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NHS to switch to alternative design by tech giants, says Matt Hancock in latest U-turn

News updates: UK official death toll rises by 135; Sturgeon announces key measures in lockdown easing; Stormont ditches 2-metre rule for schools from August

Newborn with no underlying health conditions among 135 newly reported deaths

Your questions answered on what type of mask to wear to cut the risk of getting Covid-19

People praise me and my key worker neighbours for keeping things running before ranting about rule-breakers in ghettos

Researchers say the Queensland dinosaur predates its more famous ‘cousin’ the T rex by about 90 million yearsGiant carnivorous dinosaurs the length of a bus wandered south-east Queensland about 160 million years ago, new research shows.Analysis of fossilised footprints by a University of Queensland research team has shone new light on the diversity of dinosaur life during the mid-to-late Jurassic period. Continue reading...

Chinese capital reports 21 new cases; New Zealand records new infection in returned traveller; India has highest daily jump in infections

Watching the mesmerising patterns of squids, octopuses and cuttlefish has been the catalyst for much of Dr Alon Gorodetsky’s recent work, including his attempts to mimic their ability to become transparent. Nicola Davis talks to him about a recent paper where he engineered mammalian cells to share these optic properties - paving the way for exciting potential applications Continue reading...

WHO says hydroxychloroquine showed no benefit; Germany extends ban on large events for four months; Beijing raises alert level and grounds hundreds of flights. This blog is now closed.

New cases in China and New Zealand highlight the risks of coronavirus resurging, and show why Britain must do betterIt isn’t over. In England, shoppers flock to stores, as eager for novelty as acquisitions; some children at least are back in school; even zoos have reopened their gates. The sense of relief, however tentative, is palpable. It is also premature.As lockdown eases, uncannily familiar news emerges from China. After weeks without a locally transmitted case, an “extremely severe” outbreak linked to a food market has spread to half of Beijing’s districts and to other provinces. The capital has raised its emergency level, suspended schools and cancelled hundreds of flights. In New Zealand, which had seen no cases for 24 days and had lifted all domestic restrictions, two new arrivals have tested positive and 320 of their contacts are being traced. Continue reading...

All movement in and out will be strictly controlled as dozens more test positive in new flare-up

If this cheap steroid reduces deaths in critically ill patients that’s great news, and one small step towards managing coronavirusRight now, we could all use some good news, and it came yesterday in the form of dexamethasone. This cheap steroid could significantly reduce deaths in critically ill Covid-19 patients by one-third for those on ventilators and by one-fifth for those on oxygen alone. The drug appears to stop the damage from the severe immune reaction, called a “cytokine storm”, that researchers increasingly believe is responsible for causing some patients to have multiple organ failure and ultimately die. Had we been able to use dexamethasone from the start of the epidemic in the UK, scientists estimate up to 5,000 lives could have been saved.Off the back of these results, the NHS has announced that treatment protocols for Covid-19 patients will now include this drug, which is widely and easily available. This will also have a major impact in low- and middle-income countries as, unlike an expensive new patent drug that would be beyond their financial reach, dexamethasone costs just £5 per patient in the UK, and even less in other countries. Continue reading...

One senior police chief says bias and lack of trust may have contributed to figures

Trial shows steroid responsible for survival of one in eight Covid-19 patients on ventilators

Experts call for legislation and trade deals worldwide to encourage green recovery

China reimposes partial lockdown in capital to tackle new cluster; steroid helps reduce deaths in severely sick patients. This blog is now closed

Lawns that are only cut once a month can give low-growing plants a chance to flower, letting insects thriveLawn mowers are back in action now that June is wet and the grass is growing again after the spring drought, but it’s worth mowing less often to let wildflowers and their insect pollinators thrive.

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PM leads daily briefing; former PMs condemn merger of FCO and DfID; Johnson makes U-turn on free school meals after Rashford campaign

Boris Johnson has claimed the biggest breakthrough yet in treating patients with coronavirus has been made by a team of British scientists after the biggest controlled trial of treatments in the world. Dexamethasone, a cheap steroid, is widely available for use in the NHS already

Morrisons phone line | Two-metre distancing | Panting jogger | Testing shambles | Alien civilisations

Exclusive: Prof John Drury says cooperation more prevalent than selfish behaviour

The biggest randomised controlled trial of drugs against Covid-19 in the world is already producing results

The government was shown how to contain coronavirus – but chose to prioritise centralised control and private interests

Buxton, Derbyshire: Some mysterious mechanism – hunger possibly – caused the shoal to wind onwards and entwine a rockIt is remarkable how the signal to breed hardwired into the brains of toads brings the creatures to the ponds at Lightwood in such numbers. Yet thereafter one is struck by their almost total invisibility. Since the April frenzy involving perhaps 10,000 adults I have seen one. And that was in Staffordshire.Yet those adults have left us a multitude of offspring, which now form a long winding oil-slick of primal life in the top pond at Lightwood. The differing depths of water in the four pools have an inbuilt Goldilocks benefit: whatever the seasonal conditions, one of them will meet the needs of the hour, and in our drought state it is the toads in the deepest water that flourish. Continue reading...

Following on from several listener questions about the role of air conditioning in spreading or dissipating Covid-19 in buildings and on public transport, Hannah Devlin asks Dr Lena Ciric whether we should be turning our AC systems on or off Continue reading...

