The solution to today’s puzzleEarlier today I asked you the following puzzle:You’re single and looking for love. In front of you are three doors. Behind each door is a prospective partner. Your mission is to couple up with your best possible match. Continue reading...
I enrolled in University of California, Berkeley’s online Science of Happiness course. This is what I learnedLast autumn, I enrolled in the University of California, Berkeley’s massive open online Science of Happiness course to see if I might goose my felicity quotient through an understanding of the edicts dispensed almost daily by the US’s happiness industrial complex. The course is free. It’s Berkeley. And its instructors, Emiliana Simon-Thomas and Dacher Keltner, have been teaching the material for years. (Keltner created UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center in 2001; the online program debuted in 2014. Other online happiness courses, as far I can tell, are derivative.) Continue reading...
Make the effort to visit a rural area with dark skies – and admire the haunting, fragile beauty of zodiacal lightEarly autumn is one of the best times to see the zodiacal light. This is a glow in the sky caused by sunlight scattering off dust in our solar system. The dust comes from the tails of comets and the occasional collision between asteroids; some may even date to the formation of the solar system, when Earth was taking shape. It lies in the same plane as the planets, which is known as the ecliptic. In the autumn, the ecliptic climbs upwards from the eastern horizon, making the zodiacal light easier to see before dawn. The chart shows the eastern sky at 05:00 BST on 10 September. The zodiacal light will appear as a roughly triangular shaped wedge of milky light that climbs into the sky along the ecliptic. Continue reading...
The scientist and prize-winning author on miracle materials, the real problem with plastics and the ‘naughty’ nature of liquidsMaterials scientist Mark Miodownik’s first book, Stuff Matters, won the 2014 Royal Society book prize. His second, Liquid: The Delightful and Dangerous Substances That Flow Through Our Lives, has been shortlisted for the 2018 award. He has presented science programmes for the BBC, the most recent of which was the Radio 4 series Plastic Fantastic. He also delivered the prestigious Royal Institution Christmas lectures in 2010 and was appointed an MBE in the 2018 New Year honours list.You say “liquids are the alter ego of dependable solid stuffâ€. Did that make them a natural topic for the sequel to your previous book, Stuff Matters?
The pandemic wiped out up to 100 million lives, but scientists still struggle to explain what caused it. The answers could ensure that it never strikes againOne hundred years ago this month, just as the first world war was drawing to a fitful close, an influenza virus unlike any before or since swept across the British Isles, felling soldiers and civilians alike. One of the first casualties was the British prime minister and war leader, David Lloyd George.On 11 September 1918, Lloyd George, riding high on news of recent Allied successes, arrived in Manchester to be presented with the keys to the city. Female munitions workers and soldiers home on furlough cheered his passage from Piccadilly train station to Albert Square. But later that evening, he developed a sore throat and fever and collapsed. Continue reading...
When police injured his beloved sister, triggering race riots, Tony Young’s ‘rebirth’ as Mooji beganIt was 6.30am on a Saturday when Tony Young’s phone rang and a voice told him his sister Cherry had been shot. It made no sense – “I said, ‘What are you speaking about?’†– but the caller just told him to get himself down to Cherry’s house in Brixton as quickly as possible.The date was 28 September 1985 and, over the next few hours and days, Brixton was to erupt in violence between the local Afro-Caribbean community and the police, in the wake of Cherry’s shooting. She was 37 years old, a mother of six, and she had been shot by a police officer in her own home. They’d been looking for her son, who wasn’t in at the time. In the TV footage from those days, Tony is impressively, eerily calm. He could almost be a doctor, so clearly and precisely does he describe the injuries Cherry sustained – injuries so severe that she would be paralysed for the rest of her life. Continue reading...
The person is believed to have contracted the rare viral infection in NigeriaThe first ever case of monkeypox has been recorded in the UK. The rare viral infection was recorded on Friday in a Nigerian national staying at a naval base in Cornwall, Public Health England said.The patient was transferred to the infectious disease unit at the Royal Free hospital in London on Saturday morning. They are believed to have contracted the infection in Nigeria before travelling to the UK. Continue reading...
Defence minister says Russia’s Luch-Olymp craft got ‘so close’ to French military satellite last yearThe French defence minister has accused Russia of attempting to intercept France’s satellite communications, calling it an act of espionage.Florence Parly said Russia tried to intercept transmissions and spy on a satellite providing secure communications for the French military last year. Continue reading...
