Thinking Allowed

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Mountain gorillas: The ripple effect of conservation

Justin Rowlatt finds out what gorilla conservation can teach us about protecting other species. 'The secret of this success? Dr Gladys Kalema Zikusoka was the Uganda Wildlife Authority's first vet in 1995, then she set up the charity Conservation Through Public Health. Perhaps surprisingly, she says,...
Source: bbc.com

Strava app flaw revealed runs of Israeli officials at secret bases

A vulnerability in the fitness app allowed Israeli officials' movements to be tracked, a group says.
Source: bbc.com

Global Lessons from Exposing War Abuses in Yemen

Open source tools like the Yemeni Archive allow investigative journalists to track Saudi airstrikes in order to interrogate what is happening on the ground in Yemen.
Source: gijn.org

The Lyonesse Project: a study of the coastal and marine environment of the Isles of Scilly (OASIS ID cornwall2-58903)

This project was commissioned by English Heritage and carried out between 2009 and 2013 by Historic Environment Projects, Cornwall Council with a team of specialists from Aberystwyth, Cardiff, Exeter and Plymouth Universities, English Heritage's Scientific Dating Team, volunteers and local experts and...
Source: archaeologydataservice.ac.uk

Fleeing Russian bombs while battling Facebook. A Meta problem Ukrainian journalists did not need. - Coda Story

The challenge of local journalism and of censoring during war. "Facebook says it’s fighting disinformation and blocking Russian propaganda. But independent newsrooms in eastern Ukraine say they’re being restricted under the same rules."
Source: codastory.com

Coastal wild flowers in Cornwall | Wildlife Insight

Photos and insight into the common coastal wild flowers to be found in Cornwall in late spring.
Source: wildlifeinsight.com

Extending the lifecycle of clothes during Covid-19

Good example of analysing behaviour by barriers and enablers. “Two studies carried out with the Centre for Behaviour Change examined factors affecting the purchase, repair, repurpose and disposal of clothes by people in the UK before and during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Source: ucl.ac.uk

Particle physics could be rewritten after shock W boson measurement

“The standard model of particle physics has stood the test of time for decades, but now a new measurement of a particle called the W boson could indicate a chink in its armour.” The scientists took 10 years to do the analysis as it was so complex! “The analysis was so complex that the result took...
Source: newscientist.com

Senior health professionals call for urgent climate briefing of all MPs by the chief scientific adviser: open letter to

Dear prime minister, We wish to make you aware of our concern for the health of Angus Rose, a 52 year old man, who at the time of writing is on day 34 of a hunger strike outside Parliament, consuming only fluids, vitamins, and minerals. His not unreasonable demand is that all members of parliament...
Source: bmj.com

Health impacts of wood burning cost EU and UK €17 billion a year

Wood-based home appliances are responsible for 63 per cent of the health costs from air pollution related to heating and cooking in homes in the European Union and UK
Source: newscientist.com

Polygenic prediction of educational attainment within and between families from genome-wide association analyses in 3 million

We conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of educational attainment (EA) in a sample of ~3 million individuals and identify 3,952 approximately uncorrelated genome-wide-significant single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). A genome-wide polygenic predictor, or polygenic index (PGI), explains 12–16%...
Source: nature.com

House passes $35-a-month insulin cap as Dems seek wider bill

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House on Thursday passed a bill capping the monthly cost of insulin at $35 for insured patients, part of an election-year push by Democrats for price curbs on prescription drugs at a time of rising inflation.
Source: apnews.com

The Bluestocking: The Ant Mill

The Ant Mill theory of Discourse. "An orphan take is an opinion expressed in backlash to a marginal, nebulous or anticipated opposing view. If you see angry tweets or opeds about the horror of a viewpoint you’ve never seen expressed in the wild, that’s an orphan take."
Source: substack.com

How the War in Ukraine Could Get Much Worse

The West and Russia may be entering into the terminal stages of an insecurity spiral, which could produce a larger European war even if it doesn’t go nuclear.
Source: foreignaffairs.com

International Women's Day: UTI testing '50 years out of date'

Areas of women's health have been neglected for too long, says scientist developing rapid test.
Source: bbc.com

Keyboard army using restaurant reviews to take on Russian state media

Rather than commenting on the food and service at Russian restaurants and cafes, some users have begun posting online reviews detailing Russian actions in Ukraine to try to smuggle information past the tight control of state media.
Source: reuters.com

Here’s a list of all the tech companies taking action against Russia

Ukraine has led a public campaign, mostly through social media, appealing powerful tech institutions to end relationships with Russia.
Source: restofworld.org

Behavioural and social sciences are critical for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response


Source: who.int

The mothers who helped uncover the biggest maternity scandal

Next month, a report will be published into one of the biggest scandals in the history of the NHS - why were so many failures allowed to happen?
Source: bbc.com

Biopharma futures

blog post image I've been looking at a few industry reports on the future of biopharma as part of a course I'm on with INSEAD Business School on Business Strategy and Financial Performance. I thought I'd share some of my ramblings on Biopharma Futures. Expectations are high Pharmaceutical companies are operating...
Source: deanjenkins.me