A new study has measured the impact of working during the pandemic on NHS workers’ mental health. It found almost half of critical care staff met thresholds for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety or problem drinking. The researchers, from King’s College London, surveyed intensive care unit (ICU) and anaesthetic…
The dating of an exceptionally old cave painting of animals that was found recently on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi is reported in our paper out today. The painting portrays images of the Sulawesi warty pig (Sus celebensis), which is a small (40-85kg) short-legged wild boar endemic to the island.…
Donald Trump’s controversial removal from social media platforms has reignited debate around the censorship of information published online. But the issue of disinformation and manipulation on social media goes far beyond one man’s Twitter account. And it is much more widespread than previously thought. Since 2016, our team at the…
The Brexit deal has failed to have any major effect on the exchange rate of the pound since January 1. The pound has held steady against the US dollar at US$1.36 and has strengthened slightly against the euro to €1.12. This was very much consistent with the modest expectations of…
The field of artificial intelligence (AI) has created computers that can drive cars, synthesize chemical compounds, fold proteins and detect high-energy particles at a superhuman level. However, these AI algorithms cannot explain the thought processes behind their decisions. A computer that masters protein folding and also tells researchers more about…
For years, US President Donald Trump pushed the limits of Twitter’s content policies, raising pressure on the platform to exercise tougher moderation. Ultimately, the violent siege of the US Capitol forced Twitter’s hand and the platform permanently banned Trump’s personal account, @realDonaldTrump. But this doesn’t mean the 26,000 or so…
The Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 disaster serves as a warning for aviation safety regulators, not only in Indonesia but worldwide. Four minutes after taking off from Jakarta in heavy rain on January 9, the Boeing 737-500 nosedived into the ocean, killing all 62 passengers and crew. The cause of the…
I fell for Kangaroo Island from my first visit. I recall standing on a headland on the island’s southern coast, near Remarkable Rocks (a popular tourist site), and being awestruck by the Southern Ocean. The island (Australia’s third-largest after Tasmania and Melville Island) is one of 16 designated National Landscapes…
I’ll never forget the heady scent of Cindy, my first major crush. Sometimes, I catch a whiff of her Hawaiian Ginger Body Mist perfume and I’m transported 15 years back in time and straight into a darkened club. Calgon, take me away. Many of us have experienced the power of…
Joe Biden will inherit among the most challenging political and economic environments of any US president. With America reeling from the storming of the Capitol by pro-Trump insurrectionists, not to mention a raging pandemic, President Biden must heal partisan wounds and put the world’s largest economy back on track. For…
Facebook made news this week by blocking U.S. President Donald Trump from posting to its platform. A seperate power struggle between government and Big Tech that will be far more consequential in the long term is unfolding in the background. The United States government seems prepared to rein in the…
Can you be fired for joining a violent mob that storms the Capitol? Of course you can. Among the jarring images of white insurrectionists who broke into the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was a man marching through the building holding a Trump flag with his work ID badge still…
It didn’t take long for COVID-19 to race around the world after it emerged in late 2019. The rapid spread of the coronavirus revealed how efficiently international travel and commerce had flattened distances and erased borders, proving harshly that progress has its negative repercussions. COVID-19 has had the same impact…
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