Editor's note

Are you looking forward to turning off your phone when you go on holiday this summer? Or perhaps even leaving it behind? Now that smartphones and other personal devices mean we’re effectively always on the internet, disconnecting even for a short time can feel like a radical change.

The temptation is to take our technology with us even when we’re supposed to be relaxing, even though it might mean receiving a worrying work email or spotting a depressing news story. After all, travelling is a lot easier with Google Maps. So is it worth it?

A team of researchers led by Brad McKenna wanted to know how people react to a tech-free holiday so they found 24 volunteers willing to cut their digital ties for the duration of their trip and interviewed them about it for a study published this week. They found anxiety kicked in from the start. The emotional rollercoaster these analogue tourists initially experienced was so strong that two participants quit the study after just a few days. But once they’d overcome their initial wobbles, the rest of the group discovered a more immersive and memorable way to travel.

This week was also the 100th birthday of Margaret Burbidge, the scientist who proved that we’re all made of stardust and pushed back against sexism to become one of the leading astronomers of her era.

Stephen Harris

Commissioning + Science Editor

Top stories

astarot/Shutterstock

Leave your phone at home this holiday and you’ll feel better (after you feel worse)

Brad McKenna, University of East Anglia; Lena Waizenegger, Auckland University of Technology; Wenjie Cai, University of Greenwich

Technology-free holidays can feel unbearable at first but this soon gives way to a better experience.

Dr. Burbidge is presented with the “Woman of the Year” award in 1976, while professor at UC San Diego. Annie Gracy/Wikipedia

Margaret Burbidge at 100: the trailblazing astronomer who wouldn’t take ‘no women’ for an answer

Andreea Font, Liverpool John Moores University

In an age when women were rarely allowed in observatories, Margaret Burbidge changed how we saw the stars.

Arthimedes / shutterstock

Eat green to save the environment, says IPCC – how to tell if that really means you

Morten Fibieger Byskov, University of Warwick

Inequality in wealth, emissions and vulnerability means some are more responsible for climate action than others.

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