By Felix Wiebrecht, Lecturer in Politics, University of Liverpool
Since being elected for a second term as Nicaraguan president in 2006, Daniel Ortega – the former Sandinista freedom fighter-turned-authoritarian leader – has extended his term of office several times. But last week he announced a new strategy for holding on to power.
He declared that there will no longer be elections in the Central American country. Making a speech to commemorate the anniversary of the 1979 revolution that toppled the Somoza dictatorship…
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By Lewis C. E. Mason, Lecturer in Microbiology, Kingston University
Scientists in Vermont have just discovered something that shouldn’t really be possible: a skin cancer that’s spreading from catfish to catfish. It’s only the fourth transmissible cancer ever found in nature.
Catfish now join Tasmanian devils, dogs and shellfish…
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By Primrose Freestone, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Microbiology, University of Leicester
That kitchen sponge sitting by your sink is not as innocent as it looks. It could be harbouring Salmonella enteritidis, E coli or Staphylococcus aureus – and there’s no way to tell just by looking at it or smelling it.
New research from Germany grew bacteria from sponges in the lab, analysed their DNA and examined them under powerful microscopes. It revealed that food-poisoning bacteria can grow inside everyday kitchen sponges and form sticky, protective layers that are hard to remove.…
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By Franzisca Zanker, Senior researcher, Arnold Bergstraesser Institute
Ulrike Krause, Professor of Political Science, University of Münster
South Africa started processing undocumented migrants at a temporary repatriation centre in Musina, a border town with Zimbabwe, in July 2026. This followed weeks of intensified anti-migrant rhetoric and xenophobic violence.
The facility has raised…
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By Amit Nigam, Professor of Management, City St George's, University of London
Danielle Logue, Professor in Innovation and Impact, UNSW
John Amis, Professor of Strategic Management and Organisation, University of Edinburgh
Taylor Swift getting married to Travis Kelce in New York this summer could easily be described as the ultimate celebrity event. There was hype, intrigue, tight media control and plenty of global attention.
Some described it as being the US’s version of a royal wedding. But there is a key difference.
A royal wedding is a celebration of a monarchy, a long-established institution in many countries. By contrast, the marriage of Swift and Kelce in Madison Square Gardens on July 3 2026 was the…
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By Letodi Luki Mathulwe, Research entomologist, Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University
The African armyworm is a highly destructive migratory pest that damages maize, sorghum, millet and sugarcane. These caterpillars also cause indirect damage to livestock as they destroy grazing lands and pastures.
The last major outbreak…
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By Inge Vallance, Head of Research, University of Oxford
Genevieve Haupt Ronnie, Research fellow, University of Cape Town
An eight-country study assessed whether parenting programmes that were developed through research also work when offered at a wider scale in real-life conditions.
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By Ezenwa E. Olumba, Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow, Aston University
When armed groups attack a community, people often assume that everyone who can escape will leave. This belief influences news stories, public discussions and humanitarian efforts, which usually focus on those who have been forced to move.
However, while I was doing research in north-central Nigeria, also called the Middle Belt, I came across some communities that had the means to flee to safety but decided to remain, even though they faced repeated violent attacks from armed nomadic herders and got little or no help from the government.
I have been studying why people move…
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By Bruno Bizzozero Peroni, Associate Research Scientist, Karolinska Institutet
María Valentina Díaz Goñi, Doctoral Researcher, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha
Vegetarian and vegan diets are not linked to more symptoms overall, but the reasons for dietary restriction may still deserve attention.
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By Katherine Calvert, Leverhulme Research Fellow, Imperial and Weimar Germany, University of Leeds
Over the past few years, “tradwife” content has moved from niche corners of social media into mainstream cultural debate. Tradwives present themselves as embracing a “traditional wife” lifestyle centred on domesticity, motherhood and clearly defined gender roles within marriage.
This content is typically framed through curated images of homemaking, hyper-femininity and nostalgic visions of family life. The tradwife trend is frequently interpreted as a reaction…
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