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11 articles from Guardian Unlimited Science

Queen’s birthday list honours key figures in UK Covid vaccine drive

Taskforce chief Kate Bingham gets damehood and Oxford research leaders also rewardedKey figures in the battle against Covid-19 and Britain’s vaccine success have been rewarded in the Queen’s birthday honours list, with vaccines taskforce chair Kate Bingham getting a damehood.Honours are also bestowed on two leaders of the research teams at the Oxford Vaccine Centre who developed and...

Covid cases in England rising at fastest rate since winter wave

Further doubts over 21 June as data shows national surge fuelled by cases in the north-westCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageCoronavirus cases in England are rising at their fastest rate since the winter wave, according to government figures that will raise further doubts about the timetable for lifting remaining restrictions on 21 June.Daily infections are now rising...

In space, nobody can hear Jeff Bezos. So can Richard Branson go too? | Marina Hyde

News that the Amazon overlord is about to jet off has got the Virgin boss clamouring to get there first. You can do it, Richard!It’s famously impossible to take a bathroom break during a rocket launch, meaning Jeff Bezos will soon experience what it’s like to be one of his warehouse workers. Or, as the Amazon boss put it last week: “To see the Earth from space … changes your relationship...

US health agency gives lateral flow Covid tests scathing report

Innova rapid tests’ performance not proven and they should be returned to manufacturer or thrown in bin, says FDACoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe US Food and Drug Agency (FDA) has raised significant concerns about the rapid Covid test on which the UK government has based its multibillion-pound mass-testing programme.In a scathing review, the US health agency...

Delta variant causes more than 90% of new Covid cases in UK

Variant first discovered in India is thought to spread more easily and be more resistant to vaccinesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageMore than 90% of Covid cases in the UK are now down to the coronavirus Delta variant first discovered in India, data has revealed, as the total number of confirmed cases passed 42,000.Also known as B.1.617.2, the Delta variant has been...

Scientists link intense exercise with MND risk in some people

Those with a certain genetic makeup more likely to develop motor neurone disease, study confirmsRegular strenuous exercise raises the risk of developing motor neurone disease (MND) in people who are genetically predisposed to the condition, researchers say.Scientists at the University of Sheffield found a causal relationship between high intensity physical activity and the disorder among those...

I study UFOs – and I don’t believe the alien hype. Here’s why | Mick West

This month the Pentagon will release its much-awaited UFO report. Extraterrestrial buffs think they’ll be vindicated - but they’ve gotten a bit ahead of themselvesThere is a tidal wave of interest building up around an imminent Pentagon report on the subject of UFOs, or, as they are often referred to now, UAPs (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena). A sense of heady enthusiasm has swept over the UFO...

ESA rover replica goes for test drive at Mars simulator in Italy

Operators of Rosalind Franklin rover practise controlling it in preparation for Martian landing in June 2023A precise replica of the European Space Agency’s ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover has begun a series of test drives at the Aerospace Logistics Technology Engineering Company’s Mars terrain simulator in Turin, Italy.Rover operators will practise controlling the rover in preparation for its...

Medieval fashion for pointy shoes linked to rise in bunions

Cambridge research suggests foot problem was more common after Blackadder-style shoe became popular From waist-squeezing corsets to crinoline skirts, fashion has rarely been about comfort – or safety. Now researchers have revealed that even in medieval times, men and women could become martyrs to fashion, linking a trend in pointy shoes to a rise in the prevalence of bunions.Bunions – or...

Astronomers find blinking giant star near heart of Milky Way

Huge star, 25,000 light years away, dims by 97% then slowly returns to former brightnessAstronomers have spotted a giant blinking star, 100 times the size of the sun, lurking near the heart of the Milky Way.Telescope observations revealed that over a few hundred days the enormous star, which lies more than 25,000 light years away, dimmed by 97% and then slowly returned to its former brightness....