A single dose of psilocybin eased depression symptoms for months, our study found
A row of psilocybin mushrooms. Cannabis Pic/Shutterstock.com A single dose of psilocybin eased symptoms of depression within days, with benefits lasting for more than three months compared to placebo, our new study has found. The study, published in the journal JAMA Network Open involved 35 people with recurring depression. We randomly assigned participants to either […]
Married at First Sight: does reality TV’s duty of care support participants – or the industry?
MYP Studio/Shutterstock A BBC Panorama investigation has revealed serious allegations of assault on Channel 4’s hit reality show, Married at First Sight. Three women who took part in the programme say they were raped or sexually assaulted by their on-screen “husbands” during filming. They have alleged that both Channel 4 and the production company CPL […]
Why warmer UK summers could make staycations the money-smart choice
Woolacombe, Devon, at the peak of summer. Crazy Uncle/Shutterstock For decades, the British summer holiday has carried one basic assumption: if you want reliable sun, you leave the UK. Spain, Greece, Turkey, Portugal and Italy have offered what Britain could not always guarantee: warmth, blue skies and the feeling of a proper summer break. But […]
First Trump, now Putin – all roads lead to Xi Jinping
The red carpet at Beijing Capital International Airport has had something of a workout in recent months. In addition to Donald Trump’s visit from May 13-15 and Vladimir Putin over the past couple of days, a parade of world leaders, including five out of seven G7 leaders, has made the trip to Beijing to visit […]
Asexual lizards, virgin births and clones – the all-female species of the animal kingdom
All-female animal groups including the Amazon molly fish, Komodo dragon and hammerhead shark. LifeonWhite/sketchify/EllesRijsdijk/MikhailRudenko/rockptarmigan/Nigel Marsh/KenGriffiths(Canva); GriffinGillespie x2 (Shutterstock) It may sound too bizarre to be true but the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), a fish that inhabits rivers, lakes and swamps in Mexico and Texas, exists over much of its range in populations that are 100% […]
We’re ‘green chemists’ – why we think this emerging science can transform the way the world uses its resources
Corona Borealis Studio / Shutterstock Society depends on chemistry far more than we consciously realise, from medicines to energy to electronics. However, chemistry is viewed with as much apprehension as gratitude, because of the pollution and health problems that some chemicals cause. There is a strong desire to have all the benefits of chemistry, but […]
How the world sees Donald Trump: surveys show other countries see US president as ‘unreliable’ and ‘dangerous’
Americans are increasingly turning against the war in Iran and the president that launched it. According to a survey conducted in April by US-based pollster, Pew International, 61% of people in the US disapprove of the war while only 37% approve. The US president’s overall approval rating, meanwhile, has slipped to 34%. In many other […]
New towns are back – but this time they must be more walkable
Richard Whitcombe / shutterstock The UK’s next generation of new towns form a central part of the government’s growth strategy, while also promising to address the housing shortage. Unlike the low-rise, car-dependent towns built after the second world war, these proposed towns are intended to be denser, more walkable and built around public transport and […]
From Iran to Ukraine, lasting ceasefires remain elusive
Mediators in both the Iran and Ukraine wars have struggled to achieve meaningful ceasefires. Although the US and Iran reached an initial two-week truce on April 7, brokered by Pakistan, the agreement has been fragile from the beginning. By May 11, Donald Trump had declared that the ceasefire was “on massive life support” and has […]
The Bayeux Tapestry tells only the winner’s story – but the other side can be found in old English texts
King Harold swearing oath on holy relics to William, Duke of Normandy Wikimedia, CC BY As the Bayeux Tapestry comes to London, the year 1066 and the Norman Conquest are in the spotlight. The tapestry – an embroidered cloth nearly 70 metres long, created soon after the events it depicts – tells the story of […]