One in six women may have this liver condition. What does it mean in pregnancy?
Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock A liver condition that many people have never heard of may affect around one in six women of childbearing age worldwide. A 2025 global analysis estimated that 15.8% of women aged 15 to 49 were living with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in 2021. Imagine Lisa, 31, arriving for her first pregnancy […]
How to build climate-resilient transport systems
Pasha Smith/Shutterstock Extreme weather frequently causes major disruptions in UK transport and energy systems. Heavy snowfall often leads to school closures, roads grinding to a halt, rail services and flights severely disrupted or cancelled and even power cuts. Successive heatwaves cause railway tracks to buckle and overhead lines to sag, resulting in slow or cancelled […]
Who should own the knowledge that underpins AI technology?
Russian mathematician Yurii Nesterov’s work on gradient descent methods is influential in the development of AI technology. Simons Foundation via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-NC-ND Russian mathematician Yurii Nesterov was recently awarded the Gauss Prize for outstanding mathematical contributions for his “groundbreaking work” on optimisation. The award cited his work on gradient descent methods – and […]
Why did MPs vote to reject the assisted dying bill – and what happens now?
MPs at Westminster have voted to reject the assisted dying bill, in a significant blow to those campaigning to change the law – 11 years to the day after MPs rejected a previous attempt. Had it passed, the bill would have made it legal, in certain circumstances, for terminally ill people in England and Wales […]
Pharmacogenomics: how your genes could help doctors choose the right medicine and dose
A cheek swab can reveal inherited genetic variants that may influence how someone responds to certain medicines. Prostock-studio/Shutterstock Two people can take the same dose of the same medicine and have very different results. One may improve, while the other gets little benefit or develops serious side effects. Part of the explanation often lies in […]
Why do people get married these days?
Paper Trident/ Shuttertsock The story of marriage’s declining fortunes has been gathering momentum for a while now. Divorce is commonplace, romcoms keep disappointing, and according to the 2021 census, the majority of adults in the UK are choosing, for the first time since records began, not to get married at all. Having rejected an institution […]
A Swedish ghost story
zef art/Shutterstock Ghosts in Sweden? It sounds strange to place the supernatural in a country of health-conscious, pragmatic engineers. But even though Swedes readily accept modernity, their popular culture hints at something else. From the outside, Sweden appears to be a secular nation. The country has an exceptionally high number of non-believers, who engage in […]
Job cuts at Jaguar Land Rover show how a sensible corporate strategy is not always enough
Richard OD/Shutterstock Jaguar Land Rover’s decision to cut thousands of jobs comes after years of dealing with some extremely tough terrain in the world of car sales. Tough obstacles have included weakening demand from China, a shortage of vital semiconductors and the US slapping new tariffs on imported vehicles. Then in Aug 2025, a major […]
How Iran draws citizens into political surveillance
Pedestrians walk down a crowded street in Tehran, Iran. Abram_Visuals / Shutterstock Authoritarian governments have long drawn ordinary citizens into political surveillance. Joseph Stalin’s Soviet Union encouraged denunciations. East Germany’s secret police service, the Stasi, embedded informants in workplaces and neighbourhoods. From 1960, Cuba’s leaders organised local committees to monitor political dissent. And informant culture […]
Travel bots are making decisions for us – convenient, but should we trust them?
AI bots are making more decisions on our behalf when we make travel arrangements. Shutterstock AI Imagine telling your phone that you want a quiet boutique hotel near a city centre, below a certain price, with a decent breakfast and late checkout. A few seconds later, an AI assistant compares the options, explains why each […]