Penny Sarchet
@pennysarchet.bsky.social
New Scientist managing editor and The World, The Universe & Us podcast host. Plant genetics & evolution DPhil; birder.
SURELY, with wildfires causing the worst damage in Europe since WWII, politicians will take the opportunity to transform our approach to the climate crisis, right?? Report from me, @pennysarchet.bsky.social, @mjflepage.bsky.social and @alecluhn.com www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5Sn...
Heatwave and Wildfire Crisis: Why 2026 Is So Dangerous
YouTube video by The World, The Universe And Us
youtube.com
We recorded our podcast live at Latitude, with (R-L) me, Hannah Wakeford, @catherineloveday.bsky.social, Steve Pretty and @pennysarchet.bsky.social (here talking about the "ageogenic" environment we live in). Thanks to @cosmicshambles.com for an epic weekend!
Some people would like to see @chrisgpackham.bsky.social eaten by a T. rex - but he would welcome it! Great interview with @pennysarchet.bsky.social youtu.be/U0C-9UZbr7Q
Chris Packham on the Untold Story of Evolution
YouTube video by The World, The Universe And Us
youtu.be
Ahead of @chrisgpackham.bsky.social's new programme Evolution, we sat down to talk about the most pivotal moments in evolutionary history, exciting bird research, and his lifelong need to know the colour of T. rex. Full interview on our podcast later this week! www.newscientist.com/article/2533...
Chris Packham: 'I'd throw myself in front of a T. Rex to be consumed'
As Chris Packham gears up for his new TV show, Evolution, he tells Penny Sarchet why understanding the latest evolutionary science is so important if we are to truly appreciate the natural world - and...
newscientist.com
It's not the heat that's keeping me awake at night - it's this. A must-read by @mjflepage.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2531...
If you aren't terrified by this heatwave, you should be
The extreme heat currently being felt in Europe isn’t the new normal – much worse is to come, and we are doing far too little to adapt, says Michael Le Page
newscientist.com
"This may come as little surprise to anyone who has watched a parent simultaneously cook dinner, stop a child from scribbling on the wall and locate a missing shoe without a pause." www.newscientist.com/article/2530...
Parenting may permanently improve brain health for mums and dads
Raising children appears to keep the brain young, potentially acting as a buffer against cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s
newscientist.com
Congratulations to @rowhoop.bsky.social on the publication today of his brilliant new book Togetherness! www.newscientist.com/article/2528...
New Scientist recommends Togetherness, a radical new view of life
An exploration of how biological cooperation underpins all life - and why we’ve overlooked its power until now - makes thrilling reading, finds Penny Sarchet
newscientist.com
"Turmeric appears to have become the most common cause of...herbal-related liver injury in the United States" www.newscientist.com/article/2528...
Do turmeric and curcumin have any actual health benefits?
Turmeric is heralded for its anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties, but columnist Alice Klein finds that the evidence for this is shaky. Taking high doses of its curcumin extract in supplement ...
newscientist.com
"The best books are those that give you a new perspective, but Togetherness by Rowan Hooper has given me something more than that – not just a new view, but a new way of seeing" - thrilled by this from the excellent and never wrong @pennysarchet.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2528...
New Scientist recommends Togetherness, a radical new view of life
An exploration of how biological cooperation underpins all life - and why we’ve overlooked its power until now - makes thrilling reading, finds Penny Sarchet
newscientist.com
One of those jaw-dropping discoveries - although I don't think I'd have let a Neanderthal dentist have got anywhere near mine!
Rowan Hooper@rowhoop.bsky.social · 3mo agoMan walks into a Neanderthal dentist... Amazing insight into Neanderthal cognition from this study. With Sam Wong and @pennysarchet.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=7x6N...
Man walks into a Neanderthal dentist... Amazing insight into Neanderthal cognition from this study. With Sam Wong and @pennysarchet.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=7x6N...
Science Reveals Neanderthals Had Dentists 60,000 Years Ago
YouTube video by The World, The Universe And Us
youtube.com
Many of us - those that aren't immediately threatened - can slip into forgetting about rising sea levels, as we focus on the more immediate local impacts of climate chaos. Well, @mjflepage.bsky.social returned from the @egu.eu meeting with bad news for us. www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAcO...
Scientists Concerned By a Sudden Increase in the Rate of Sea Level Rise
YouTube video by The World, The Universe And Us
youtube.com
I'd assumed that red light masks probably did nothing to your face and skin. It turns out, they may do too much. Stand out quote: "“We don’t know what’s going to happen in 10 years’ time...Maybe your face is going to drop off.” www.newscientist.com/article/2523...
Red-light therapy does have health benefits but not the ones you think
Red-light therapy promises to treat everything from acne and hair loss to depression and chronic pain. Many of these claims are overhyped, but evidence suggests it can have healing powers
newscientist.com
My colleague Alice Klein writes movingly about how far our understanding of PCOS/PMOS has come. "I find this a much nicer way to think about my ovaries – that they are brimming with eggs, rather than riddled with cysts." www.newscientist.com/article/2526...
