Chris Packham joins environmental activists in mock funeral procession
BBC nature presenter delivers eulogy at protest aimed at ‘scaring people a bit’ about the loss of biodiversity in the UKThe BBC nature presenter Chris Packham has joined hundreds of environmental activists in a mock funeral procession for nature to spotlight biodiversity loss in the UK.The procession aimed to sound “code red for nature” and highlight the UK’s position as “one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world”, organisers said. It was planned to coincide closely with Earth Day on 22 April.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 20, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Mabel Banfield-Nwachi Tags: Wildlife Extinct wildlife Chris Packham Television & radio Nature documentaries Extinction Rebellion Environment Science Culture Source Type: news
Hilary Cass warned of threats to safety after ‘vile’ abuse over NHS gender services review
The paediatrician, who has been advised to stop using public transport, describes ‘straight disinformation’ about reportThe doctor behind a landmark review of the NHS ’s gender identity services for children and young people has said fears had been raised about her personal safety amid online abuse after the report’s release.Dr Hilary Casstold the Times she wished to address the “disinformation” circulating about the findings and recommendations handed down by the Cass review when it was published on 10 April.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 20, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Sammy Gecsoyler Tags: Transgender Health Doctors NHS UK news Medical research Society World news Science Source Type: news
‘Like a film in my mind’: hyperphantasia and the quest to understand vivid imaginations
Research that aims to explain why some people experience intense visual imagery could lead to a better understanding of creativity and some mental disordersWilliam Blake ’s imagination is thought to have burned with such intensity that, when creating his great artworks, he needed little reference to the physical world. While drawing historical or mythical figures, for instance, he would wait until the “spirit” appeared in his mind’s eye. The visions were app arently so detailed that Blake could sketch as if a real person were sitting before him.Like human models, these imaginary figures could sometimes act temperam...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 20, 2024 Category: Science Authors: David Robson Tags: Psychology Neuroscience Neurodiversity Society Source Type: news
Next pandemic likely to be caused by flu virus, scientists warn
Influenza is still the biggest threat to global health as WHO raises fears about the spread of avian strainInfluenza is the pathogen most likely to trigger a new pandemic in the near future, according to leading scientists.An international survey, to be published next weekend, will reveal that 57% of senior disease experts now think that a strain of flu virus will be the cause of the next global outbreak of deadlyinfectious illness.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 20, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Robin McKie, Science Editor Tags: Epidemics Infectious diseases Health Medical research Society World news Microbiology Science Source Type: news
A shout out to anger management | Brief letters
Getting rid of rage | Secular song? | Rockumentaries | Piratical crossword clue | Political illsRe Emma Beddington ’s article (15 April), at 78, at last I found a way to vanquish my rage at a recent Feldenkrais class on Zoom. We were doing breathing exercises and our teacher suggested we gohe-he-he on the outbreath. Then she asked us to use our voice and I began. After a few medium sounds I found myself getting louder and louder, sounding like a really wicked witch. my lungs and body emptying my nastiness. Go for it, Emma!Jenny MoirChelmsford, Essex• If the Michaela school is fervently secular, why are pupils required ...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 19, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Guardian Staff Tags: Psychology Religion Schools Pop and rock Crosswords Conservatives Music Film Politics Education Rishi Sunak Health policy Source Type: news
The Devil comet! Will it crash into the Earth and destroy civilisation? Sadly, no | First Dog on the Moon
Everyone loves the Devil cometSign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are publishedGet all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and printsContinue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 19, 2024 Category: Science Authors: First Dog on the Moon Tags: Comets Astronomy Space Source Type: news
After an absence of 71 years, the green-tinged Devil Comet returns to Australian skies
While 12P/Pons-Brooks may not be as famous as Halley ’s, its appearance close to Jupiter is causing great excitement for stargazersGet ourmorning and afternoon news emails,free app ordaily news podcastThe green, horned “Devil comet” is now visible in Australian skies, offering a once-in-lifetime chance to see a unique celestial body.The comet – real name 12P/Pons-Brooks – was nicknamed the Devil comet because eruptions from its nucleus can make it look like it has two horns. More recently, Star Wars fans have nicknamed it the Millennium Falcon.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 19, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Tory Shepherd Tags: Space Astronomy Australia news Source Type: news
Fossil of ‘largest snake to have ever existed’ found in western India
Scientists estimateVasuki indicus was up to 15m long, weighed a tonne and would have constricted its preyFossil vertebrae unearthed in a mine in western India are the remains of one of the largest snakes that ever lived, a monster estimated at up to 15 metres in length – longer than a T rex.Scientists have recovered 27 vertebrae from the snake, including a few still in the same position as they would have been when the reptile was alive. They said the snake, which they namedVasuki indicus, would have looked like a large python and would not have been venomous.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 18, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Reuters Tags: Snakes Fossils Animals India Wildlife World news South and central Asia Science Evolution Source Type: news