Professor says early vaccines may not stop virus being contracted but prevent recipients developing severe Covid-19 illness

Food and Drug Administration says drug is unlikely to work against coronavirus and notes heart risks

Global cases pass 8 million; WHO says Beijing cluster tops 100 infections; Covid-19 mutation increases chance of infection, says study. This blog is now closed. Follow our live coverage below

With or without a new GCSE, pupils must be taught to think about life on EarthThe lockdown edition of the BBC’s Springwatch ended on Friday, with a series of clips sent in by viewers to illustrate their wildlife enthusiasms. But the latest stage in a campaign to extend the reach of natural history beyond television schedules has only just begun. The idea for a new GCSE in the subject came from the author Mary Colwell. A public consultation on the proposals now being developed by an English exam board runs until July.Helping children to connect with nature is prominent among the campaign’s aims. In recent years, a number of concerns have coalesced around the view that young people do not spend enough time outdoors. Health is one source of anxiety, particularly the rise in obesity and mental distress. Increased reliance on technology for entertainment is another. Evidence shows that the danger from road traffic, and fear of crime, have contributed to reducing children’s freedom, particularly the opportunity to play outside or travel to school unsupervised. Continue reading...

Organs of some who die after over a month in hospital sustain ‘complete disruption’, peers told

The solution to today’s puzzleEarlier today, I set this puzzle:Is it possible to cover an 8x8 chessboard with 32 dominos (which are each a 1x2 block) in such a way that any line parallel to a side of the chessboard always passes through the interior of at least one of the dominoes? Continue reading...

New calculations come up with estimate for worlds capable of communicating with othersThey may not be little green men. They may not arrive in a vast spaceship. But according to new calculations there could be more than 30 intelligent civilisations in our galaxy today capable of communicating with others.Experts say the work not only offers insights into the chances of life beyond Earth but could shed light on our own future and place in the cosmos. Continue reading...

Survey finds people married or in civil partnerships feeling more anxious than single people

Health officials need to emphasize the relation between obesity and Covid-19, and we need to treat it like other chronic diseases

Your questions answered on what type of mask to wear to cut the risk of getting Covid-19

A riddle about rectanglesUPDATE: To read solution click hereIt’s a sin! Yes, I used a picture of the Pet Shop Boys to entrap you into reading my puzzle column. What did you do to deserve it?Today’s poser (no, not him) concerns the playful positioning of domino-shaped tiles on a chessboard. Continue reading...

Manufacturers warn they will struggle to meet demand as governments seek to ease pressure on health services

Refugee advocates defy court order in Sydney as Victorian GP among nation’s new coronavirus casesThousands of people have taken part in Black Lives Matter and pro-refugee protests and marches across Australia, with refugee advocates in Sydney defying a court order to take to the city’s streets.The protests came as Victoria recorded eight new coronavirus cases in the past day, including a GP who worked at three medical clinics while he may have been infectious. Continue reading...

Warning from UK government advisers reflects concerns over plans to reopen pubs and cafes

Psychedelic therapy | Statues | Veganism | Boris Johnson | The Archers monologuesRobin Carhart-Harris says that the impact of psychedelic therapy is profound, with people experiencing emotional catharsis and physical rejuvenation (We can no longer ignore the potential of psychedelic drugs to treat depression, 8 June). Yet studies only focus on treating patients with depression. Why are these life-enhancing benefits not available to everybody?

Your questions answered on what type of mask to wear to cut the risk of getting Covid-19

Minister accused of ‘litany of failures’ and misleading public over protecting care homes

New England Journal of Medicine and Lancet peer reviewers did not see raw data behind findings before publication

Brazil reports 30,000 new cases in 24 hours; Sweden says keeping schools open did not lead to outbreaks; shortage of test kits ‘leading to spread in Africa’. This blog is now closed

Study prompts further criticism that chances to suppress infection early in outbreak were missed

Northrop Grumman subsidiary awarded $187m contract for habitation and logistics outpostNasa has finalised the contract for the design of the Gateway lunar space station’s crew cabin. Astronauts will dock at this outpost upon arriving in lunar orbit, before embarking on their descent to the surface of the moon.The $187m (£147m) contract will allow Orbital Science Corporation in Dulles, Virginia, a wholly owned subsidiary of Northrop Grumman, to design the crew compartment. Known as the habitation and logistics outpost (Halo), progress will be reviewed at the end of this year and a second contract is then expected to cover its fabrication and its integration with the Gateway’s power and propulsion unit, currently being made by Maxar Technologies. Continue reading...

Science editor Ian Sample explains how vaccines work, runs through some of the main obstacles to creating one for coronavirus and preparing it for public use, and tells us which scenario he thinks is most realistic in the next 18 months Continue reading...

Experts reveal why the 2-metre guidance matters and the importance of opening doors and windows

The Misbehaviour screenwriter on Jane Goodall, the TV adaptation of Normal People and why fungi is the key to our very evolutionWe’re in lockdown with my 20-year-old daughter and one of our 27-year-old twin sons. On good days, life in lockdown is idyllic. All of the sunshine and blossom makes it feel as if the planet is celebrating us humans retreating behind closed doors. On bad days, it can feel as if we’re slipping down some dystopian plughole. So I’m careful what I watch. There’s only so much angst I can take if I want to sleep at night.I’ve been happily immersed in Normal People. It’s an elegiac reverie on first love, and I greatly prefer the BBC’s adaptation to the book. It brings to life a complex romantic dynamic that somehow eluded me on the page. I also highly recommend Unorthodox and its remarkable companion documentary, One of Us, both on Netflix. Each offers a remarkable window on the Satmar Hasidic community of Jews living in Brooklyn. I was both touched by the poignancy of Holocaust trauma that lead the sect to its extremism and horrified at the decimating psychological effects on anyone who attempts to leave the group. Continue reading...