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Editor's note
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Despite some mixed reviews, the BBC's new epic co-production with Netflix, Troy: Fall of a City has proved popular with devotees of swords and sandals, who are legion. Scholars tend to discount the historical accuracy of Homer's timeless tale of star-crossed lovers, heroic warriors and the death of a civilisation, but archaeologists are gradually uncovering evidence that something pretty dramatic happened on the site of Troy at around the time the Iliad was set.
Hopefully we've all experienced that warm glow that comes from doing something for someone else. Now science is beginning to discover where that comes from. Here are five reasons why being kind makes you feel good.
Oscars time has rolled around again and millions around the globe will tune in to see their favourite stars dressed up to the nines in the usual orgy of self-congratulation. But more important this year is likely to be the #MeToo protest against the sexism that is still rife in Hollywood. But, for those without the power of a high profile, speaking out can be dangerous if it means depending on a legal system that too often discriminates against the powerless. Here's why.
This week we also learned about prehistoric dental problems, why a 10,000-year clock is a strange idea, why buses might soon be history and what brought the Beast from the East
to our shores.
Have a good weekend – and stay warm.
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Jonathan Este
Associate Editor
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Top story
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Graham Bartholomew/BBC/Wild Mercury Productions
Mariacarmela Montesanto, University of Liverpool
A new BBC series has put Troy back on the map. But how much do we know about this city of legend?
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Generosity boosts reward mechanisms in the brain.
Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock
Jo Cutler, University of Sussex; Robin Banerjee, University of Sussex
The idea that we are only kind to get ahead doesn't seem to hold up, being nice genuinely makes us feel good.
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Will Oliver/EPA
Julia Downes, The Open University
Speaking up and telling the truth is important, but we need to be mindful that it is risky, far from safe for all victims and survivors.
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Cities
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Marcus Mayers, University of Huddersfield; David Bamford, University of Huddersfield
Buses are set to be replaced by private and autonomous vehicles – but it's not clear how society is going to deal with it.
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Science + Technology
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Peter Inness, University of Reading
But its too early to tell whether climate change is to blame.
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Emily Bailes, Royal Holloway
Hoverflies are helping spread disease among the already declining bee population.
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Ian Towle, Liverpool John Moores University
Prehistoric humans and their predecessors may have had a very different diet but their teeth suffered in similar ways to ours.
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Graeme A Forbes, University of Kent
A clock designed to work for 10 millennia is being built – but what is the point of it?
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Carole Mundell, University of Bath
New radio technology has managed to detect the first light in the universe.
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Arts + Culture
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Laura Varnam, University of Oxford
Once dismissed as a mere 'love story', Daphne du Maurier's masterpiece has transfixed generations of readers.
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Hilary Marland, University of Warwick
Treatment for nervous exhaustion in the Victorian era could literally drive you mad.
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Richard Hand, University of East Anglia
Netflix hit, Black Mirror, follows in the footsteps of other forward-thinking sci-fi storytellers.
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Environment + Energy
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Chris West, University of York; Bob Doherty, University of York; Tony Heron, University of York
Food chains are often so complex that it's too hard to make the right choices.
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John Barrett, University of Leeds; Anne Owen, University of Leeds
Those on low incomes get less back from home improvement schemes than they pay in government charges.
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Business + Economy
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Bettina Büchel, IMD Business School
Artificial intelligence is likely to reinforce or even amplify gender inequality because the data used to train machines is biased.
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Michael Bradshaw, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick
More than 80% of UK households use gas to heat their homes so the industry has to handle huge swings in demand.
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Tonia Novitz, University of Bristol; Alan L Bogg, University of Bristol; Katie Bales, University of Bristol; Michael Ford, University of Bristol; Roseanne Russell, University of Bristol
The Taylor Review and the subsequent UK government's response do a bad job of proposing solutions.
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Politics + Society
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Emily Priscott, University of Sussex
If you feel threatened or confused by the #MeToo movement, try channelling your masculinist mystique.
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Dylan Loh Ming Hui, University of Cambridge
Xi Jinping is now ruling without term limits. That's bad news for corrupt officials – and perhaps for the Chinese people.
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James Newell, University of Salford
He's barred from public office but this former prime minister isn't going to be held back by the small matter of a conviction for tax evasion.
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Aleardo Zanghellini, University of Reading
Why right-wing populism gets the tradition of legality and justice exactly the wrong way round.
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James Christensen, University of Essex
When confronted with the consequences of arms sales, democratic governments fall back on a number of flawed arguments.
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Education
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Michael Donnelly, University of Bath; Sol Gamsu, University of Bath
New research reveals that poorer students are less likely to leave home for university – and that has serious impacts on their experience.
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Mandy Pierlejewski, Leeds Beckett University
A recent report suggests reception classes should spend less time playing and more time focusing on literacy and mathematics.
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AJ Rankin-Wright, Leeds Beckett University; Sergio Lara-Bercial, Leeds Beckett University
Children's sports coaches are underpaid, under qualified and often unappreciated.
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Health + Medicine
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Susan Jebb, University of Oxford; Theresa Marteau, University of Cambridge
Time to put calories on the menu.
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Simone Willis, Cardiff Metropolitan University; Brad Woolridge, Cardiff Metropolitan University; Mikel Mellick, Cardiff Metropolitan University
Musicians and athletes have a lot in common when it comes to performing in the glare of the spotlight.
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Brexit
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Karen Jackson, University of Westminster; Oleksandr Shepotylo, University of Bradford
Leaving the EU single market and customs union cannot be compensated for by free trade agreements with other countries.
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Gavin Barrett, University College Dublin
Options to avoid a hard border are on the table, but they remain unpalatable to Theresa May's government.
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Featured events
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309 Regent Street, London, London, City of, W1B 2UW, United Kingdom — University of Westminster
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Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PL, United Kingdom — University of Manchester
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University Place, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PL, United Kingdom — University of Manchester
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