Latest Stories
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Found! Largest prehistoric structure in UK
Were we happier in the Stone Age? 4,500 years ago, a thriving culture in Neolithic Britain built vast structures with only stone tools. Experts think we have been going downhill ever since.
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Grief and questions over senseless killings
Is lack of mental health care the key problem? A midsummer day in a Reading park was ripped apart by a knifeman. Three victims are dead. Today, a nation in shock must ask why it happened.
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Two images…and a crisis of masculinity
What does it mean to be masculine? Two moments frozen in time – one an epitome of humane kindness; the other an image of mindless crudity – sum up what many see as a societal catastrophe.
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Face masks on: A society without smiles
Do masks increase alienation? As the UK follows much of the world by having mandatory face coverings on public transport, some fear it may harm our ability to form connections with others.
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The unsolved murder that still haunts Sweden
What lies behind our fascination with true crime? It is fear? Swedish police have just called a halt to a long-running murder investigation which drove amateur sleuths to the point of madness.
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Populist leaders come top in virus deaths
Is populism the real virus? As many governments begin to ease lockdown, the statistics point to common failures and a dangerous outlook in countries with right-wing, populist leadership.
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Britain becoming ‘laughing stock of the world’
Is modern Britain a tragedy or a farce? In the world’s sixth-richest country, the virus response looks like a tragic failure – and, as for Parliament, many don’t know whether to laugh or cry.
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The Machine rules – you have been warned
Will we value human contact more after the lockdown? A 111-year-old story by EM Forster is proving extraordinarily prophetic about social isolation and our relationship with technology.
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Very smart – and a tool of domestic abuse
Could smart homes increase domestic abuse? As our houses get ever more full of technology to make life more convenient, the possibility of using it for abusive purposes is increasing.
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Time flies – except when it starts to crawl
What is time? Some people have found the weeks of lockdown passing incredibly quickly; for others, every day has been agonisingly slow – suggesting that we trust too much in clocks.
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Animals understand life better than humans
Is it okay to be wilfully ignorant? A new study of the brain shows that it is programmed to ignore upsetting and inconvenient truths, leaving human beings living in a “reality bubble”.
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Breaking news! Humans are basically good
Are people at their best in a crisis? Dutch historian Rutger Bregman thinks so, and he believes we have a persistent habit of ignoring the evidence that human nature is fundamentally good.
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Obama blasts Trump as ‘chaotic disaster’
Will there ever be another Barack Obama? A new row has exploded between the former US president and Donald Trump. It has left many yearning to find “a new Obama” to help heal the world.
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Hello – this is your long-forgotten friend
Is it time to return to the old-fashioned phone call? People trying to keep cheerful during the lockdown are rediscovering the joy of hours spent on the line to friends and relations.
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Alarm as UK death toll hits highest in Europe
Should we trust the government less? A lockdown scientist has quit after breaking the rules with his married lover. The chief scientific officer admits mistakes. The health secretary snaps.