40 articles from SATURDAY 2.5.2020

Fearful Britons remain strongly opposed to lifting lockdown

Just one in five want schools, pubs and restaurants to be reopened, according to new poll by Opinium• Coronavirus – latest updates• See all our coronavirus coverageFewer than one in five of the British public believe the time is right to consider reopening schools, restaurants, pubs and stadiums. The findings, in a new poll for the Observer, suggest Boris Johnson will struggle to convince...

'How is this possible?' Researchers grapple with Covid-19's mysterious mechanism

Doctors are still exploring exactly how the coronavirus affects the body, and what its long-term impacts might beRespiratory physician Dr David Darley says something peculiar happens to a small group of Covid-19 patients on day seven of their symptoms.“Up until the end of that first week, they’re stable,” says Darley, a doctor with Sydney’s St Vincent’s Hospital. “And then suddenly,...

Coronavirus means science is suddenly being done differently – and so is politics | Paul Nurse

The Nobel prize-winning scientist on how the pandemic is bringing dramatic shifts in medical researchSee all our coronavirus coverageCoronavirus – latest updatesIf we are to return to our normal lives, we need answers to many questions and they will only be delivered by science and medicine and their applications. In fact, the speed with which the virus has spread around the globe has been...

Britons will suffer health problems from Covid-19 for years, warn doctors

Survivors face post-traumatic stress and organ damage while even those not infected risk psychological side-effectsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageMany people in Britain are likely to suffer from physical and mental problems for several years after the Covid-19 epidemic has subsided. That is the grim message from doctors and psychologists who last week warned that...

For introverts, lockdown is a chance to play to our strengths

Time to think and be creative, and without too much socialising, is an introvert’s ideal environment. We talk to some of the people thriving under lockdownYesterday morning I spent an hour doing a jigsaw puzzle, followed by a game of Scrabble, fortified by tea and scones. For once, there was no one I had to see and nowhere I had to be. The way we live now has split us in two. For introverts,...

Islanders bristle at idea of being used as UK test site to end lockdown

Many in the Outer Hebrides recoil at Michael Gove’s talk of easing restrictions early Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe exposed, austere islands of the Outer Hebrides carry the beautiful Gaelic name of Innse Gall, or “islands of the strangers”. Against a backdrop of big skies, lonely farmhouses and sandy beaches, physical distancing comes easily here.In small...

How to brand cultural products in overseas markets

Researchers from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics and the University of Arizona published a new paper in the Journal of Marketing that examines brand name strategies when cultural products are marketed in foreign countries.

UK Covid-19 survivors' plasma being trialled to treat critically ill

Blood plasma from recovered patients may hold antibodies produced to fight virusCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA trial has begun in the UK to test whether blood plasma from Covid-19 survivors could help treat those critically ill with the disease.Plasma is a clear liquid which makes up about half of people’s blood volume and carries red and white blood cells and...

Robot helps Tunisia medics avoid infection from virus patients

Medics have deployed a robot in a Tunisian hospital caring for coronavirus victims to limit contact between staff and infected patients, in a first for the North African country. "It allows a reduction in contact with the sick and therefore the risk of contaminating personnel," said Nawel Besbes Chaouch, a doctor leading the pulmonary department at the Abderrahmane Memmi hospital in Ariana, near...

Coronavirus UK: how many confirmed cases are there in my area?

Latest figures from public health authorities on the spread of Covid-19 in the United Kingdom. Find out how many confirmed cases have been reported near youCoronavirus - live news updatesFind all our coronavirus coverage hereHow to protect yourself from infectionPlease note: these are government figures on numbers of confirmed cases – some people who report symptoms are not being tested, and are...

Chilean scientists warn environmental costs of water roads

The interdisciplinary analysis presented this in Nature Sustaintability by researchers from four Chilean universities, recommends a global analysis in the design of these projects, reconciling the growing demand for water supply with the health of freshwater and marine ecosystems.

Found: Neural circuit that drives physical responses to emotional stress

Researchers at Nagoya University have discovered a neural circuit that drives physical responses to emotional stress. Emotional stress signals are processed in the "emotion" circuits and integrated in the DP/DTT. The integrated signals are transmitted to the hypothalamus which then drives a variety of physical responses through circuits that control "body" functions. The discovered "mind-body"...