“We are all mad here” explains the Cat to Alice when she wonders about the strangeness of Wonderland. Well, life is starting to follow art. If people make the mistake of following DSM-5, the new diagnostic…
From the plate to the power station.
Flickr/tomylees
The amount of scrap food thrown away worldwide is staggering. WRAP, a government-funded non-profit set up to encourage recycling and clamp down on waste, reports that in the UK we discard more than 7.2m…
And you think your neighbours are bad: millions live alongside active volcanoes.
Smithsonian Institute Global Volcanism Program
The Popocatepetl volcano in Mexico is throwing out plumes of smoke and ash, an eruption that threatens the one million inhabitants of the towns and villages nearby. Mexico City, the world’s third largest…
RBS: Not as valuable as it used to be.
David Cheskin/PA
The UK could be about to make a multi-billion pound mistake. Plans to sell-off the 82% share of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the 39% share of Lloyds owned by the taxpayer are gaining favour in…
There are three routes open to the Prime Minister.
Niccola Caranti
With more than a hundred MPs voting to amend the Queen’s Speech this week, the UK’s role in Europe continues to confound politicians and citizens alike. Among all the chatter, it’s hard to get a sense…
It’s never easy when someone we’re close to is dying but there are things we can learn from the professionals who deal with this every day.
PA/David Cheskin
It’s not always easy to talk to someone who is dying. Conversations about future plans and wishes may appear insensitive and fuelled with great pain and distress when it’s somebody we love. For some, not…
You’ve got a message. Hackers knew that before you.
Akshat Rathi
There are now more mobile devices than people on our planet. The amount of personal data we share through mobile devices is also increasing. So it is not surprising that cyber-criminals want a piece of…
The new currency of an independent Scotland?
Christian Cable
He came, he saw, he was chased into a pub. Nigel Farage plunged into the multi-polar world of Scottish politics yesterday. And took a hiding. Farage appears to have been surprised that his brand of populism…
The drugs don’t work. But a swifter way of identifying bacteria could reduce the need for antibiotics.
AAP
Researchers have taken the first step towards designing a rapid way of identifying harmful bacteria in infections, demonstrating the potential for faster patient treatment and decreased reliance on antibiotics…
In the event that an in-out referendum on UK membership of the EU is held in 2017, and a majority of voters opt to leave, what process would need to be followed to secure the UK’s exit? The question is…
If we have good weather in June the grass pollen count could be severe.
PA
When I was a child and was first diagnosed with hay fever, the doctor told me I would grow out of it. I didn’t ask for a rough date when that might be – I just went away and each year I suffered I hoped…
Chapelcross, Scotland: decisions over our future sources of energy won’t wait until the cows come home.
Magnox Sites Ltd
Providing power to the nation is no small task. It requires considerable forward planning, involves huge costs and considerable risks. More risk and cost, in fact, than most energy providers can stomach…
Becks gets his first lesson in posing for the cameras.
Dave Kendall/PA
Since Alex Ferguson resigned as Manchester United’s manager he has been credited with everything from reversing the recession to single-handedly putting Manchester itself on the global map. One person…
It is known as the Nudge unit; a government behavioural insights team, that draws on theories popularised in a bestselling book from Yale. Following much hype and publicity, the behavioural insights team…
The failure of the entire political class to stress the positive contribution of migrants is taking us back to the 1950s.
Cathal McNaughton/PA
If you listen to UKIP, you could be forgiven for thinking migrants are coming to Britain to access our foolishly generous welfare benefits and care nothing for integration. But that’s simply not true…
Many of us love helium balloons but we need to find and conserve more for use in MRI scanners.
PA/Matthew Fearn
Helium is God’s gift to humankind. It’s particularly fantastic for science and medicine and has allowed us to make an enormous number of fundamental advances. We use it for a whole vast array of things…
Be ready for a one-way trip. Deadly fungus lies ahead.
Paxson Woelber
A deadly fungal infection has been spreading across western North America. The number of human and animal cases has grown rapidly in recent years, to the extent that government agencies in US and Canada…
Are women are more likely to survive broken heart syndrome?
Gabriela Camerotti
The Coalition government is pressing ahead with a long, expensive and controversial programme to replace the Trident nuclear weapon system beginning with the procurement of a new fleet of submarines armed…
Not so super now. The end may be nigh for Staphylococcus aureus.
Wikipedia
Antibiotics have probably saved more lives than any other form of medication. Prior to their development, things that we now consider trivial, such as a prick from a rose bush or a sore throat, could easily…
An estimated 30-50% of food produced worldwide is wasted, and ends up only fit for the birds.
Owen Humphreys/PA Wire
The food system is perhaps the most vital component of our modern industrialised world. Without food in shops, it’s fair to say society would unravel in a matter of days. The food industry is in many ways…
Making power-hungry datacentres like these more energy efficient is vital.
Schlüsselbein2007/Flickr
Do you have a computer on a desk somewhere? Fans whirring, screensaver flickering, left on for days. Would you leave your washing machine running for days? Because over time, a desktop computer draws on…
Smash the system, not traffic lights.
flikr/bobaliciouslondon
A fifth of Britain’s young people are out of work; how long before they snap? The International Labour Organisation has recently issued warnings about possible youth unrest in the future, as young people…
Life’s fine above the poverty line for Mervyn King.
PA/Yui Mok
The outgoing Bank of England governor Mervyn King has presided over a huge economic crisis. His parting gift is the claim “a recovery is in sight” that the UK might achieve economic growth of even 1% this…
Plotting an escape from the naughty step.
Carl Court/PA Archive/Press Association Images
Recent news that David Cameron has been placed on the naughty step by China after his meeting with the Dalai Lama caused much concern in UK business circles. Reports suggested the Chinese sovereign wealth…