PM sounds a more cautious note after calls from tech experts and business leaders for moratoriumThe UK will lead on limiting the dangers of artificial intelligence, Rishi Sunak has said, after calls from some tech experts and business leaders for a moratorium.Sunak said AI could bring benefits and prove transformative for society, but it had to be introduced “safely and securely with guard rails...

My friend Keith Neal, who has died aged 84, taught biology at Manchester grammar school (MGS) for 23 years, turning it from an elite, esoteric A-level to one of the most popular subjects at GCSE.As head of department, and ardent environmentalist, he enthused his students through his knowledge and adventurous field trips. He was an internationalist, taking students to India in 1988 and 1993, and on...

Evidence suggests ancient Mesopotamians kissed and practice could be more culturally universal than previously thoughtHumanity’s earliest record of kissing dates back about 4,500 years in the ancient Middle East, 1,000 years earlier than previously thought, according to researchers.Scientists have highlighted evidence that suggests kissing was practised in some of the earliest Mesopotamian...

Limits on numbers at Paris summit mean some of those ‘most needing to be heard’ will not be in attendanceScientists and NGOs have accused the UN’s environment programme (Unep) of locking out those “most needing to be heard” from upcoming negotiations in Paris aimed at halting plastic waste.Last-minute restrictions to the numbers of NGOs attending what the head of Unep described as the...

From self-cannibalism to spilling tomato sauce down my wedding dress, my nightmares are trying to keep me realJust what is the function of a recurring nightmare? Why am I forever doomed to be nude in different workplaces? Are these fantasies constructed to rehearse for the play of your life? Or is it, as I suspect, a way for your brain to chop down the tall poppy of your psyche?Maybe my brain...

There are now two impressive possible treatments for this form of dementia. But fears remain over cost and potential side-effectsCould a new treatment developed by the US pharmaceutical company Lilley mean “the beginning of the end” of Alzheimer’s? Could we even cure the disease some day? These are the types of headlines and questions swirling around after news of a new drug, called...

Prehistoric hearths found near Madrid date back about 250,000 years, with nearby tools showing food tracesPrehistoric humans in Europe might have been sitting round campfires built to toast snacks as early as 250,000 years ago – 50,000 years earlier than originally thought, researchers have suggested.Human species have a long association with fire, with some sites suggesting its controlled use...

Indian drug company to make cheaper generic version of CAB-LA, potentially protecting millions of people in Africa from the virusAn affordable version of a groundbreaking HIV-prevention drug will be made in South Africa for the first time, potentially giving millions of people at risk of HIV infection in Africa access to a two-monthly jab that can almost eliminate their chances of contracting the...

A first-of-its-kind non-hormonal drug to treat hot flushes has been approved in the US. Targeting connections in the brain that change during menopause, the drug, called fezolinetant, could provide relief for those who aren’t able to take hormonal replacement therapy. Madeleine Finlay speaks to endocrinologist and menopause specialist Prof Annice Mukherjee to find out what we know about the...