Scientists find fossilised footprints of multiple dinosaur species preserved by sediment in FolkestoneFootprints of what could be the last dinosaurs to have walked in Britain have been found in Kent, researchers say.About 66m years ago, an asteroid hit the Earth and wiped out much of the Earth’s dinosaurs. But flooding rendered Britain’s dinosaurs extinct much earlier: about 110m years ago. Continue reading...

Sipping water through an L-shaped ‘suction and swallow tool’ cured 92% of attacks, according to studyFrom holding your breath to having a friend shout “boo!”, there is no shortage of alleged cures for hiccups. Now scientists say they have found a better solution: a drinking straw device.When you get hiccups – or singultus as they are known in medicine – the diaphragm and intercostal muscles suddenly contract. The subsequent abrupt intake of air causes the opening between the vocal folds – known as the glottis – to shut, resulting in a “hic” sound, often to the embarrassment of the afflicted and the amusement of others. Continue reading...

Figures show Delta is more transmissible and more resistant to vaccine than Alpha

Female Olympic athletes have been fitted with individually designed sports bras to enhance performanceAs Tokyo hopefuls debate the marginal gains afforded by Vaporfly running shoes, Britain’s sportswomen have been keeping another secret weapon close to their chests.In the drive for marginal performance gains, British female athletes have been fitted with specially designed sports bras, to hoist, sculpt and support their path to victory. Continue reading...

Amid the heavily politicised debate, a lot of evidence now points to a natural spillover event – but other causes cannot be ruled out

A Chinese spaceship carrying a three-person crew has docked with the country’s new space station at the start of three-month mission, marking a milestone in its ambitious space programme. The mission is China’s first manned spaceflight in almost five years Continue reading...

Research sheds more light on the giant ‘living fossils’ once thought extinct but which have survived since the age of the dinosaursThe coelacanth – a giant, mysterious fish that has survived since the time of the dinosaurs – can live for 100 years, a study has found.The slow-moving fish, which grow to be the size of a human, are nicknamed a “living fossil”, and also grow at a very slow pace. Continue reading...

Pause will allow 500,000 more vaccine doses to be given to curtail spread of Delta variant

Scientists from agency and Noaa say Earth’s ‘energy imbalance’ roughly doubled from 2005 to 2019 in ‘alarming’ wayThe Earth is trapping nearly twice as much heat as it did in 2005, according to new research, described as an “unprecedented” increase amid the climate crisis.Scientists from Nasa, the US space agency, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa), reported in a new study that Earth’s “energy imbalance approximately doubled” from 2005 to 2019. The increase was described as “alarming”. Continue reading...

Whitty says a Covid surge is under way and that cases would continue to rise for the next few weeks; UK records 11,007 new cases. This live blog is now closed – please follow the global coronavirus live blog for updates

Research found marked differences in immune response of medical staff six months after contracting virus

Research suggests humans cannot slow the rate at which they get older because of biological constraintsImmortality and everlasting youth are the stuff of myths, according to new research which may finally end the eternal debate about whether we can live for ever.Backed by governments, business, academics and investors in an industry worth $110bn (£82.5bn) – and estimated to be worth $610bn by 2025 – scientists have spent decades attempting to harness the power of genomics and artificial intelligence to find a way to prevent or even reverse ageing. Continue reading...

Shenzhou-12 carrying three astronauts docks with Tiangong space station after seven-hour flightAstronauts on board China’s first crewed spacecraft in nearly five years have reached the new Tiangong space station after blasting off from the Gobi desert.A Long March-2F rocket launched the three astronauts in the Shenzhou-12 spacecraft, which docked with Tianhe – the main section of the Tiangong station – just over seven hours later. Continue reading...

Analysis: Lockdown extension brings questions on when and how UK can draw a line under social distancingThe Commons vote to delay step four of England’s roadmap out of lockdown has focused attention on when and how the country can draw a line under social distancing and, in the words of the prime minister, “learn to live with the virus”.While the surge in cases in Blackburn – one of the original Delta variant hotspots – may have peaked for now, Public Health England expects recent rises in the north-west to be mirrored across the UK. What that means for hospitals and lives will become clearer in the next four weeks. Continue reading...

China has launched three astronauts intoorbit ahead of their arrival to the country's partially-constructed space station. The trio will spend three months in lowEarth orbit in what is China's firstcrewed mission in nearly five years and will dock with themain section of the Tianhe spacestation that was launched in late-April. The astronauts' stay will coincide withmarking the 100th anniversary of theruling Communist party on 1 July.