As well as being a brilliant physicist, the winner of the Breakthrough prize is a generous, inspirational role modelIt was not a surprise to read that Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell has said she will donate the money she has just won as recipient of the £2.3m Breakthrough prize to help students underrepresented in physics to study the subject she loves.As a research student in the 1960s, Bell Burnell noticed a mysterious pulsing signal in data from a radio telescope. In time, and after much painstaking observation on her part, this was revealed to be a new type of star: a pulsar. She was the first scientist ever to have detected one – but in the end the Nobel prize recognising the discovery went to her male PhD supervisor. Continue reading...
by Presented by Ian Sample and produced by Graihagh J on (#3Y9E8)
We can see only 4% of the observable universe – the rest is made up of invisible ‘dark matter’ and ‘dark energy’. Now scientists are looking for a postulated force of nature that could open a door to the dark side. Ian Sample investigatesJoin the discussion on Facebook and Twitter.We can see only 4% of the observable universe – the rest is made up of invisible ‘dark matter’ and ‘dark energy’. Scientists have been trying to understand this hidden realm for decades but are none the wiser. Continue reading...
Nasa aims to re-connect with its adventurous solar-driven spacecraft silenced in June by a planet-wide dust stormNasa is preparing to contact its Mars rover, Opportunity, again, a spacecraft that has been silent for almost three months. Launched in July 2003 the rover was designed for a 90-day mission on the surface of the planet. Now, almost 15 years later, the mission has been more of a success than anyone could have imagined.The rover had been originally expected to travel just 1,000 yards on Mars, but has clocked up more than 28 miles. Its last transmission was received on 10 June as a dust storm was engulfing the planet. The dust cut visibility in the atmosphere so the rover’s solar panels could not generate enough power to keep the craft functioning. By the end of June the dust storm had encircled the entire planet. Continue reading...
Jocelyn Bell Burnell’s triumph reminds us that a commitment to inclusivity is not at odds with excellence – it is about ensuring itThree instincts mingled in the delight which greeted the award of the Breakthrough science prize to Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell this week. The first was a kind of renewed awe at her landmark achievement: the dramatic discovery of pulsars in the 1970s. The second was a sense of justice served, given that she was notoriously overlooked for a Nobel. The third was admiration at her generosity. Already known for encouraging and promoting women in academia, she is donating her $3m (£2.3m) prize to fund PhD studentships for female, black and minority ethnic and refugee researchers. Her gift recognises the obstacles they face – but also the contribution they can make: her own discovery happened in part because of her minority status, she suggests.The benefits of being an outsider are far from obvious in her case. At Glasgow, she was the only woman studying physics; the men catcalled and banged on their desks each time she walked into the room. She came from Northern Ireland, and at Cambridge was surrounded by English southerners. Her extraordinary breakthrough was at first dismissed by her supervisor. Yet later, he won the Nobel for the discovery; she did not. When media did cover her work, she was quizzed about boyfriends and asked to undo buttons for photographs. Continue reading...
Medical director says chain’s staff should look out for people with unrealistic expectationsThe NHS has urged Superdrug to screen customers before providing Botox and fillers in order to protect vulnerable people.The retailer announced last month that it would offer the anti-wrinkle and skin rejuvenation treatments on the high street to customers over the age of 25. Continue reading...
The moon-landing movie has sparked a furore for failing to show the planting of a US flag. But Hollywood has a long, complicated relationship with the final frontierA giant leap for mankind or purely an American achievement? Nobody much cared at the time, but half a century later the moon landings have unexpectedly become a political litmus test. Blame the Neil Armstrong biopic First Man, directed by Damien Chazelle and starring Ryan Gosling – in particular, the moment when (spoiler alert), after a lifetime’s training and tragedy, Armstrong finally sets foot on the moon. We see him descending the lunar lander, we see the astronaut roaming the lunar surface, we see him turn to look back at Earth, but what we don’t see is the precise moment when Armstrong planted the US flag. Many have decided, even without having seen the movie, that this is one small step too far.“This is total lunacy,†tweeted the Republican senator Marco Rubio. “The American people paid for that mission, on rockets built by Americans, with American technology & carrying American astronauts. It wasn’t a UN mission.†Continue reading...
Research finds probiotics caused ‘very severe disturbance’ in gut when taken in conjunction with antibioticsProbiotics, hailed by some as a cure for all kinds of digestive ailments and recommended by many GPs alongside antibiotics, may not be as universally beneficial for gut health as previously thought.The gut microbiome is the sum total of all the micro-organisms living in a person’s gut, and has been shown to play a huge role in human health. New research has found probiotics – usually taken as supplements or in foods such as yoghurt, kimchi or kefir – can hinder a patient’s gut microbiome from returning to normal after a course of antibiotics, and that different people respond to probiotics in dramatically different ways. Continue reading...
