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Editor's note
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A very large number of MPs have decided not to stand again in this election, including several high-profile women. Some have issues with their parties but others have explicitly cited the abuse they receive from the general public as a motivating factor.
Elected representatives across the board have, in recent years, reported being bombarded with abuse on social media and in real life, but women, in particular, have spoken of being threatened with death and sexual violence. Even when people don’t go that far, many seem to think it’s acceptable to attack women parliamentarians for their appearance or call them “stupid”.
Researcher Susan Watson has analysed all the tweets sent to British female politicians over an 11-day period which shows just how bad this problem is, with thousands of misogynistic comments and threats that also spike when a female MP is prominent in the media.
I think we all understand that it feels horrible to be told that you are stupid, ugly or worthless. We can all agree that it’s not very nice. But when women decide they no longer want to serve the public as a result of these attacks, the wider repercussions for all of us become clearer.
Away from the election, we’ve also got important information about the link between the BRCA2 gene and prostate cancer and a look at the EU’s questionable approach to fishing in West Africa.
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Laura Hood
Politics Editor, Assistant Editor
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Top stories
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Anna Soubry has spoken out about the abuse she receives.
PA/ Jacob King
Susan Watson, University of York
No wonder several high-profile figures say they can't take it any more. Are we really going to allow women to be harassed out of public service?
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Jarun Ontakrai/Shutterstock
Michael Porter, University of Central Lancashire
Men with faults in their BRCA2 gene are at higher risk of aggressive prostate cancer.
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Fishing boats in Senegal.
Fabian Plock/Shutterstock
Ifesinachi Okafor-Yarwood, King's College London
The EU continues to enter into fresh agreements with countries, despite evidence of serious population declines in the species of interest.
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Politics + Society
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Jo Richardson, De Montfort University
When an election looms, some politicians reach for the easy 'crackdown' on Travellers and Gypsies to win over core voters.
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Yaser Alashqar, Trinity College Dublin
Israel's blocakde of Gaza has created a state of physical imprisonment and human despair.
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Ernestine Gheyoh Ndzi, York St John University
Most UK workplaces aren't set up for women to breastfeed, so is it any wonder rates are so low.
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Environment + Energy
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Thomas Newsome, University of Sydney; William Ripple, Oregon State University
What if the nightly news had regular updates on forest clearing, ocean temperatures and fossil fuel consumption? These indicators sit alongside temperatures as signs of climate change.
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Matthew Hall, Victoria University of Wellington
Our prevailing relationship with nature is based on framing the living world as a set of natural resources. This utility-based worldview perpetuates the drivers of ongoing biodiversity loss.
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Filippos Proedrou, University of South Wales
Wales is one small country with big carbon targets but that still needs the policies to deliver them.
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Health + Medicine
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Megan Arnot, UCL
Struggling with menopause symptoms? New research shows that who you live with may be partially to blame.
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Marije De Haas, Loughborough University
Many people might want to choose how, when, and under what circumstances they die – but diseases like dementia can complicate advance euthanasia directives.
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Business + Economy
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Stavros Poupakis, University of Oxford
Giants like Disney and NBCUniversal have been locked in the horns of a business problem known as the innovator's dilemma.
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Shainaz Firfiray, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick
Uber Works is the next step in the evolution of the gig economy.
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Arts + Culture
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Siobhán McIlvanney, King's College London
In a turbulent period of French history, women's journals started to agitate for legal, political and cultural rights.
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Science + Technology
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Tim Thompson, Teesside University; Rebecca Gowland, Durham University
Scientific advances are allowing forensic archaeologists to shed light on mysteries long thought unsolvable.
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Cities
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Marcus Enoch, Loughborough University
A whole range of social and technological changes could revolutionise how we travel in the coming decades.
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Announcement
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Laura Hood, The Conversation
While other media – old and new – may fixate on the personalities and quick headlines, we will dig deep into policy proposals
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Featured events
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Julian Study Centre Lecture Theatre, University of East Anglia, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland — University of East Anglia
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The Berrill Theatre, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes , Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK7 6AA, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland — The Open University
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Wivenhoe Park, Colchester, Essex, CO4 3SQ, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland — University of Essex
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Oxford Martin School, 34 Broad Street, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX1 3BD, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland — University of Oxford
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