Latest updates: 60 MPs vote against government plans while former special adviser Dominic Cummings publishes messages purporting to show PM’s criticism of health secretary Matt Hancock

Figures come as Matt Hancock confirms the government plans to make it mandatory for staff to get jab

Piece featuring bagpipe solo by one of government’s scientific advisers aims to capture collaborative nature of experts’ work

Harry has said that living with the death of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales makes him feel ‘helpless’ and ‘hunted’. I’ve been there

Covid-19 cases have fallen far below the winter peak, but the Delta variant has roughly doubled every two weeks in the USScientists in the United States are anxiously watching the Delta variant of Covid-19, as it spreads through an unevenly vaccinated American public and an economy that is rapidly reopening.The Delta variant, first identified as B.1.617.2 in India, is believed to be more transmissible than both the original strain of Covid-19 and the Alpha strain, first identified in the United Kingdom. Continue reading...

Combination of rise in demand for products as some countries reopen and lockdowns in some port cities mean prices could climbAn outbreak of Covid-19 in southern China has combined with the rapid reopening of the world economy and a shortage of shipping containers to cause a surge in transport costs that could fuel inflation and cause shortages of goods across the globe.China reported 21 new coronavirus cases in the mainland on Wednesday with 15 of them in the vital industrial province of Guangdong where restrictions have been in place for several weeks to contain an outbreak linked to the Delta variant first detected in India. Continue reading...

Species on Lord Howe Island shows remarkable collaboration, with some plants deflecting water to colony and others soaking it up

Oxford University trial reports cocktail of manmade antibodies reduces fatalities by a fifth

Brancepeth, County Durham: These small flowers are prone to an extraordinary parasiteA wild tangle of brambles covers this section of embankment beside a former railway line. A wren scolds from the undergrowth. Drone flies hover in the sun flecks filtered through overhanging branches of wild cherry. Butterflies chase through dappled shade. But what has stopped us in our tracks today are drifts of red campions.It’s a glorious display, although something strange is happening to many of the flowers. Where there should be stamens, shedding white pollen, there is brown powder resembling cocoa, staining the petals. They have a sexually transmitted fungal disease, a type of red campion “anther-smut” called Microbotryum silenes-dioicae. Continue reading...

Study found increase in people with DNACPR decisions compared with before pandemic

Developed by Australian and European researchers, the film works by converting infrared light into light visible to the human eyeA transparent metallic film allowing a viewer to see in the dark could one day turn regular spectacles into night vision googles.The ultra-thin film, made of a semiconductor called gallium arsenide, could also be used to develop compact and flexible infrared sensors, scientists say. Continue reading...

Ireland to double to 10 days its quarantine period for UK travellers who are not fully vaccinated

We often think of the illegal trade in wildlife as involving charismatic megafauna such as elephants and big cats. But some of the biggest victims are more inconspicuous. Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield from the Guardian’s age of extinction project explore wildlife crime in a two part series Continue reading...

Analysis: what protection do they offer against infection, hospital admission and death?

Cash incentives and gifts offered to fulfil target of vaccinating 40% of population by end of month

The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical conceptsHappier people live longer, more pleasant lives. Informed people are weighed down with the woes of the world. So, is ignorant bliss better than knowledgable gloom? Mary Shider, MacclesfieldPost your answers (and new questions) below or send them to nq@theguardian.com. A selection will be published on Sunday. Continue reading...

Minister says government trying not to impose ‘imprisonment’ of restrictions longer than necessary

We studied biosecurity at the world’s most sophisticated laboratories, and found their policies often left much to be desired

Instead of cutting the aid budget – including 95% from the plan to stamp out the disease – Britain should take a global leadDespite the Covid pandemic, there have been just two recorded cases of wild polio in 2021 – in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the two remaining hiding places for the disease. But eradication is not guaranteed. Polio is virulent and spreads quickly. Even one case poses a threat to unvaccinated children everywhere, which is why a new strategy launched last week by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) outlines a plan to utilise this small window of opportunity for the world to end polio for good.A 99.9% fall in polio cases globally in recent decades is thanks in large part to the GPEI and its supporters. The British government’s recent announcement that it will slash its contributions to the GPEI by more than 95% has been a body blow. The funding cut amounts to almost a quarter of the annual World Health Organization polio eradication budget. Continue reading...

Production of chemical could help make recycling more attractive and tackle global plastic pollutionPlastic bottles have been converted into vanilla flavouring using genetically engineered bacteria, the first time a valuable chemical has been brewed from waste plastic.Upcycling plastic bottles into more lucrative materials could make the recycling process far more attractive and effective. Currently plastics lose about 95% of their value as a material after a single use. Encouraging better collection and use of such waste is key to tackling the global plastic pollution problem. Continue reading...

Vaccine thefts reported and hospitals unable to admit patients as cases leap 2,800% in a monthUganda has all but run out of Covid-19 vaccines and oxygen as the country grapples with another wave of the pandemic.Both private and public medical facilities in the capital, Kampala and in towns across the country – including regional hubs in Entebbe, Jinja, Soroti, Gulu and Masaka – have reported running out or having acute shortages of AstraZeneca vaccines and oxygen. Hospitals report they are no longer able to admit patients to intensive care. Continue reading...