Without greater transparency AI’s full potential may not be realised, warns British Science Association’s incoming presidentArtificial intelligence promises an even bigger revolution than the internet yet could be stifled in the UK by a fear-driven public backlash, according to a leading scientist and broadcaster.Prof Jim Al-Khalili, a physicist and the incoming president of the British Science Association, warns that without greater transparency and public engagement the full potential of AI may not be realised. Continue reading...
Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell will donate the money to help students underrepresented in physicsA British astrophysicist who was passed over for the Nobel prize for her discovery of exotic cosmic objects that light up the heavens has won the most lucrative award in modern science.Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, a visiting professor at Oxford University, was chosen by a panel of leading scientists to receive the $3m (£2.3m) special Breakthrough prize in fundamental physics for her landmark work on pulsars and a lifetime of inspiring leadership in the scientific community. Continue reading...
Researchers trick wound cells in mice into becoming healing surface skin cellsScientists have discovered a new way of treating skin wounds in mice by tricking the cells in the wound into becoming healing surface skin cells.The findings raise the prospect of being able to develop simple, non-surgical treatments for human wounds in the future. Continue reading...
‘Several attempts at drilling’ were made by a ‘wavering hand’ either on Earth or in orbit, in what could be accident or sabotageAn air leak on the International Space Station might have been sabotage, according to the head of Russia’s Roscosmos space agency, and an investigation is under way.
60% of the bonnethead shark’s diet is made up of seagrass, which they happily graze upon as well as eating fish, crabs, snails and shrimpIt is one of the most radical rebrandings in history: contrary to their bloodthirsty image, some sharks are not irrepressible meat eaters, but are happy to munch on vegetation too.According to US researchers, one of the most common sharks in the world, a relative of the hammerhead which patrols the shores of the Americas, is the first variety of shark to be outed as a bona fide omnivore. Continue reading...
Sally Davies fears medical advances like transplants are at risk from resistant bacteriaThe advances of modern medicine will be lost and the transplanting of organs abandoned if countries fail to tackle the rise in antibiotic resistance, Britain’s most senior medical adviser has warned.Dame Sally Davies, the chief medical officer for England, told MPs on the health and social care committee on Tuesday that drug-resistant infections should now be recorded on death certificates to boost public awareness of the problem. Continue reading...
by Presented by Claire Armitstead with Richard Lea. P on (#3Y2FT)
This week, we turn away from the crowds of catastrophist headlines and dystopian fiction and discover hope in the world of scienceCan advanced mathematics and physics help us navigate a path through today’s social and political turmoil?Eugenia Cheng’s book The Art of Logic: How to Make Sense in a World That Doesn’t shows how mathematical logic can help us see difficult political questions such as public healthcare, Black Lives Matter and Brexit more clearly – and know when politicians and companies are trying to mislead us.
First Man does not show the astronauts planting US flag, sparking anger on the right – but second man’s views are unclearNeil Armstrong’s sons do not think First Man, a Ryan Gosling-starring biopic about their father, is anti-American. Some American conservatives do. Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the moon, may agree with them. Or he may not.
Scientists have the public’s trust, so the swell of fake news shouldn’t put them off communicating, says CEO of Science Media CentreI am sorry to see Jenny Rohn penning her last piece for the Guardian’s science blog network (“I was deluded. You can’t beat fake news with science communicationâ€). I have enjoyed her columns and often shared the links. But I cannot agree with her swan song.Rohn uses her last post to question whether her seven years of blogging has made the slightest difference to public attitudes to science and concludes that it probably hasn’t. Her despair follows a now familiar trope in science: that in our “post-truth†society no one is listening to mild mannered science writers trading in facts and evidence. Instead the masses are in thrall to what Rohn calls the “enemy campâ€, the anti-science brigade who lamentably “picked up the pen as well†and use it to peddle dangerous lies. Continue reading...
by James Wilsdon, Jack Stilgoe and Kieron Flanagan on (#3Y0DG)
It’s time to say goodbye to the Political Science blog at the Guardian – but we’re moving to a new homeLast week, the results of a successful trial of a new diet pill – lorcaserin – were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and immediately hailed by some as a “holy grail†in the fight against obesity. The study of 12,000 people in the US who were obese or overweight found that those who were given the pills lost an average of 4kg over 40 months.Was it too good to be true? The conventional coverage of a scientific breakthrough quickly began to be questioned on social media and elsewhere. Who funded the study? Who stood to gain? Given the problematic history of diet pills as a treatment for obesity, would lorcaserin ever be licensed for use in the NHS? Is it worth the £200 per month per patient that it would cost? And were the results so impressive compared to lower-tech public health options, such as slimming clubs, weight management clinics or better food labelling? As with many science stories, complex politics lurk just beneath the shiny veneer. Continue reading...
