Summer picks: Where did our attention spans go, and can we get them back?
In 2024, the Oxford English Dictionary announced its word of the year was ‘brain rot’. The term relates to the supposedly negative effects of consuming social media content, but it struck a chord more...
29 Jul 202517min
Why do we age in dramatic bursts, and what can we do about it?
Scientists are beginning to understand that ageing is not a simply linear process. Instead, recent research appears to show that we age in three accelerated bursts; at about 40, 60 and 80 years old. T...
24 Jul 202514min
The babies born with DNA from three parents
Doctors in the UK have announced the birth of eight healthy babies after performing a groundbreaking procedure that creates IVF embryos with DNA from three people. Ian Sample tells Madeleine Finlay ab...
22 Jul 202517min
Two black holes collide, lab-grown organs, world’s first climate visa
Madeleine Finlay is joined by Ian Sample to discuss three intriguing science and environment stories. From a breakthrough in the quest to create organs in the lab to a world-first climate visa that wi...
17 Jul 202521min
Why are parents using melatonin to help their kids sleep?
Guardian feature writer Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett recently wrote about the growing cohort of parents whose children are on the waiting list for an autism or ADHD diagnosis, and are turning to the interne...
15 Jul 202517min
Texas floods and forecasting cuts: a sign of things to come?
In the days since the deadly floods in the Texas Hill Country, speculation has grown about whether cuts to US weather agencies may have contributed to the the number of casualties. Ian Sample talks to...
9 Jul 202516min
What are microplastics doing to our health?
The actor Orlando Bloom recently posted a photo of himself undergoing a £10,000 procedure at a London clinic that claims to remove microplastics, forever chemicals and herbicides from the blood. But h...
8 Jul 202515min
Why British women are freezing their eggs abroad
The number of women choosing to freeze their eggs has increased sharply, according to figures from the UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). The number deciding to embark on the pr...
3 Jul 202518min
