Time travel is possible, says top scientist

The span of the novel is a less-than twenty-four hour period, beginning early in the morning and ending during the party at night. Yet, using the device of Clarissa's memory, the real timeline of the novel is mapped over decades. Her reflections, which dart relentlessly from her youth to the present day, are offset against the real-time chiming of Big Ben, which strikes every half hour and grounds her in the real moment. Behind this focus on the passage of time is a lurking fear of death and mortality that Woolf shared with her narrator, which is only exacerbatedMade worse. by Clarissa's nostalgia for old love affairs and curious investigations into what could have been. Woolf originally planned on naming this book The Hours, underlining the central role played by time.

Does life have meaning? For thousands of years, humans have searched for a meaning behind our existence. Now, one physicist has given his take on one of the most fundamental questions of all time.

Is time travel really possible? For centuries, humans have dreamed of leaping into the deep past or distant future. Will we ever do it? The answer lies in one of Einstein's strangest theories.

Would it matter if there were multiple universes? Recent experiments involving subatomic particles called 'neutrinos' have shone a light on mind-bending debates between physicists.

Although the concerns of Mrs Dalloway are broadly existential, the complex social dynamics of post-war English society are also writ large over the text. Clarissa's preoccupation with hosting a party in the post-war period highlights the gulf between the upper-class and aristocratic characters, who live largely as if nothing has happened, and those less fortunate, who suffered from complex military trauma or from the unstable economic aftermath of war. The pettiness of her pursuits is highlighted when she snubs her poor cousin Elsie from the gathering, whilst inviting obnoxious but rich characters like the pompousSelf-important and overly serious. and unlikeable Hugh Whitbread. Although war was perceived as a social equaliser, Woolf makes it clear that the degrees of separation between normal people and high society are as numerous as ever.

Is life a game? A new book says we live in a culture obsessed with status and competition, from school to work and sport. So is it time to opt out and view life another way?

Should Oxbridge be abolished? UK exam boards have started checking grades. Critics say students from private schools have an unfair advantage when applying to top universities.

Is society too focused on the idea of self-improvement? For years, politicians have promised that hard work equals success. Now one leading philosopher says the idea of merit is a myth.

Many of the thoughts of Clarissa, Peter and Septimus seem uncommunicable, able only to be expressed in the stream-of-consciousness narration that we read. Characters hide complex fears, taboo desires and vivid fantasies behind their social image, and such things remain private and unspoken. However, it is significant that the novel centres around a gathering, a space where people should come together to communicate and share thoughts and ideas, and a generous reader might construe it as Clarissa's attempt to bring a fractured and silenced society back together.

Does jargon stop us thinking clearly? Some people love using technical or fashionable language, but others complain that buzzwords simply clutter our minds and hamper communication.

Scientists claim to have reversed time

Are we losing more than words? Linguists say the world's minority languages are going through a mass extinction event. This may make communication easier. But what else is lost?

Is ChatGPT dangerous? A new AI-powered chatbot has taken the world by storm. Some predict it will upend our entire lives; others say it is nothing more than a conjuring trick.

Clarissa is married to Richard Dalloway, a government worker who is impersonal, timid, and rather spineless. Their marriage is distant and pragmaticDealing with things sensibly and realistically, in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations. , but passionless. Clarissa reflects on what led her to decide to marry Richard over Peter Walsh, a romantic and broody friend who proposed to her. However, it is hard to believe that she would have been much happier with Walsh, who appears to enter into attachments haphazardly and without sincerity. Part of her dissatisfaction with her marriage may stem from a latent queer identity: Clarissa still considers a kiss she shared with her childhood best friend Sally as the happiest moment of her life, and claims to feel about Sally "as men feel".

Is marriage dying? A court decision might grant similar status for different types of relationships. But many argue that marriage remains at the heart of human culture and experience.

Should we forgive cheating? Beyonce and Jay-Z released a joint album. In it, Beyonce appears to forgive her husband for his earlier infidelity. Should others follow her lead?

Is the old saying "Money can't buy happiness" true? One of the world's richest couples, Bill and Melinda Gates, announced they were getting divorced after 27 years of marriage.

Whilst Clarissa's joie de vivre is hard to read in the context of post-war society, it works in counterpoint to Septimus, a traumatised war hero suffering from severe mental health problems. Woolf called Septimus the "double" of Mrs Dalloway, who was her original target for a suicide attempt at the end of the book. Woolf is critical of the poor treatment that Septimus receives in a society desperate to forget about the trauma of war: he is dismissed by medical professionals and allowed to suffer in silence before he ends his own life. His death further sharpens our sense of the massive social discrepanciesUnexpected or unexplained differences. in London post-war: whilst we, as readers, are permitted to enter Septimus' disturbing and torturous inner life as a veteran, at Clarissa's party his death becomes the subject of idle gossip, with nobody appreciating the tragedy of the act or attempting to understand why it happened.

Could the Soviet Union return? It has become clearer than ever that Vladimir Putin is determined to revive Russia's past power. Is this possible in the digital age? 

Is this the biggest event of our lifetime? Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of a European country. Cruise missiles attacked its capital city. Hundreds of Ukrainians are dead.

Should we embrace the unknown? Memorials to unnamed soldiers affect us on a deep psychological level, but there are also philosophical reasons to accept the unknown and welcome uncertainty.