Princess of Wales and King Charles: one in two people develop cancer during their lives – the diseases and treatments explained: B. Lenoir/Shutterstock The Princess of Wales released a moving video message on March 22 to address speculation about her health. In it, the future queen disclosed that she’d been diagnosed with cancer following tests …
Microscopic colitis explained – and why it’s often mistaken for IBS: Body Stock/Shutterstock In 1976, a Swedish pathologist, C.G Lindström, published a paper describing a colonic anomaly. Through his microscope, he noted that part of the large intestinal wall of one of his patients was thickened. The patient, whose large intestine had been so thoroughly …
Being child-free has been deemed ‘selfish’ for decades – the history of this misconception explained: Waiting By The Window by Carl Holsøe. Wiki Commons Choosing to be child-free is more common than ever before in some countries, including the US. Many people see not having children an ethical and ecological choice, made to protect the …
The way a sperm tail moves can be explained by mathematics worked out by Alan Turing: SciePro / Shutterstock Alan Turing might be best known for his work helping to crack Germany’s “Enigma” communications code during the second world war. But he also came up with a theory where patterns can form just through chemical …
Microgreens: the health-giving shoots explained: Many of us germinated cress seeds on a bit of wet tissue at primary school, giving us a first introduction to edible microgreens. Recent interest in more diverse ways of getting flavour and nutrition into the vegetable components of our diets has increased the focus on the potential these crops …
Carlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon win explained by a sports psychologist: Between 2003 and 2022 there have only been four men’s singles winners of Wimbledon. You need to go back to 2002 when Australian Lleyton Hewitt won the title to find a name other than the “big four” – Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray or Rafael …
How do people get appointed to the House of Lords and can it ever change? The process explained: Lord Pickles eyes up the opposition in the House of Lords. UK Parliament/Flickr, CC BY-NC The UK’s House of Lords has existed in one form or another since the 11th century, making it one of the oldest …
How China makes economic plans: key moments explained: A meeting of some of China’s most senior politicians at the end of April 2023 concluded with a fairly cautious assessment of the country’s economic recovery. Things are improving, they said, but domestic demand needs to improve. The meeting in Beijing, headed by President Xi Jinping, was …
How can a French protester be arrested under British terrorism laws in London? The alarming ‘schedule 7’ power explained: Moret was arrested after arriving at St Pancras International station. Shutterstock The arrest and charging of a French publisher as he arrived in London has raised serious questions about the use and abuse of power in …
Boris Johnson’s evidence to MPs’ partygate investigation: the key points of disagreement explained: Last year, noted philosopher Rebekah Vardy remarked of fellow scholar Coleen Rooney: Arguing with Coleen is like arguing with a pigeon. You can tell it that you are right and it is wrong but it’s still going to shit in your hair. …
Oscars 2023: The philosophy of Everything, Everywhere, All at Once explained: Warning: the following article contains spoilers for Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. Having enlisted an old friend to babysit our little girls, my husband and I hopped on the bus to see Everything, Everywhere, All at Once as our almost once-in-a-year date film. In …
American man developed an Irish accent after getting prostate cancer – foreign accent syndrome explained: pathdoc/Shutterstock An American man developed an Irish accent following treatment for metastatic prostate cancer. The man was in his 50s and had never been to Ireland. The accent was described as “uncontrolled”, meaning the man couldn’t stop talking with an …
South Africa and Russia: President Cyril Ramaphosa’s foreign policy explained: Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa. January was a busy diplomatic month for South Africa. The country hosted Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and US treasury secretary Janet Yellen. Josep Borrell, vice-president of the European Commission, was also in town. The biggest talking point, though, …
Gender recognition certificates: self-identification and the row over it explained: Self-identification will relieve trans people of the (often distressing) medical scrutiny that has historically been required. slexp880 / Shutterstock The UK’s equalities minister, Kemi Badenoch, has announced a review of the list of countries whose gender recognition certificates are recognised by the UK. This could …
China and Russia’s uneven relationship can be explained with one word: Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, China’s reaction in response to the Russian aggression has been fiercely debated in the western media. The majority of the discussions have focused on one particular term: “no-limits friendship” – a phrase believed to have been taken from …
What is RET and what does it want? The Radical Economic Transformation faction in South Africa explained: Loyalists of the ANC's Radical Economic Transformation (RET) at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban. Rajesh Jantilal/AFP via Getty Images It has been standard for some years, in any analysis of South Africa’s governing party, the African National …
Viktor Orbán’s controversial ‘Greater Hungary’ scarf explained: A recent football match between Hungary and Greece – two countries that didn’t even qualify for the World Cup – would have been quickly forgotten were it not for the sartorial choices made by one of the spectators. Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán was in attendance, sporting a …
UK supreme court rules Scotland cannot call a second independence referendum – the decision explained: The UK supreme court has ruled that the Scottish parliament does not have the power to unilaterally call a second referendum on Scottish independence. The judgment comes in response to a request from the lord advocate (the senior law officer …