Do you have an ‘emotionally immature parent’? How a nine-year-old book found a new, younger audience
Therapist Lindsay Gibson ’s 2015 book has sold over a million copies and its message has soared on social media. What does it mean?In an ideal world, adults would be more mature than their kids. They would be better at handling stress, resolving conflicts with others, or talking about their feelings. In the opening chapter of the bookAdult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents, therapist Lindsay Gibson presents an unsettling alternative.“What if,” she wrote, “some sensitive children come into the world and within a few years are more emotionally mature than their parents, who have been around for decades?”Cont...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 18, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Shayla Love Tags: Well actually Life and style Parents and parenting Family Psychology Source Type: news
Drug shortages, now normal in UK, made worse by Brexit, report warns
Some shortages are so serious they are imperilling the health and even lives of patients with serious illnesses, pharmacy bosses sayDrug shortages are a “new normal” in the UK and are being exacerbated by Brexit, a report by the Nuffield Trust health thinktank has warned. A dramatic recent spike in the number of drugs that are unavailable has created serious problems for doctors, pharmacists, the NHS and patients, it found.The number of warnings drug companies have issued about impending supply problems for certain products has more than doubled from 648 in 2020 to 1,634 last year.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 18, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Denis Campbell Health policy editor Tags: Drugs Brexit European Union UK news NHS Health Source Type: news
Who really wins if the Enhanced Games go ahead? – podcast
Billed as a rival to the Olympic Games, the Enhanced Games, set to take place in 2025, is a sporting event with a difference; athletes will be allowed to dope. Ian Sample talks to chief sports writer Barney Ronay about where the idea came from and how it ’s being sold as an anti-establishment underdog, and to Dr Peter Angell about what these usually banned substances are, and what they could do to athletes’ bodiesClips: Talk TV, News Nation, Inside with Brett Hawke, ESPNRead Barney Ronay ’s opinion piece on the Enhanced GamesContinue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 18, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Presented by Ian Sample with Barney Ronay; produced by Joshan Chana; sound design by Tony Onuchukwu; the executive producer was Ellie Bury Tags: Science Sport Drugs in sport Athletics Sport politics Australia sport World news Source Type: news
Nasa chief warns China is masking military presence in space with civilian programs
Bill Nelson told Capitol Hill lawmakers that China has been ‘very, very secretive’ about its space progress, warning ‘we are in a race’The head ofNasa has warned of China bolstering its space capabilities by using civilian programs to mask military objectives, cautioning that Washington must remain vigilant.“China has made extraordinary strides especially in the last 10 years, but they are very, very secretive,” Nasa administrator Bill Nelson told lawmakers on Capitol Hill.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 18, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Agence France-Presse Tags: Space The moon China US news Nasa Source Type: news
Dementia: experts urge doctors to reduce antipsychotic prescriptions
Use of powerful medications linked to elevated risk of serious adverse outcomes including heart failureDoctors are being urged to reduce prescribing of antipsychotic drugs to dementia patients after the largest study of its kind found they were linked to more harmful side-effects than previously thought.The powerful medications are widely prescribed for behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia such as apathy, depression, aggression, anxiety, irritability, delirium and psychosis. Tens of thousands of dementia patients in England are prescribed them every year.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 17, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Andrew Gregory Health editor Tags: Dementia Mental health Society Neuroscience Medical research Older people England UK news GPs Doctors NHS Source Type: news
Experts warn GPs on prescribing antipsychotic drugs for dementia
Use of powerful medications linked to elevated risk of serious adverse outcomes including heart failureDoctors are being urged to reduce prescribing of antipsychotic drugs to dementia patients after the largest study of its kind found they were linked to more harmful side-effects than previously thought.The powerful medications are widely prescribed for behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia such as apathy, depression, aggression, anxiety, irritability, delirium and psychosis. Tens of thousands of dementia patients in England are prescribed them every year.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 17, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Andrew Gregory Health editor Tags: Dementia Mental health Society Neuroscience Medical research Older people England UK news GPs Doctors NHS Source Type: news
Mentally stimulating work plays key role in staving off dementia, study finds
People in routine and repetitive jobs found to have 31% greater risk of disease in later life, and 66% higher risk of mild cognitive problemsIf work is a constant flurry of mind-straining challenges, bursts of creativity and delicate negotiations to keep the troops happy, consider yourself lucky.Researchers have found that the more people use their brains at work, the better they seem to be protected against thinking and memory problems that come with older age.Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - April 17, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Ian Sample Science editor Tags: Science Dementia Society UK news World news Norway Work & careers Source Type: news