Join a club, take a detour – and buy a carafe: positive psychologists on how you can take the novelty and openness of your vacation and apply it to your daily routineIt’s over. The air is cooling. School is the opposite of out. You can probably feel the holiday spirit leaving your body. But what if you could capitalise on your holiday momentum and apply some of your novelty-seeking break from routine to, well, your daily routine?Holidays are good for humans. A 40-year study in Finland that tracked the lives of 1,200 businessmen at risk of heart disease found last week that those who took three or fewer weeks’ holiday a year were more than one-third more likely to die young. The good news for those on a budget is that, according to the lead researcher, Timo Strandberg, the benefits were the same “whether you were in a holiday resort or just at homeâ€. Continue reading...
Physicists say a fifth force of nature would ‘completely change the paradigm’Scientists are about to launch an ambitious search for a “dark force†of nature which, if found, would open the door to a realm of the universe that lies hidden from view.The hunt will seek evidence for a new fundamental force that forms a bridge between the ordinary matter of the world around us and the invisible “dark sector†that is said to make up the vast majority of the cosmos. Continue reading...
After a summer in which Mars and Saturn have been at their closest to Earth, they are now receding. Catch them this week lining up with Jupiter just after sunsetThroughout the week, three bright planets will line-up along the horizon just after sunset. The brightest of the planets will be Mars. Fresh from its closest approach to Earth in late July, it remains a stunning jewel: a blazing red beacon in the southern sky. Catch it as soon as you can, as it is now receding from Earth and by the end of the month will be roughly two and a half times dimmer than at the beginning. From Mars, begin turning westwards and you will find Saturn. It will not be as bright as Mars and its colour will be a much paler yellow. This planet too is receding from Earth, having made its closest approach to us in late June. Next, continue turning westward until you see the bright white light of Jupiter, setting to the west. Of all the planets on display, it will be the closest to the horizon. These three planets are all further from the Sun than Earth. They are the furthest objects in our solar system that we can see with the naked eye, and have therefore been known since times of antiquity. Continue reading...
European Medicines Agency ends pharma evaluations work and moves contracts to blocBritain’s leading role in evaluating new medicines for sale to patients across the EU has collapsed with no more work coming from Europe because of Brexit, it has emerged.The decision by the European Medicines Agency to cut Britain out of its contracts seven months ahead of Brexit is a devastating blow to British pharmaceutical companies already reeling from the loss of the EMA’s HQ in London and with it 900 jobs. Continue reading...
Her mother’s wisdom helped Edith Eger create a happy inner life in Auschwitz – but true healing meant going back thereEdith Eger was 16 years old, crammed into a cattle truck, human cargo from Hungary headed for Auschwitz, when her mother gave her the advice that shaped her life. For most of the journey, her mother hadn’t said much, hadn’t cried or complained, but had instead gone inside herself. “That night,†says Eger, “she turned to me and said: ‘Listen. We don’t know where we’re going. We don’t know what’s going to happen. Just remember, no one can take away from you what you’ve put in your mind.â€For the next year, Eger’s inner life – cherished memories, favourite recipes, future fantasies – sustained her, even saved her. After liberation, though, it turned against her. Survivor’s guilt, buried memories and constant flashbacks held her hostage. A siren, a shouting man, a piece of barbed wire could hurl her back to 1944. Ultimately, Eger’s mission to understand her mind and utilise its power led her to become an acclaimed psychologist specialising in trauma. Her mother’s words have formed her life’s work. Continue reading...
Defence groups sponsor lessons that promote building and sale of military hardwareArms manufacturers are spending millions of pounds a year promoting their brands in Britain’s schools, the Observer has learned.The companies, which between them have sold tens of billions of pounds of weapons to overseas governments, including those with poor human rights records, sponsor a series of school events at which their brands are prominently on display. In addition, they issue teaching materials for use in classrooms that promote the defence sector, sponsor competitions and award prizes. Continue reading...