PCOS has been officially renamed PMOS, and it’s a momentous move
PCOS will now be known as PMOS (polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome), and for Alice Klein, who has the condition, it's been a long time coming
newscientist.com
ICYMI, we relived the genome wars.
Philip Ball@philipcball.bsky.social · 3mo agoThis is a great and balanced discussion of Craig Venter and what he achieved, featuring @rogerhighfield.bsky.social @rowhoop.bsky.social @michaelmarshall.newsmast.social.ap.brid.gy and @pennysarchet.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Jin...
Our show The World, the Universe and Us has been shortlisted for BEST VIDEO PODCAST in the Publisher Podcast Awards! Co-host @pennysarchet.bsky.social and producer Ollie Guillou.
I'm doing an AMA on reddit this afternoon about Chornobyl. Decent response so far, but if you have any questions about the site, radiation, nature, whatever, drop a comment. There is no such thing as a stupid question! www.reddit.com/r/chernobyl/...
From the chernobyl community on Reddit: I am a reporter for New Scientist who gained exclusive access to Chernobyl. AMA on Thursday 16 April.
Explore this post and more from the chernobyl community
reddit.com
@sparkes.bsky.social report from Chernobyl is astonishing, revealing how the site has become a one-of-a-kind science experiment, teaching us what radiation does to our health and ecosystems, and what to do the next time there's a major nuclear accident. www.newscientist.com/article/2520...
Exclusive report: Inside Chernobyl, 40 years after nuclear disaster
New Scientist reporter Matthew Sparkes secured unrivalled access to Chernobyl's most crucial scientific sites, where researchers are fighting to protect the area and ensure it remains safe amid the co...
newscientist.com
This one is a DELIGHT. The antimatter Deliveroo. With @pennysarchet.bsky.social and @alexwilkins.bsky.social youtu.be/s8p-PMdUOoc (also the new boss of @cern.bsky.social)
World’s First Antimatter Delivery Service
YouTube video by The World, The Universe And Us
youtu.be
This one has it all - neuroscience, ethics and philosophy.
Rowan Hooper@rowhoop.bsky.social · 4mo agoI don't think it's great that this will be offered to terminally ill people "to reconstruct the person… to allow them to continue, in effect, with their life". Discussion with @pennysarchet.bsky.social, @alexthompo.bsky.social and @thomaslewton.bsky.social. open.spotify.com/episode/7xlK...
There are many touted explanations for the global decline in birth rates: having children has become too expensive, women are too busy working, there isn’t enough childcare support...So I asked @paulajasheppard.bsky.social @ox.ac.uk what's really going on. www.newscientist.com/article/2516...
The real reasons birth rates are declining worldwide
From the cost of childcare to the housing crisis, there’s no shortage of explanations for the dramatic global fall in the number of babies being born. These analyses, though, are all missing something...
newscientist.com
The New Scientist podcast now lives on its own YouTube channel, so me and @pennysarchet.bsky.social made a welcome video for newcomers: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMw0...
Welcome to The World, The Universe and Us - from New Scientist
YouTube video by The World, The Universe And Us
youtube.com
This is a great read, but I'm sharing it for these photos - taken by a photographer while giving birth to her own baby! www.newscientist.com/article/2512...
Why is childbirth so hard for humans – and is it getting even harder?
Some think the rise of C-sections means that one day all births will require serious medical intervention. But a surprising new understanding of the pelvis suggests a different story
newscientist.com
My jaw dropped at the first paragraph. By Alice Klein www.newscientist.com/article/2511...
Melatonin gummies as sleep aids for children: What are the risks?
To eliminate bedtime struggles, a growing number of parents have turned to melatonin gummies, but these hormone supplements are largely unregulated. Columnist Alice Klein digs into the evidence on the...
newscientist.com
Insightful @mjflepage.bsky.social on why measles is rising and what it'll take to win parents back www.newscientist.com/article/2513...
To halt measles' resurgence we must fight the plague of misinformation
The measles vaccine has prevented 60 million deaths since 2000. So why are so many children around the world missing out on it?
newscientist.com
The world, the universe and us is LIVE 🚨 @rowhoop.bsky.social, @pennysarchet.bsky.social and the team on: 🇬🇱 Why does America want Greenland? 🧬 Mystery of dark DNA 💉 Ozempic weight rebound podfollow.com/the-world-th...
The world, the universe and us
From the evolution of intelligent life, to the mysteries of consciousness; from the threat of the climate crisis to the search for dark matter, The world, the universe and us is your essential weekly ...
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The UK is finally making chickenpox vaccination available to children. The JCVI recommended this back in November 2023. In the meantime, there's been a two-tier system - richer families could pay approx £150 for the vaccine, while poorer kids got infected with a lifelong virus.
