PM says unless action is taken now, capacity will be exceeded in hospitals and there will be thousands of deaths a day 10.52pm GMT At the risk of ruining everyone’s evening even further, this from the Telegraph’s Michael Deacon:Is it a bad time to mention that the original three-month lockdown was announced like this pic.twitter.com/3cTUbYsymL 10.45pm GMT The announcement of new nationwide...
Restrictions in place from Thursday are needed to tackle coronavirus spread, PM saysCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA second national lockdown will be imposed across England on Thursday with all nonessential shops, restaurants, pubs and leisure facilities to close for at least four weeks, Boris Johnson has said.The prime minister dramatically escalated the country’s...
The bushfires and the plague are symptoms of something momentous unfolding on Earth – an acceleration of our impact on natureThis is part of a series of essays by Australian writers responding to the challenges of 2020What has been the most shocking event of 2020? Was it awakening on New Year’s Day to more news of terror in Australia’s southern forests, to the realisation that the future was...
Medical textbooks are full of anatomical pictures of the penis, but the clitoris barely rates a mention. Many medical professionals are uncomfortable even talking about itProfessor Caroline de Costa is awaiting feedback. Several months ago the editor of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology requested an editorial from a world-renowned Melbourne urologist to address...
Widespread deficiency shows that current government guidance on supplements is failingCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageScientists are calling for ministers to add vitamin D to common foods such as bread and milk to help the fight against Covid-19.Up to half the UK population has a vitamin D deficiency, and government guidance that people should take supplements is not...
The research scientist and Democratic candidate on the Green New Deal, the importance of facts and why Trump’s stance on masks is ‘unconscionable’Nancy Goroff will be the first female research scientist to serve in the US Congress if she is elected this November. The Democratic candidate is running for one of Long Island’s seats in the House of Representatives against incumbent Republican,...
Blue moons – the second full moon in a month – occur only every few years, and the name is misleadingOn Saturday night, Democrats yearning for a blue wave on election day may choose to look to the skies for an omen: a blue moon.Blue moons, typically defined as the second full moon in one month, are rare, arriving every two to three years. According to Earthsky.org, the last was on 31 March...
A pilgrimage is healing because it encourages you to savour the momentCome autumn, as a way of defying the back-to-school doldrums brought on by a rapid shortening of the days, and to mark what feels like the true start of a year, I go on a pilgrimage. This year, more than ever, I crave the slow and steady rhythm of a walking pace, big skies, and cleansing wind and rain to shake off the cobwebs of...
The form that archaeology has taken in Europe doesn’t apply everywhere. Better knowledge of local cultures is vitalCultural heritage is a basic human need. Yes – humans don’t only need food and shelter, culture is required for them to survive and thrive. Our cultural values glue us to one another and help us create security and a community. I believe that cultural and archaeological sites...
England lockdown expected early next week; US passes 9m infections; Melbourne records no new cases or deaths. Follow the latest:Belgium facing new lockdown as Germany takes in patientsEuropeans seek ways to ride out Covid winter‘An operational tsunami’: preparing for a winter surge See all our coronavirus coverage 11.44am GMT The first minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, has urged her...
Some simple checks can help separate an honest statistic from a falsehoodSchool spending hits record levels in England, claims a minister, while some schools close on Friday afternoons because of a lack of funds. China is the biggest environmental polluter in the world, Donald Trump once tweeted. But, per capita, Saudi Arabia emitted the largest tonnage of CO2 in 2018 and China was in 13th...
Victoria records another ‘donut day’ after case reclassified while NSW reports four new cases and Western Australia oneVictorian authorities have indicated that Melburnians could soon be returning to offices as the state recorded no new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday.However, there were four new coronavirus cases announced in New South Wales on Saturday, one of which was locally transmitted,...
FRIDAY 30. OCTOBER 2020
At least three companies close to revealing results of phase three trials, but to be approved for use safety has to be ensuredCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe race for a Covid vaccine is reaching a crucial stage, with the glimmer of a possibility that one of the leading contenders will be approved by Christmas.In an interview with the Guardian, Kate Bingham, who...
Experts say UK’s travel policy in summer was flawed as ‘the virus moves when people move’Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA study suggesting a coronavirus variant originating in Spain now accounts for most UK cases has highlighted the weakness of the government’s travel policies over the summer, experts have said.Research from scientists in Switzerland, which...
Reusable masks vary hugely in ability to filter particles, say Which? researchersCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageSome fabric face coverings on sale in supermarkets and high-street pharmacies could be giving people a false sense of security by letting the vast majority of large particles pass through them, an investigation by the consumer magazine Which? has...
Head of the European Commission warns EU hospitals ‘at risk of being overwhelmed’ by Covid; Japan passes 100,000 cases; China reports 25 symptomatic new cases, down from the day before.US nears 9m casesWhite House taskforce warns of ‘unrelenting’ Covid spreadAngela Merkel heckled by German MPs over lockdownTaiwan marks 200 days without domestic infectionLarge China outbreak linked to...
THURSDAY 29. OCTOBER 2020
Space-based service will alert users to potential collisions between satellites and orbital junkThe Canadian company NorthStar Earth and Space has contracted Thales Alenia Space to build the first three satellites of its Skylark space traffic monitoring system, with LeoStella, a Seattle-based firm, overseeing the final assembly. This will make NorthStar the first commercial company to monitor...
Research suggests canines’ varied origins stretch back further – and live on in today’s petsFrom tiny chihuahuas to fluffy Siberian huskies, dogs come in all shapes and sizes. But researchers have revealed there is more to canine diversity than meets the eye.Scientists have found five distinct groups of dogs were already present at the end of the last ice age, and their legacy lives on in...
Over the summer, the government ignored advice about controlling Covid. A new study shows we’re paying the priceThe number of Covid infections is doubling every nine days in England, and in some areas, such as the south-east, London and the south-west, the R number is now above two. These are the alarming findings from the report of the React-1 study by researchers at Imperial College London,...
Halting destruction of wild places could slow frequency of deadly outbreaks, say scientistsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe world is in an “era of pandemics” and unless the destruction of the natural world is halted they will emerge more often, spread more rapidly, kill more people and affect the global economy with more devastating impact than ever before,...
More than 170 teams of researchers are racing to develop a safe and effective vaccine. Here is their progressResearchers around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, with more than 170 candidate vaccines now tracked by the World Health Organization (WHO). Continue...
Removal of millions of tonnes of material from Goodwin Sands, the watery grave of hundreds of ships in the English Channel, would make a mockery of marine protection pledges, critics saySix miles off the coast of Deal, in Kent, lies Goodwin Sands, a 10-mile sandbank known as the “ship swallower”. Seals bask there at low tide, belying its reputation as one of the most treacherous spots in the...
Covid-19 has made this year tougher for those experiencing treatment and those of us who work in cancer careIn March, just before the UK locked down, I speculated about the challenges Covid-19 might pose to people undergoing cancer treatment. Now, with apprehension building as we dive headfirst into the second wave of Covid-19, I reflect on my past seven months as an oncologist. There is no doubt...
They are among the most enigmatic phenomena in the universe, confounding physicists and mathematicians alike. Black holes pull in the matter around them and anything that enters can never escape. Yet they contain nothing at all. Guided by the physicist and author of the Black Hole Survival Guide, Janna Levin, Madeleine Finlay takes Science Weekly on an interstellar voyage to visit one of these...
NSPCC and others urge government to fund rebuilding of struggling support serviceCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA generation of babies born during the Covid-19 pandemic may be at risk because they and their parents are not being fully supported by health visitors in the weeks and months after birth, a coalition of children’s charities has said.The NSPCC and nine...