In Silicon Valley they say taking tiny amounts of the hallucinogenic drug increases creativity and productivity, but is it all in the mind?• ‘It lifted me out of depression’: is microdosing good for your mind?Silicon Valley geeks say it sharpens their thinking and enhances creativity. Other people say it lifts the fog of depression. A novel experiment launching 3 September 2018 will investigate whether microdosing with LSD really does have benefits – or whether it’s all in the mind.Microdosing using psychedelic drugs – either LSD or magic mushrooms – is said to have become very popular, especially with people working in the Californian digital tech world, some of whom are said to take a tiny amount one or more days a week as part of their routine before heading to work. It’s not for a psychedelic high, though – it’s to make them more focused. Continue reading...
Little research exists on the effects of tiny doses of hallucinogens, but devotees of the practice report remarkable benefits• First ever trials on the effects of microdosing LSD set to beginErica Avey, 27, microdosed on LSD for eight months, using an analogue that was legal in Germany, where she was living. “I started microdosing essentially because I was in a really depressed stage of my life. It was for mental health reasons – mood balancing, mood management. It was hard for me to leave my apartment and do normal things as a human being,†she said.Depression or sadness are very common reasons for starting; Avey was unusual only in that she could be open about it. Her workplace knew and thought it was fine. “As long as I wasn’t out of control or permanently high at work they were quite OK.†Continue reading...
Following Sweden’s hottest summer ever, Greta Thunberg decided to go on school strike at the parliament to get politicians to actWhy bother to learn anything in school if politicians won’t pay attention to the facts?This simple realisation prompted Greta Thunberg, 15, to protest in the most effective way she knew. She is on strike, refusing to go to school until Sweden’s general election on 9 September to draw attention to the climate crisis. Continue reading...
Polar explorer Fridtjof Nansen was the first to make a scientific analysis of conditions in which ships make little or no progressMariners encounter all sorts of unusual winds and currents, but polar explorer Fridtjof Nansen was baffled in August 1893 when an invisible force seemed to hold back his ship Fram. Four hours steaming though the “dead water†produced less progress than Nansen would expect from just half an hour’s rowing.“We could hardly get on at all for the dead water,†wrote Nansen. “We made loops in our course… tried all sorts of antics to get clear of it, but to very little purpose.†Continue reading...
Ask instead what you might do todayOne of the smaller aggravations of these politically vertiginous times is a kind of scolding that you tend to see on Twitter, especially from Americans keen to advertise their activist credentials. “If you’ve ever wondered what you’d have done in 1930s Germany, or during the civil rights movement,†they tweet, “congratulations: you’re doing it right now.â€My objection isn’t about whether it’s a good analogy. And I’m only slightly annoyed by the fact that their remarks are undermining, since what they’re doing right now, clearly, is sending sanctimonious tweets. As with most lecturing via social media, I assume they do it to make themselves feel better; sending the tweet feels like they’ve done their bit for the day. Continue reading...
After eight brilliant years, the Guardian’s science blog network comes to a close todayEight years ago, something special happened at the Guardian’s science desk. A group of carefully chosen scientists and science writers were given the keys to the website, and told that they could write about whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. The idea was to expand and enrich the newspaper’s science coverage by getting people with a keen understanding of state-of-the-art research, and a flair for engaging writing, to talk about the things that really made them tick. No editorial control, save for when they wanted advice now and again. An exploratory experiment, if you like, to see what would happen if excellent science blogging was cultivated at an international newspaper.Today, the experiment comes to an end. Nothing lasts forever, especially in these uncertain times we find ourselves in. As the network matured, gained new writers and lost old ones, it gradually became more and more subsumed into the newspaper’s wider website. Science blogging and more traditional science journalism aren’t so different from each other, and the science blog network here often found itself walking a very difficult line. On the one hand, complete editorial freedom meant the ability to write about anything and everything, from the most niche of interests to the most serious cases of scientific malpractice. On the other, to an outside observer there was no difference between a science blogger and a standard journalist – and as a result, by necessity we had to (rightly) adhere to the same journalistic guidelines everyone else does. It was inevitable then that over time, the network would become susceptible to the same forces that drive decisions made more broadly across the newspaper. Continue reading...
The pharmaceutical industry gets a bad press. Some of the criticism is surely deserved, but the widespread notion that academia is morally superior is ridiculous.It was summer. I had just finished my undergraduate degree, and was waiting to take up a doctoral studentship. My Part II research project supervisor had offered me the opportunity to work in her lab for 3 months – she’d get some funding for me – to finish the work I’d started and write the paper. Who in my position would have turned down that opportunity?The work went well, and we got some nice photomicrographs. We wrote the experiment up. I started my doctoral research. Continue reading...
