Oxford researchers arrive at virus’s toll in 31 countries by looking at deaths and age they occurredCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageCovid has caused the loss of 28m years of life, according to the largest-ever survey to assess the scale of the impact of the pandemic.The enormous toll was revealed in research, led by the University of Oxford, which calculated the...

My friend, Hester McFarland Solomon, who has died aged 78, dedicated her professional life to the treatment of psychological illness, as a noted Jungian psychoanalyst of the developmental school. She rose to the heights of her profession as an analyst, author, teacher and administrator, and in 2007 became only the second female president of the International Association for Analytical Psychology...

Guardian readers share their frustrations at trying to obtain a third coronavirus vaccinationHaving read your report (No 10 concerned as 4.5 million eligible people fail to get Covid jab boosters, 2 November), I wonder how many people’s experience mirrors mine? I received a letter from the NHS advising me to contact my GP about a booster, as I am it seems clinically vulnerable, as well as being...

Exclusive: study raises hopes that Covid-related damage to sense of smell may be more superficial than previously fearedCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe virus that causes Covid-19 does not infect human brain cells, according to a study published in the journal Cell. The findings will raise hopes that the damage caused by Sars-CoV-2 might be more superficial and...

AXA1125 targets cell power plants that may be dysfunctional in long Covid patients with severe fatigueCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe first trial of a drug to target the fatigue and muscle weakness experienced by more than half of people with long Covid has been launched in the UK. It is also the first drug trial in long Covid patients who were not hospitalised...

Fast food boxes and wrappers contain toxic chemicals known to interfere with our reproductive systems and contribute to attention and learning disordersIt’s no surprise that fast food is generally bad for your health. But now there’s a new reason to worry: according to a new study out of George Washington University, fast-food containers (such as wrappers used for burgers and burritos) contain...

Parents alarmed as children held overnight before some sent to centralised quarantine for two weeksCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageChildren as young as seven were held for hours in a Beijing school before being sent to centralised quarantine for two weeks after a staff member tested positive for Covid-19.The incident, which drew alarm from parents and observers, came...

Holmes honoured for ‘transformative role’ in Covid response, while Prof Anthony Weiss takes innovation prize for work on biomaterials to assist wound healing Prof Edward Holmes of the University of Sydney has won the prime minister’s prize for science, for his “transformative role in the scientific response to Covid-19”.Holmes, an expert on the evolution of viral diseases, publicly...

Curious report suggests calm thousand millennia of ‘Boring Billion’ was more lively than thoughtToday our planet is a lively place: the climate swings from greenhouse to icehouse and back again, while earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain ranges and ocean trenches are all signs of its restless surface. But if you go back far enough, you reach a period where Earth was a very dull place. Nicknamed...

The Science Weekly podcast is in Glasgow where we will be bringing listeners daily episodes from Cop26. Each morning you will hear from one of the Guardian’s award-winning environment team. Today, host Madeleine Finlay, talks to Jon Watts about a significant announcement made by global leaders on forest and land use, and we hear from an indigenous leader in Guyana about why it might not be...

Analysis of 400 studies found risk of secondary cancer ranges from 6% to 22% depending on different factorsWomen diagnosed with breast cancer under the age of 35 face a higher risk of it spreading, according to the first global study of its kind.Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer, with 2.3 million people diagnosed every year. Survival rates are generally good, which is largely because...