatwave was directly powered by ever-higher greenhouse gas emissions driven by profligate fossil fuel use. If they did, it was usually long after the event. Continue reading...

In focusing on the stories of recovery this documentary, following patients participating in stem cell research trials in the US, allows the optimism to outshine the controversyHere is a film that tugs at the heartstrings as it painstakingly covers the lives of 10 patients participating in stem cell research trials in the US. From a quadriplegic high-school basketball star to a mother with recurring cancers, the subjects experience remarkable recoveries thanks to this medical revolution. One of the most moving moments is when Ryan, the teenage athlete, returns home four months after his initial treatment and raises his hand to greet his loved ones at the airport, a progress that would have been unimaginable without the advent of stem cell therapy.While the treatment has proved extraordinarily successful in combating incurable diseases, the research remains controversial as it involves the use of human embryos, which is inevitably intertwined with the abortion debate hotly contested in US politics. Furthermore, pharmaceutical corporations are hostile to a medical technology that would significantly reduce the traditional reliance on medications. Indeed, in the case of cancer patients, as stem cells can multiply into healthy cells to repair damaged areas from within, the research aims to reach a point where chemotherapy would no longer be needed. Once banned by George W Bush, federal funding for stem cell studies has gradually increased, though it remains mostly awarded for non-embryonic research. Continue reading...

The Science Weekly podcast is in Glasgow where we will be bringing listeners daily episodes from Cop26. Each morning you will hear from one of the Guardian’s award-winning environment team. Today, host Madeleine Finlay hears why the Bahamas are under imminent threat from the climate crisis and what Guardian environment reporter Fiona Harvey makes of India’s commitment to be net zero – by 2070.Today the world leaders arrived in Glasgow for Cop26, the critical climate conference. Alarm, anger and a few significant promises featured during speeches made by dozens of world leaders.Host Madeleine Finlay talks to Guardian environment reporter Fiona Harvey who reflected on the tone of the summit, which was set by Boris Johnson, who opened the Cop26 talks with a stark warning that “the anger and impatience of the world will be uncontainable” if the talks fail to get the world on track to avoid disastrous global heating of more than 1.5C. António Guterres, the UN secretary general, noted governments’ lack of progress in cutting planet-heating emissions. There were some significant announcements, too, such as Narendra Modi, prime minister of India, promising that his country would get to net zero emissions by 2070 and Johnson unveiling new climate aid for vulnerable developing countries. Continue reading...

The popular theme park became the site of a suspected Delta outbreak, with authorities mass testing tens of thousands in the pursuit of Covid zero

Beck’s work revolutionised the diagnosis and treatment of depression and other psychological disorders and continues to have a resounding influenceDr Aaron T Beck, a groundbreaking psychotherapist widely regarded as the father of cognitive therapy, died on Monday at his Philadelphia home aged 100.Beck’s work revolutionised the diagnosis and treatment of depression and other psychological disorders. He died peacefully early in the morning, according to a statement issued by the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, which he co-founded with his daughter, Dr Judith Beck. Continue reading...

It is the first such delay by Nasa since 1990 when the mission commander of Space Shuttle Atlantis fell illNasa has announced a rare health-related delay in its SpaceX rocket launch of four astronauts to the international space station, the second postponement of the mission in a week, citing an unspecified medical issue with one of the crew.The space agency on Monday described it as a “minor medical issue” that was “not a medical emergency and not related to Covid-19”, but it declined to elaborate on the nature of the problem or say which astronaut was involved. Continue reading...

If by 2052 a computer could match the human brain then we need better ways to build it“Progress in AI is something that will take a while to happen, but [that] doesn’t make it science fiction.” So Stuart Russell, the University of California computing professor, told the Guardian at the weekend. The scientist said researchers had been “spooked” by their own success in the field. Prof Russell, the co-author of the top artificial intelligence (AI) textbook, is giving this year’s BBC’s Reith lectures – which have just begun – and his doubts appear increasingly relevant.With little debate about its downsides, AI is becoming embedded in society. Machines now recommend online videos to watch, perform surgery and send people to jail. The science of AI is a human enterprise that requires social limitations. The risks, however, are not being properly weighed. There are two emerging approaches to AI. The first is to view it in engineering terms, where algorithms are trained on specific tasks. The second presents deeper philosophical questions about the nature of human knowledge. Continue reading...

The solutions to today’s 3D logic puzzlesEarlier today I set you the following “three-dimensional” logic puzzles, a genre thought to have emerged decades ago in Hungary. (For more details about the Hungarian link here’s the story.) The idea is that the solution is mapped out on a three-dimensional grid.1. Date night Continue reading...

The technology was viewed with scepticism before the pandemic but there is now growing confidence about its useIt is one of the most remarkable success stories of the pandemic: the unproven technology that delivered the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines in record time, helping to turn the tide on Covid-19. The vaccines are based on mRNA, the molecule that instructs our cells to make specific proteins. By injecting synthetic mRNA, our cells are turned into on-demand vaccine factories, pumping out any protein we want our immune system to learn to recognise and destroy.Pre-pandemic, the technology was viewed with scepticism – a clever concept, but not guaranteed to deliver. Now there is growing confidence that mRNA vaccines could have far-reaching applications in tackling diseases from flu to malaria. Continue reading...

With millions of followers, the stance of some Apostolic church leaders threatens to undermine fight against CovidHymnal melodies reverberate around the hillside in Kuwadzana, a Harare suburb. On a blisteringly hot Saturday, members of the Apostolic church, dressed in white, hum and sing together.Songs, long prayers and a little Bible reading punctuate the outdoor service. It’s a spectacle for passersby. Continue reading...

Logic puzzles in three dimensionsUPDATE: To read the solutions click hereWhen it comes to the world of mathematical puzzles, Hungary is a superpower. Not just because of the Rubik’s cube, the iconic toy invented by Ernő Rubik in 1974, but also because of its long history of maths outreach.In 1894, Hungary staged the world’s first maths competition for teenagers, four decades before one was held anywhere else. 1894 also saw the launch of KöMaL, a Hungarian maths journal for secondary school pupils full of problems and tips on how to solve them. Both the competition and the journal have been running continuously since then, with only brief hiatuses during the two world wars. Continue reading...