A new EU code makes equitable partnerships in resource-poor settings a condition for fundingThough many consider it to be a thing of the past, unethical and exploitative research persists in the 21st century. It is particularly worrying when this exploitation aligns with the old fault lines of colonialism. Researchers from high-income countries travel to resource-poor settings to undertake research that would not be allowed at home. The European commission calls this type of research “ethics dumpingâ€.Ethics dumping can take many forms. Sometimes it is wilful exploitation: researchers avoid local ethics approval, undertake highly unethical experiments on non-human primates or refuse requests for compensation for harm incurred during a research study. Sometimes it may result from a lack of knowledge, for instance when researchers are unaware that community leaders need to be contacted before undertaking their research. In other cases it is simply unacceptable, insensitive behaviour, such as entering indigenous people’s homes during fieldwork to take pictures of breastfeeding mothers. Continue reading...
by Presented by Nicola Davisand produced by Graihagh on (#3XVX3)
Invasive species have been blamed for wiping out native populations. Conservationists face a hard choice: should they kill one species to save another? The answer is often yes. Nicola Davis explores this dilemma and asks whether there’s a more compassionate approachJoin the discussion on Facebook and Twitter.For centuries, humans have introduced new species to new territories. Sometimes this isn’t a problem but, in other instances, the newbies compete with the locals for food, bring disease or eat too many of the natives. This causes an ecological imbalance and it’s an issue conservationists have been trying to fix. Often the solution is to kill the invasive species. Continue reading...
Scientists call for more investment in promoting healthy lifestyle after discovering strong link between diseasesHaving a stroke can double the risk of developing dementia, say scientists, who are calling for more effort to be invested in promoting the healthy lifestyles that reduce the chances of stroke.A team from Exeter University has analysed data on stroke and dementia risk from 48 separate studies involving a total of 3.2 million people around the world. Continue reading...
People aged 65 or older who adhere to diet rich in fish, nuts and fresh vegetables have 25% lower risk of death, study findsIt’s been touted as the recipe for a healthy life, preventing all manner of ills. Now researchers say a Mediterranean diet still offers benefits in older age and could reduce the risk of death.While somewhat nebulous in specific makeup, the diet is typically said to be rich in fish, nuts, fresh vegetables, olive oil and fruit. Continue reading...
Astronauts patch small rip leaking oxygen, seemingly caused by collision with a meteorite fragmentAstronauts on board the International Space Station have managed to repair a tiny tear in the fabric of a Russian capsule that was letting oxygen leak into space.The ship docked at the orbiting lab in June. Scientists believe the small rip in its shell could have been caused by a fragment of a meteorite colliding with the capsule. Continue reading...
Researchers use experimental gene-editing procedure to correct dystrophin gene mutations in dogsDoctors in the US have raised hopes of a treatment for muscular dystrophy, the most common fatal genetic condition in children, after mending mutations that cause the disease in dogs.The landmark study is the first to claim success at treating the muscle wasting disorder in large mammals, though scientists on the team caution that more work lies ahead to ensure the procedure is safe and effective for use in people. Continue reading...
Paul Rankin, my dad, who has died aged 72, was a research physicist and an adventurer. He worked for the electronics company Philips for 36 years, and filed more than 40 patents in that time. He was an innovator, with projects in the favelas in Brazil, the wastes of Mali, the temples of Thailand and the peaks of Peru.He visited more than 70 countries in his lifetime. After retirement he became involved in research into pangolins in Namibia, helping to track and understand these creatures, sometimes known as scaly anteaters. Continue reading...
A study of #hot tags on Instagram says it’s about women maximising their lot, but nudity is about control by men“A woman must continually watch herself,†is a John Berger quote you might remember if you studied art at school, or if you like watching bad 70s fashion in action on YouTube. The theory (from his 1972 documentary series, Ways of Seeing) goes, “from earliest childhood [each woman] has been taught and persuaded to survey herself continually … how she appears to men is of crucial importance for what is normally thought of as the success of her life … This determines not only most relations between men and women but also the relation of women to themselves.â€It’s a useful quote to pull out if you’re writing an essay about the ubiquity of naked female paintings throughout history. It also works well as an answer to the question asked by a new academic study this week, “Why are there so many sexy selfies of women everywhere these days?†Continue reading...