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Coming down with a bad cold or virus is its own special kind of misery. I know there’s not much I can really do other than wait it out and try not to spread the lurgy to others. But I do like the illusion of control my personal folk remedies (hot honey and lemon, several rounds of cheese on toast) give me. But while this may sound innocent enough, our complicated relationship with folk tonics has a darker side.
Some people are ignoring scientific research about the dangers of folk remedies and using them as a substitute for vaccinations. This fascinating piece traces folk beliefs about the healing powers of garlic back to the bubonic plague and explains why scientists need to pay more attention to the issue.
Meanwhile a study has found evidence paper straws may not live up to their green credentials and in fact can contain forever chemicals that can harm people’s health and linger for thousands of years. And we consider the case for whether Rishi Sunak has become a lame duck – a leader effectively sitting out their last months in power.
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Jenna Hutber
Commissioning Editor, Science
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Gino Gallucci/Shutterstock
Katrine K. Donois, Anglia Ruskin University; Hassan Vally, Deakin University
Medical folk wisdom is the complex problem health professionals can’t afford to ignore.
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PFAS concentrations were discovered in almost all of the paper and bamboo straws tested.
Sia Footage/Shutterstock
Ovokeroye Abafe, University of Birmingham
Paper and bamboo straws contain ‘forever chemicals’ – maybe threatening the health of people and wildlife.
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PA/Alamy/Leon Neal
Christopher Kirkland, York St John University
With his own MPs blocking his every policy, Sunak doesn’t appear able to get much done.
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Politics + Society
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Sarah Njeri, SOAS, University of London
Landmines are killing thousands in Ukraine. Clearing the land and making it safe for people is likely to take decades.
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Sarah M. Hughes, Northumbria University, Newcastle
New refugees have just 28 days to access the essential services they need to rebuild their lives in the UK. In the ‘destitution gap’, many will become homeless.
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Olumba E. Ezenwa, Royal Holloway University of London; Idris Mohammed, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto
Russia was using the mercenary group to further its foreign policy aims in west Africa. There’s no reason to think Prigozhin’s death will change that.
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Sana Nakata, James Cook University
The last time the country voted in a referendum on Indigenous affairs was in 1967. Advocates for the ‘Voice to Parliament’ say it is the best way to remedy a long legacy of failed policies.
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Arts + Culture
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Alex Fitch, University of Brighton
The history of comics is closely tied to the involvement of Jewish creators, who have had an enormous impact on the medium over the last 90 years.
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Business + Economy
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Steve Schifferes, City, University of London
The world’s central banks face a range of dilemmas, not least whether high inflation – and therefore high interest rates – will become permanent.
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Ylva Baeckstrom, King's College London
Girl math shoppers are showing mastery of portfolio management.
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Education
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Kenneth Awinda, University of Portsmouth
Tower cranes come in many different sizes, and many weigh more than 100 tonnes.
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Health
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Sophia Komninou, Swansea University; Sue Jordan, Swansea University
Not enough data is being collected about the impact taking prescription medication has on breastfeeding.
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Ceri Wilson, Anglia Ruskin University
One in 25 women who give birth develop postnatal PTSD. I am one of them.
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Vincent Ho, Western Sydney University
Headlines about brain worms can be alarming. There are much more common parasites which can infect your body and brain and ways you can minimise your risks of being infected with one.
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Science + Technology
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Christopher Newman, Northumbria University, Newcastle
India’s space mission is driving economic changes and high-tech job opportunities.
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5 September 2023
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Online
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13 September 2023
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Online
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15 September 2023
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Birmingham
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