13 articles from SUNDAY 21.11.2021

From oximeters to AI, where bias in medical devices may lurk

Analysis: issues with some gadgets could contribute to poorer outcomes for women and people of colourThe UK health secretary, Sajid Javid, has announced a review into systemic racism and gender bias in medical devices in response to concerns it could contribute to poorer outcomes for women and people of colour.Writing in the Sunday Times, Javid said: “It is easy to look at a machine and assume...

The next giant leap: why Boris Johnson wants to ‘go big’ on quantum computing

Opportunities for business, health and the environment offered by superfast processors are huge – and so are the hurdlesThe technology behind everyday computers such as smartphones and laptops has revolutionised modern life, to the extent that our our day-to-day lives are unimaginable without it. But an alternative method of computing is advancing rapidly, and Boris Johnson is among the people...

Glennon Doyle: ‘So many women feel caged by gender, sexuality, religion’

Glennon Doyle’s memoir inspired Adele – but do we all need to be ‘untamed’?The marriage wasn’t unbearable, but it didn’t feel right any more. The lightbulb moment came when she realised she needed to think about what she truly wanted, rather than about what society had trained her to think she wanted. Also, she became aware that remaining in an unhappy marriage meant she wasn’t being...

Some Pacific countries will take years to vaccinate 50% of adult population, modelling shows

Predictions from Lowy Institute indicate Papua New Guinea will take five years to vaccinate just a third of its populationSee all our coronavirus coverageSome Pacific countries will have less than a quarter of adults vaccinated by the end of the year, with predictions that Papua New Guinea will take five years to vaccinate just one-third of its population, undermining economic recovery and...

Is it better to be a grandmother than a mother? | Ed Cumming

Why does the sternest of British matriarchs turn to puree when confronted with her children’s young, wonders a rookie parentOn Thursday morning I sent my mother a WhatsApp message. “Entertaining discussion on Radio 4 about how it’s better being a grandmother than a mother,” I wrote. She didn’t reply. It is not easy being a son.On the Today programme, Amol Rajan and Sheila Hancock had...

‘It was terrifying’: ancient book’s journey from Irish bog to museum treasure

A new book tells the story of the painstaking process to preserve the 1,200-year-old Faddan More PsalterOne summer’s day in Tipperary as peat was being dug from a bog, a button peered out from the freshly cut earth. The find set off a five-year journey of conservation to retrieve and preserve what lay beyond: a 1,200-year-old psalm book in its original cover.Bogs across Europe have thrown up all...

How do we know the effect of boosters? | David Spiegelhalter and Anthony Masters

Like seatbelts, vaccines lower risk and two studies reveal the protection that a third jab offersLast week, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) reported encouraging research on booster doses. That analysis estimated that, compared with the preceding waned protection, the booster reduced the risks of symptomatic Covid-19 disease in people over 50 by around 85%.Compared with not being vaccinated...

Is Delta the last Covid ‘super variant’?

The Delta variant was first detected a year ago and is now dominant across the globe. Scientists are concerned that a new strain could supersede it Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageEvery week, a group of epidemiologists across the north-east of the United States joins a Zoom call entirely devoted to discussing the latest hints of new Covid-19 variants being reported...

Scientists urge caution over proposals to impose vaccine passports in UK

Experts’ warning as Covid crackdowns across Europe result in widespread protestsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageProposals to impose vaccine passports and other restrictions on the movements of unvaccinated people in the UK should be treated with caution, scientists warned last week. Such plans would not lead to rapid reductions in Covid-19 case numbers and could...