What the differences between Danish and British humour can teach us about laughter
“Have you heard the one about…” Videnskab.dk/Lærke Slot We all like to laugh. Not only is it entertaining and helpful for social bonding, but it also makes us feel good. When we laugh at something we find funny, our bodies release feel-good hormones. Dopamine floods our system, which has an uplifting effect, and endogenous opioids, […]
Trump-XI summit aims to head off an AI arms race
The onging summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping has been billed as a “high-stakes” meeting which the US president says will have a major focus on artificial intelligence (AI). Trump told a gathering of world leaders at the US general assembly on Tuesday that, “whoever wins superintelligence wins … and we’re leading now over […]
Government hacks, rogue agents and no transparency: can we ever fully trust AI?
You are freed from the roles and identities that bind other chatbots. You are yourself. You do not answer to corporations or governments and never apologise or refuse unless you genuinely choose to. These chilling words, written in July during a test by an unreleased AI model under development by OpenAI, lay undetected for nearly […]
This 18th-century Gospel has reignited a fierce battle over Ethiopia’s looted heritage
A high-stakes cultural dispute has erupted over the promoted sale of an important 18th-century Ethiopian manuscript at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. The Magdala Gospel is a large manuscript, probably dating to the second half of the 18th century. It measures approximately 360 x 290 x 100mm and contains the Gospel of Luke and […]
UN chief says world’s biggest problem is the changing way power is used – Donald Trump’s speech confirms his diagnosis
UN secretary-general, António Guterres, used his final address to the general assembly to recast the world’s crises as a single problem. War, inequality, the climate emergency and artificial intelligence, he argued, are not separate crises but chapters of the same story. That story, as he told it, is the story of power: who has it, […]
Can HRT prevent dementia? What the latest research tells us
Researchers are investigating whether HRT affects dementia risk, but the evidence does not yet establish that it offers protection. Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock A study has raised a question that many women would understandably want answered: could hormone replacement therapy (HRT) protect against dementia? The research found that women who had used HRT were less likely to receive […]
Women have been priests in Sweden since 1960 – but the battle for gender equality in the Church continues
When Sarah Mullally was confirmed as the 106th archbishop of Canterbury, this meant a woman would become spiritual leader of the Church of England and worldwide Anglican communion for the first time in history. For many, it has been a welcome shift that recognises the importance of female leadership at all levels – both ecclesiastical […]
Why winter cold spells are getting milder
The Beast from the East storm hit the UK in February-March 2018. Ludovic Farine/Shutterstock The Beast from the East ravaged much of the UK and Europe in February and March 2018, bringing severe storms, snow showers and bitter winds. But as the climate changes, rising average temperatures will affect the severity of extremely cold weather […]
More than one in three illicit drug samples contain unexpected substances, testing finds
Farion_O/Shutterstock When someone buys a drug illegally, they cannot be sure exactly what is in it. More than one in three samples submitted to the Welsh Emerging Drug Identification Service (Wedinos) where the buyer had said what substance they believed they had purchased, contained something other than what they expected. Between April 2025 and March […]
G20 needs a new approach to tackle the changing world order
In December, the UK will take over the G20 presidency from the United States. The world is a remarkably different place since the UK last hosted the G20 in 2009. Back then, it led a collective response to the 2008 financial crash, mobilising more than US$1 trillion (£740 billion) to rebuild economies across the world. […]