By Karin Book, Associate Professor, Department of Sports Sciences, Malmö University
For the Olympics to be viable in a warming world, new models of planning and hosting are necessary. Milano–Cortina 2026’s geographical dispersion could be a solution
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By Lewis Eves, Lecturer in the School of Politics and International Relations, University of Nottingham
At the recent Munich Security Conference, China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, delivered a rebuke of what he said were dangerous trends of militarism in Japan. In a panel discussion, he pointed out comments made in November by the Japanese prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, in which she suggested Japan could intervene militarily in the event of a Chinese attack on Taiwan.
Wang stressed that these remarks were a direct challenge to China’s national sovereignty,…
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By Richard Johnson, Senior Lecturer in Politics, Queen Mary University of London
Since May 2025, Reform UK has led every poll of general election voting intention. Were an election held today, Reform would be poised to form a government. It would probably be a majority government, too. A party needs 326 seats in the House of Commons to form a majority, and Electoral Calculus currently estimates Reform’s range of seats between 319 and 418 MPs.
This puts Reform in a unique position in
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By Gregory Krippa, PhD Candidate in Diplomacy & International Affairs, Loughborough University
If political neutrality means never making political decisions, then the Olympics wouldn’t work because deciding which countries are eligible to compete is inherently political.
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By Ahmed Elbediwy, Senior Lecturer in Cancer Biology & Clinical Biochemistry, Kingston University
Nadine Wehida, Senior Lecturer in Genetics and Molecular Biology, Kingston University
Cancer treatment follows a familiar pattern: doctors spot symptoms, diagnose the disease and start treatment. But scientists are now exploring a radical shift in how we tackle cancer. Instead of waiting for tumours to appear, they want to catch the disease decades before it develops.
This approach is called “cancer interception”. The idea is simple: target the biological processes that cause cancer long before a tumour ever forms.
Researchers are hunting for…
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By Mal James, Personal Chair of Fashion Design, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh
First conceived as a mail-order-only company in 1963, known as Biba’s Postal Boutique, the brand captured the revolutionary 1960s and 1970s attitude and style, offering trend-seekers affordable, high-fashion aesthetics and glamour akin to Paris catwalks.
Influenced by art deco, Biba’s covetable mini dresses, luxurious fabrics, rich prints and colour palettes quickly achieved a cult following, embodying the “swinging London” look. Worn by celebrities like Twiggy and Mick Jagger, and film stars like Brigitte Bardot and Raquel Welch, Biba…
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By Damian Tobin, Lecturer in International Business, University College Cork
After the US captured Venezuela’s president at the start of 2026, Donald Trump promised to “unleash” the country’s oil supply. He wanted companies to invest US$100 billion (£74 billion) to get hold of it.
Big oil though, seems less than keen on that idea, appearing to consider Venezuela too expensive or risky. Exxon Mobil’s unenthusiastic response, describing Venezuela as “uninvestible”, even earned a personal rebuke…
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By Meilan Yan, Senior Lecturer in Financial Economics, Loughborough University
Dalu Zhang, Lecturer in Finance, University of Leicester
Climate change is usually assessed in scientific terms – rising temperatures, sea levels and carbon emissions. But increasingly, it can also be measured in household bills – higher insurance premiums, steeper energy charges and growing costs to protect homes, travel and health. So when US President Donald Trump said recently that abandoning a key government ruling on greenhouse gases would make cars cheaper for Americans, he was focusing on a tiny piece of a huge picture.
That is because climate change…
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By Michiel van Elk, Associate Professor, Cognitive Psychology, Leiden University
Psychedelic therapy often promises transcendent mystical experiences. But research suggests context and expectation may matter more than the trip itself.
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By Steven Gillespie, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology, University of Liverpool
Psychopaths might account for only about 1% of the general population, but they account for a disproportionate share of violent crime.
Distinct from other conditions like sociopathy and antisocial personality disorder, psychopaths tend to show traits such as an absence of remorse or guilt, a lack of empathy and a charming and manipulative interpersonal style.
You may find it hard to imagine how someone without much empathy can change. And early psychological treatments were not successful. But advances in research are showing that a deeper understanding of psychopathy…
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