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Mass COVID testing and sequencing is unsustainable – here’s how future surveillance can be done
Alex Yeung/Shutterstock Several European countries are drastically reducing the number of COVID tests performed. Sweden has already restricted free tests to healthcare staff, social care workers and clinically vulnerable people, and only if they are symptomatic. The UK government has announced that free tests for symptomatic and asymptomatic people inContinue Reading
Ukraine invasion: why China is more likely to support Russia than in the past
Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Brazil in 2019. Alamy China’s general approach to Russian actions in its neighbouring regions has been to minimise its involvement. After Russia invaded Georgia in 2008, Beijing refused to recognise declarations of independence by the de facto states ofContinue Reading
Ukraine’s military is outgunned but can still inflict a great deal of pain on Russian forces
Ukraine’s ramshackle military offered no resistance to the Crimean annexation in February 2014. Since then the poorly equipped but well-motivated Ukrainian Army has taken thousands of casualties while fighting separatist forces in the eastern Donbas region. In the meantime, the country has embarked on an often haphazard reform programme ofContinue Reading
Ukraine refugees: how displacement could impact farms and families in the UK
One of the most immediate consequences of conflicts and crisis is often displacement, as people seek safety. The crisis in Ukraine means substantial numbers of people may flee the country to seek refuge overseas. It’s difficult to predict how many Ukrainians will seek asylum in the UK. This will dependContinue Reading
Peaky Blinders who’s who: The characters you need to know in season 6
T he Peaky Blinders are back – and Steven Knight’s tale of Brummie gangster life in the inter-war period looks set to reach a blood-soaked crescendo in the BBC drama’s sixth series, which marks the final chapter for the disturbingly dysfunctional Shelby family. After season five’s dramatic conclusion, the questionContinue Reading
CDC relaxes Covid guidance, allowing most people to ditch masks if hospitalizations remain low
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relaxed its mask guidance on Friday, allowing most people to ditch their face coverings as long as Covid-19 hospitalizations in their communities remain low. Under the new CDC guidance, people are advised to wear masks in public areas indoors, including schools, when there’sContinue Reading
To engage LGBTQ+ people in data collection, we need to look at its harmful history
STILLFX / Shutterstock In the 1950s, the UK government formed a committee to investigate fears of a homosexual “problem” in Britain. This was partly sparked by a series of scandals, including the exposure of a Soviet spy ring of homosexual and bisexual men at the heart of major cultural andContinue Reading
CDC mask announcement: What did the agency say?
THE CENTERS for Disease Control and Prevention announced a new recommendation to remove indoor mask guidelines on February 25, 2022. The announcement came as the CDC and the Biden administration faced pressure to ease restrictions for those who have received protection from Covid-19. Getty People stroll in Central Park inContinue Reading
How the pandemic has affected periods
Natalia Mels/Shutterstock The coronavirus has had many impacts over the past two years – including, it seems, on periods. Many people have reported disturbances to their menstrual cycles, some noticing changes after catching the virus, others following vaccination. For some, disruptions didn’t follow either, but were still noticeable. But beforeContinue Reading
Hoarding: people with ADHD are more likely to have problems – new research
trekandshoot/Shutterstock Many of us may find we have acquired too many possessions that clutter our living spaces, but refuse to part with things “in case we might need them”. Although having too much stuff is something many of us can relate to, for some people, a persistent difficulty parting withContinue Reading