Sometimes my dogs will appear to recognise themselves in the mirror. They might walk past a shiny surface outside or glance at a mirror in my house and take an interest in what they’re seeing in the reflection. Their ears might prick up or their head will tilt in curiosity. But, it turns out, it takes more than just looking in a mirror for an animal to recognise itself, and only a few animals have the ability.

The test, sometimes called the mirror test or the mark test, involves scientists drawing marks on the animals. If the animals then show an interest in that mark when they see their reflection, by trying to touch that part of their body, the conclusion is they’ve recognised themselves. In a recent study, horses passed the test, joining bottlenose dolphins, magpies and elephants in the exclusive list. But not dogs.

In the UK, new regulation and a recent court ruling are set to push the so-called gig economy into retreat by making it harder for companies such as Uber and Deliveroo to class the people who work for them as self-employed, with big implications for liberal capitalism. Meanwhile, in India, politicians are discussing whether last names revealing people’s caste, religious, or cultural backgrounds should be kept hidden during job recruitment to tackle the country’s centuries-old caste-ism.

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