John Healey is the UK’s chancellor: what Burnham’s surprise pick says about his style of government
The UK’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham, has appointed John Healey as chancellor of the exchequer. His pick to fill the UK’s top economic post was something of a surprise: if we were to believe the speculation, the choice was between a minister with strong views on the economy – Ed Miliband – and a […]
What Ed Miliband’s appointment does and doesn’t mean for the UK’s foreign policy
The route to 10 Downing Street is often fairly parochial, requiring knowledge and experience of local or national issues, rather than international ones. Andy Burnham has been involved in politics for a quarter of a century. But his variety of posts gives us little indication of how he is likely to manage relations with key […]
New Trump book will have readers playing the parlour game: who blabbed?
With their latest book, Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Australian-American Jonathan Swan have written an “inside-the-beltway” account, as they say in Washington, for political nerds and Trump obsessives. It covers in intricate detail the first year of Trump’s second term in office. And, as […]
When a teenager makes the ‘stupid choice’, their brain is working exactly as designed
pikselstock/Shutterstock When an adult refuses to let an injustice pass – stands up to a bully, or asserts their rights – we call it principle. When a fifteen-year-old retaliates to an insult thrown in a school corridor, risking detention, we call it a failure to think ahead. It’s easy to ascribe this to a not-yet-developed […]
Smouldering myeloma: Lauren Laverne’s diagnosis explained
When the BBC presenter Lauren Laverne revealed she has smouldering myeloma, the diagnosis sounded more alarming than it is. Her situation is more subtle and nuanced than the word “myeloma” suggests. Smouldering myeloma is better thought of as an early warning stage – a sign that some of the cells in her bone marrow are […]
How was the first language formed?
Nine-year-old Eva was watching an episode of the children’s show Horrible Histories about the stone age recently when a question popped into her head. The cave men were speaking a broken form of English, but Eva thought that didn’t sound right and she wondered: how was the first language formed? She joined our host Eloise […]
Arctic sea ice decline seemed to be slowing – until two record-breaking low-ice winters
Hector John Periquin / unsplash, CC BY-SA Arctic sea ice appeared to be entering a new phase. In the early 2020s, the rapid decline seen over previous decades seemed to ease, leading scientists to ask whether winter sea ice loss had slowed. Our new study suggests that conclusion was premature. After two exceptionally low-ice winters […]
Testosterone and combat readiness: what does the evidence really show?
Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, recently announced plans to measure testosterone levels in US soldiers with a promise of “ensuring you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best”. Soldiers found to have low testosterone would be offered treatment, although accepting it would remain voluntary. The announcement has reignited debate about […]
No lectern and the promise of a ‘new model’ – what we can learn from Andy Burnham’s speech
The UK’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham, has taken on the leadership of the country at a divisive and unstable time. The divisions stem from attitudes over immigration and its economic and cultural impacts, as well as the apparent instability of the UK political system. As Burnham prepared to deliver his first speech as prime […]
Why you keep buying books you don’t read – and why it feels so good
Gorgev/Shutterstock.com At busy times, I find I simply cannot read as much as I would like to. Life has a habit of filling every available hour with work, meetings, emails, chores, errands and deadlines. Standing in one of my natural habitats – a bookshop – it is frustrating to see so many things I want […]