science wire

Read about the latest revisions to the UCL Statement on Research Integrity, which sets out UCL's commitment to ensuring the highest standards of integrity in all aspects of its research activities.

Predicting A-level grades is a 'near-impossible task', and the system needs to be overhauled to reduce inaccuracies that can lead to unfair disadvantages for some students, says new research from the UCL Institute of Education. For the working paper published today (Tuesday 11 August 2020), academics from UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities (CEPEO) and Oxford Brookes Business School studied data from 238,898 pupils' GCSE performance to see whether they could accurately predict their subsequent A-level results.

Dr Ben Clifford (UCL Bartlett School of Planning) analyses the UK Government's proposals to reform the planning system in England and warns this overlooks the potential of local authorities, does not address green belt reform and will result in major repercussions for housing. The government has published proposals for a radical reform of the planning system in England.

Dr Lena Ciric (UCL Civil, Environmental & Geomatic Engineering) urges people not to be complacent about UK Government guidelines on social distancing and to remain careful when going out and seeing others.

In an op-ed for the Guardian, Professor Sir Michael Marmot (UCL Epidemiology & Health) comments how increased life expectancy, growing health inequalities and a decrease in local UK Government spending all contributed to England having the worst Covid-19 death rates in Europe.

Public confidence in the UK Government's ability to handle the Covid-19 pandemic dropped sharply following the news that Dominic Cummings, senior aide to the Prime Minister, had seemingly broken lockdown rules, finds new analysis by UCL researchers.

Fake audio or video content has been ranked by experts as the most worrying use of artificial intelligence in terms of its potential applications for crime or terrorism, according to a new UCL report. The study, published in Crime Science and funded by the Dawes Centre for Future Crime at UCL (and available as a policy briefing), identified 20 ways AI could be used to facilitate crime over the next 15 years.

In an op-ed for the Guardian, Dr Kerstin Sailer (UCL Bartlett School of Architecture) says the Covid-19 pandemic has caused us redefine the working environment, but with many unable to adequately work from home, we should not give up on shared working spaces.

UCL, working in partnership with ten of the world's top universities, has been awarded a share of £1.5 million in two grants from The Research England Development (RED) Fund to share and develop improved approaches to commercialising university research for societal and economic benefit, both internationally and in the UK.

UCL Technology Fund (UCLTF), managed by AlbionVC in collaboration with UCL Business (UCLB) (the university's commercialisation company and part of UCL Innovation & Enterprise), announces first close of a £100m target Fund 2.

Policy Fellow Laurie Macfarlane (UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose) asserts that the UK Government's help-to-buy scheme has contributed to a housing crisis and asserts people should stay away from "our addiction to house price growth".

Modifying 12 risk factors from childhood to late life could delay or prevent 40% of dementia cases, according to a new report led by UCL researchers.

The number of hours worked in Britain dropped significantly in lockdown, with mothers most likely to sacrifice work for home schooling and developmental play, according to new research from the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS). Two briefing papers, published today by CLS, use new data from a survey of over 18,000 people who take part in UCL's cohort studies to analyse work, finances and parenting among four generations who were born in 1958, 1970, 1989-90, and 2000-02.

UCL academics will play key roles in three new nationally funded research studies, which aim to improve our understanding of the links between COVID-19 and ethnicity.

Health visitors are concerned that the needs of children have been missed due to staff redeployment to support the Covid-19 workforce and increased caseloads, according to a new UCL survey.

With world economic GDP figures estimated to face the biggest drop since 2008, Dr Al'ah Shehabi (UCL Institute for Global Prosperity) explains why new tools are needed for countries to measure their welfare following times of crisis.

In an op-ed, Professor Philippe Sands (UCL Laws) explains why the focus on the word 'genocide' skews our responses to other acts of mass atrocity.

A UCL supported trial, which is testing the Covid-19 vaccine candidate developed by Imperial College London, is now recruiting members of the public at UCLH.

A UCL supported trial, which is testing the Covid-19 vaccine candidate developed by Imperial College London, is now recruiting members of the public at UCLH.

Professor Mark Galeotti (UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies) discusses the ways Russia seeks to divide and destabilise Western democracies like the UK, arguing that we must learn how to adapt and respond to their methods.

Scientists at a new UCL centre will use tools such as machine learning to analyse intensive care data from two London hospitals to find clues that will improve the care of critically ill adults and babies.

Professor Norbert Pachler (UCL Institute of Education) and his colleague Keith Turvey from Brighton University explain their research which finds that teachers are not only undervalued by UK Government policies but also need support using digital technology in the classroom.

The UAE's extraordinary Hope Mars Mission shows how space exploration can boost a nation's scientific capacity and redirect its economic trajectory, write Dr Ine Steenmans and Rear Admiral Neil Morisetti (both UCL STEaPP).

Commenting on the UK's reversal regarding Huawei's involvement in its 5G infrastructure, Laurie Macfarlane (UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose) says the decision is political, reflecting the threat of the Chinese economic model to the liberal capitalism of the UK.

Dr Jasmina Panovska-Griffiths (UCL Epidemiology & Health) discusses the R number, the possibility of a second wave and whether Covid-19 has superspreading potential.

Over a million people in the UK have stopped smoking since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in Britain, with a further 440,000 smokers trying to quit in the same period, finds new analysis by Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) .

The UK must prepare now for a potential new wave of coronavirus infections this winter that could be more serious than the first, says a new Academy of Medical Sciences report involving UCL.