science wire

The development of smartphone technology aimed at curbing the spread of a pandemic across the globe has exposed a fine line between individual privacy and collective welfare, says Professor Daniel Miller (UCL Anthropology). The astonishing rise of smartphones in everyday life has created many solutions (GPS maps, internet browsing and messaging, to name just a few).

Covid-19 may be a 'natural' disaster, but disasters occur due to societal failures, and steps can be taken to mitigate the risk of future pandemics, says Professor Ilan Kelman (UCL Institute for Risk & Disaster Reduction).

A trial led by UCL and LSBU researchers will investigate whether e-cigarettes could help people experiencing homelessness to quit smoking.

One in eight adults over 50 had a hospital operation or treatment cancelled last year and this rose to one in five for those with two or more existing medical conditions, according to new research led by UCL. The most common treatments cancelled were eye and cancer surgery. The research, published as a briefing paper today, also shows that fewer cases of dementia were diagnosed in lockdown compared to before the pandemic but diagnoses for arthritis, chronic lung disease, diabetes and hypertension all increased during the pandemic.

A fifth (21%) of people are currently worried about catching Covid-19, while just under a fifth (18%) are worried about becoming seriously ill from the disease, find UCL researchers as part of the Covid-19 Social Study.

Efforts to tackle climate change are not keeping up with the fast pace of global warming and increasing climate risks, according to a report by the Climate Change Committee involving UCL experts.

The Bank of England's consultation on public digital cash could represent the biggest shift in the monetary system for 200 years, says Dr Josh Ryan-Collins (UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose).

President Biden's election victory led many to hope for meaningful progress on international issues, but there are multiple reasons why expectations should be tempered, say Dr Thomas Gift and Dr Julie Norman (Both UCL Centre on US Politics).

Leading UCL academics joined Dr Soumya Swaminanthan, the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Chief Scientist for this year's UCL-Lancet lecture in a seminal event to discuss the role of science in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Patients with a number of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) subtypes will be used to trial a novel cancer treatment developed by researchers at UCL, which holds "great promise" for several incurable conditions.

UCL has sent a total of 1,160 breathing aids to India and 130 to Nepal to support the countries' fight against a Covid-19 surge.

The growing challenge of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), where germs like bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them, is at the heart of a new funding collaboration involving UCL researchers.

UCL's next generation sequencing (NGS) facility will analyse positive Covid-19 tests from travellers arriving at UK airports: By identifying new SARS-CoV-2 variants, UCL scientists will play a key role in the UK Government's Covid Recovery plan.

UCL's next generation sequencing (NGS) facility will analyse positive Covid-19 tests from travellers arriving at UK airports: By identifying new SARS-CoV-2 variants, UCL scientists will play a key role in the UK Government's Covid Recovery plan.

Levels of antibodies in the blood of vaccinated people that are able to recognise and fight the new SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant first discovered in India (B.1.617.2) are, on average, lower than those against variants previously circulating in the UK, finds a new study involving UCL.

The cost of offsetting corporate carbon emissions needs to increase ten-fold to drive meaningful climate action, says a landmark report by UCL and Trove Research.

Sasha Roseneil, UCL's Pro-Provost (Equity and Inclusion), outlines a plan of action following media reports of sexism and racism in the Bartlett School of Architecture.

The fact most mental health problems begin in adolescence doesn't mean that most adolescents will suffer mental illness, writes Honorary Lecturer Dr Lucy Foulkes (UCL Psychology & Language Sciences).

Scientists at UCL are preparing to move into a new ultra-modern research facility which will enable them to work more closely with clinicians to develop revolutionary treatments and cures for some of the most devastating diseases of the immune system.

BBC Radio 4 has worked closely with experts from the UCL Centre for the Study of Legacies of British Slavery on a 7-part series called Descendants looking at how far the legacy of slavery reaches into modern Britain.

Professor Simon Lewis and Dr Chris Brierley (both UCL Geography) explain the modelling they undertook to see what would happen if all farmland in the tropics was turned back into forests, concluding that it would have less influence on the climate than might be assumed.

Professor Haim Yacobi (UCL Bartlett Development Planning Unit) co-authors an article on the effect that urban planning has in Israel-Palestine, saying that even supposedly neutral urban trends such as privatisation and gentrification can be co-opted to divide areas.