Crew reportedly getting ready to blast off this week to the Tiangong on China’s longest crewed space mission to dateThe first crew for China’s new space station has reportedly begun final preparations to blast off this week.The mission is China’s first crewed spaceflight in nearly five years, and a matter of prestige for the government as it prepares to mark the 100th anniversary of the ruling Communist party on 1 July with a propaganda blitz. Continue reading...

The exponential spread of the Delta variant, and the uncertainties surrounding it, mean pausing the roadmap is justifiedSince February, when Boris Johnson unveiled a four-step roadmap to ending all Covid restrictions in England, progress has been steady and at times relatively serene compared with the periods of abject confusion and chaos that went before. The successful rollout of the vaccination programme allowed targets to be met, including the substantial “step three” easing of restrictions on 17 May.But as Boris Johnson recognised in his press conference today, the spread of the new Delta variant – which now accounts for 96% of Covid cases in the United Kingdom – has upended calculations. Latest data suggests it is 40-80% more transmissible than the Alpha variant, which originated in Kent. The variant partly evades vaccines and appears to increase the risk of hospitalisation. Hospital admission rates are increasing by 50% a week and 61% in the north-west. A significant third wave is thus under way and the government’s scientific advisers do not know the extent to which current rates of vaccination and acquired immunity will keep it in check. A summer surge in hospitalisations could overwhelm an already overstretched NHS. Continue reading...

Analysis: Even a short pause is expected to reduce the number of people going to hospital as more people are vaccinated

The solutions to today’s headbangersEarlier today I set you the following two puzzles:1. Deck dilemma Continue reading...

Researchers warn that UK’s most widely established variant may be mistaken for milder illness

Study finds Delta has nearly double risk of hospitalisation compared with previously dominant Alpha

Vaccines are reducing Covid deaths but data shows parts of the country remain unprotected

When a long-term partner cheats on you it can be devastating, but it is possible to move on in time. Here, experts and Guardian readers explain how best to rebuild your lifeSarah and her husband were anchored in a remote harbour – more than a year into their round-the-world sailing voyage, and decades into their relationship – when she read a message on his tablet that made her collapse to the floor of their boat. It was from a man on a gay pornography website. Others like it revealed six years of betrayal by her husband, including a long-term relationship with a married man.Sarah was one of many Guardian readers who responded to our invitation to share experiences of betrayal. Although every respondent’s circumstances were unique, and they were of different nationalities, backgrounds, ages and sexualities, there was one thing that linked all their experiences: mind-shattering suffering. I could understand why in his Inferno Dante reserved his ninth and deepest circle of hell for those who committed treachery. Avishai Margalit, the philosopher and author of On Betrayal, tells me that whether we are reading Dante or the Bible, Shakespearean tragedy, Greek mythology or Guardian readers’ stories, we can empathise with the pain of someone betrayed. It endures across time and space, culture and history. Continue reading...

Head-scratchers for headbangersUPDATE: To read the solutions click hereIn the immortal words of Lemmy from Motörhead: “I don’t share your greed, the only card I need is the ace of spades.”Whether or not this was in response to the following puzzle is for you to decide. Continue reading...

The reptile, named Gunggamarandu maunala, is thought to have grown up to seven metres longA prehistoric species of crocodile that roamed the waterways of south-east Queensland, and is thought to be the largest to have lived in Australia, has been identified by researchers at the University of Queensland.Gunggamarandu maunala, whose name means “river boss” and incorporates words from the languages of the First Nations peoples from the area where the fossil was discovered, is believed to have grown up to seven metres long. Continue reading...

This year, the precise moment of the solstice is 04.32 BST on 21 June, about 20 minutes before the sun rises at StonehengeThe northern hemisphere’s summer solstice arrives at the end of this week. It marks the moment at which the Sun reaches its most northerly point in the sky. As a result, the northern hemisphere experiences its longest period of daylight in a single 24-hour period.Sunrise takes place as far to the north of east as it can, and sunset occurs as far to the north of west as it can. The summer solstice has clearly held significance to humans since pre-history. At the 5,000-year-old site of Stonehenge in Wiltshire, the location of the summer solstice sunrise is marked by the Heel Stone. This year, the precise moment of the solstice takes place on 21 June at 04.32 BST, about 20 minutes before the sun rises at Stonehenge. Continue reading...

Data from major studies shows disadvantaged groups have faced greatest disruption to medical care

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Footballer’s cardiac arrest highlights importance of immediate use of CPR and defibrillation in saving livesSwift action was crucial to Christian Eriksen’s survival when the midfielder collapsed during the first half of Denmark’s opening game in the Euro 2020 championship against Finland.Denmark’s team doctor, Morten Boesen, confirmed that the 29-year-old had gone into cardiac arrest on the pitch and was brought back through a combination of CPR – the manual cardiopulmonary resuscitation that involves repeated pushing down on the chest – and an electric shock from a defibrillator. Continue reading...