Helping their friends to read can boost children’s attainment
Artit Wongpradu/Shutterstock In a primary school classroom, a nine-year old reads aloud to the person next to them. When they stumble over a word, their partner encourages them to try again. Together they discuss what might happen next. But the child isn’t reading to an adult – a teaching assistant or volunteer. Instead, they are […]
The mistakes that sealed Keir Starmer’s fate
On the gloriously sunny morning of July 5 2024, Keir Starmer walked into Downing Steet as prime minister for the first time, having won a stonking 174-strong majority in the general election the day before. On a similarly warm morning a little less than two years later, he has been forced to stand outside Number […]
House of the Dragon: four real historic women who inspired the show
Dragons may be fictional, but the struggle for the throne, influence and legitimacy in House of the Dragons has roots in conflicts that shaped real history. Long before the fictional Westeros, women across Europe and Asia faced rival claimants, political factions and systems designed to keep them from power. Like Rhaenys Targaryen, Alicent Hightower and […]
Summer’s silent killer: why the world’s heatwaves are a global health emergency
Studio Nut/Shutterstock Heat is no longer a future climate risk. It is already here. Across continents, high temperatures are being pushed higher by forces acting at once: human-caused warming, very warm oceans, dry soils, slow-moving high-pressure weather systems and El Niño conditions that have now developed in the tropical Pacific. El Niño is a natural […]
Andy Burnham: what to expect from the UK’s likely next prime minister
Resigning as UK prime minster and leader of the Labour party, Keir Starmer said he accepted, “with good grace”, that the party does not think he is best placed to lead them into the next general election. Following the election of Andy Burnham in Makerfield, it’s also clear who most Labour MPs want to replace […]
Ten years on from the Brexit vote, the UK is still a country of Leavers and Remainers
The labels Leave and Remain need little introduction to anyone with even a fleeting interest in British politics. The terms do not simply refer to someone’s position on UK-EU relations, they can also provide a shorthand for their broader beliefs and values. The terms emerged as group identities and, to the opposing sides, often as […]
Three lesser-known Antoni Gaudí buildings to visit to mark the centenary of his death
(L-R) Casa Vicens, Torre de Bellesguard and Cripta de la Colònia Güell Ian Gampon/Wikimedia/Hans Nestru, CC BY In the second week of June, Pope Leo XIV made his first papal visit to Spain on a six-day journey to Madrid, Barcelona and the Canary Islands. One of the key moments of his visit was a solemn […]
Will the US-Iran talks in Switzerland deliver peace? It’s unlikely
When it was signed at the end of the G7 summit on June 17, the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU) was hailed as a diplomatic breakthrough. By reopening the Strait of Hormuz, easing sanctions and launching a 60-day negotiating process, it felt like a positive step on the road to ending a conflict that has […]
Keir Starmer has resigned – but what could a new PM actually do differently against Reform UK?
Andy Burnham now looks almost certain to take over as Labour leader – and UK prime minister – after Keir Starmer announced his resignation. In a speech in Downing Street, Starmer said his colleagues had persuaded him that he could no longer continue in the role and it’s believed that even allies had privately advised […]
Can supplements keep your brain sharp? Why the evidence is more complicated than it seems
Teacher Photo/Shutterstock Many of us would like to keep our brains sharp as we get older. That has helped create a growing market for “brain-health” supplements. These include fish-oil capsules and postbiotics, the beneficial, non-living compounds and byproducts produced by “good” gut bacteria (probiotics) when they digest dietary fibre or prebiotics. But assessing these products […]