Editor's note

Self-experimentation is something scientists have done since, well, science began. While it's not whole-heartedly encouraged in academia today, there are still some curious researchers experimenting on themselves. We're featuring three in the new edition of our podcast, The Anthill. Tim Spector talks about trying out various diets, including one where he ate only three smelly French cheeses. Will Brooker reflects on living as David Bowie for a year. And Peter Kinderman explains why he decided to take an antipsychotic for three days.

We're also carrying out a short survey about The Anthill. It'll take you just a few minutes to complete and we'd love to hear your feedback.

The world might appear to be a very unpredictable place, but what if some human behaviour could be down to other influences? The natural world has some great examples of how parasites and fungi can act as mini puppet masters, changing a host's behaviour to further their needs. Robbie Rae explains how this might be happening in humans.

Another explanation for some recent human behaviour could be a phenomenon called "collective narcissism". This is when a person feels a sense of great importance about the group to which they belong and heightened sensitivity to criticism of it.  Agnieszka Golec de Zavala sees something like this in the followers of certain political groups at the moment.

Gemma Ware

Society Editor

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Anthill 9: When scientists experiment on themselves

Annabel Bligh, The Conversation; Gemma Ware, The Conversation

Three stories about researchers who have dabbled in self-experimentation – with varying results. 

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