Category: The Conversation – UK

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Marissa Martin, Analyst, Science and Emerging Technology Team, RAND Europe

More than 50 years after the last time humans walked on the Moon, China is working steadily towards landing its astronauts on the lunar surface.

On October 30, 2025, a spokesman for China’s crewed space programme said the country was “on track” to launch its lunar mission by 2030. So how does China plan to send astronauts to the Moon?

Among legislators and senior figures in the US space sector, China’s progress towards a crewed lunar mission has generated concern. Some fear damage to America’s status as a spacefaring nation if China lands before Nasa’s effort to return astronauts to the Moon.

The US space agency’s Artemis III mission should send the first American astronauts to the lunar surface since Apollo 17 in 1972. It is scheduled to launch in 2027, but delays could bring it much closer to Beijing’s planned lunar flight.

The approaching date for China’s crewed Moon mission represents a remarkable trajectory for the country. Beijing launched its first astronaut, Yang Liwei, to space in 2003, aboard the Shenzhou 5 mission. China’s decades-long preparation for a lunar landing mirrors the milestones or “firsts” that characterised the space race between the US and Soviet Union in the 1960s and 70s.

China has moved from its first astronaut mission to launching a pair of astronauts, followed by a three person mission, which featured the first spacewalk for a Chinese astronaut. The country has since built a space station, Tiangong, in low Earth orbit. When the International Space Station is retired in 2030, it will leave China as the only country with a permanent outpost in Earth orbit.

On October 31, the Shenzhou 21 flight launched three crew members to the Tiangong orbital outpost. They took over operations from three other Chinese astronauts who have been on the space station since April 2025. Such crew rotations are now the norm for China and further demonstrate the country’s impressive capabilities as it prepares for the lunar mission.

However, the three departing astronauts’ return to Earth has been delayed after their capsule was hit by space debris. It’s a reminder that space is a hostile environment, however routine missions might appear to be.

The way that China has steadily built its presence in space highlights its technological prowess. Since the 1970s, China has developed more than 20 types of its Long March family of rockets – with 16 active today.

According to the state-run China Daily, Long March rockets have a 97% success rate. That falls just slightly under the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket’s 99.46% success rate.

With its reliable launchers, China has been able to accurately plan and build realistic timelines for its space milestones. In August this year, China conducted a ground test of their newest Long March 10 model.

This model is meant to launch astronauts to the Moon aboard the next-generation Mengzhou crew capsule in 2030. This will replace the Shenzhou spacecraft which has been the workhorse for crewed missions up until now.

The spacecraft consists of two different sections, or modules: a crew module and a service module. The crew module carries the astronauts. The service module provides power, propulsion and life support for the crew module. The modular design allows it to be tailored to meet the requirements of different missions.

Officials envisage two versions initially: one for use in Earth orbit to ferry astronauts to and from the Tiangong space station and a deep space version designed for lunar missions.

The crew module will be able to carry up to six astronauts compared to Shenzhou’s three. The first flight for the Mengzhou spacecraft, without crew, is scheduled for next year.

Mengzhou will also carry a lunar lander, called Lanyue. This name originates from a poem written by the late Chinese head of state Mao Zedong and translates as “embracing the Moon”. Lanyue consists of two segments, a landing stage and a propulsion stage.

The landing stage carries the crew. The propulsion stage carries fuel for the landing and separates during the final stages of touching down on the Moon. Lanyue will weigh nearly 26 tonnes and will accommodate two astronauts for the trip to the lunar surface.

Testing of the lunar lander has been underway since 2024. A robotic prototype
is scheduled for trials in 2027 and 2028 and an uncrewed Mengzhou-Lanyue mission is planned for 2028 or 2029, ahead of the full crewed mission to the lunar surface in 2030.

In 2024, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) also unveiled the spacesuits designed to be used by astronauts on the Moon. At the unveiling event in Chonqing, a technician wearing the suit demonstrated its range of motion by crouching, bending over and climbing steps.

China will build on its successful robotic lunar exploration programme, which has already delivered several major milestones. These include the Chang’e-6 mission’s delivery of the world’s first samples from the far side of the Moon in June 2024, via a robotic probe. This headline-grabbing breakthrough underscored China’s growing technological reach in space.

China’s path to the Moon is realistic, feasible, and most importantly on track. Their multi-decade history in space means that it not only has the necessary know-how, but it also has what many other nations do not: a clear vision and deep pockets.

China was the second highest spender on government space programmes in 2024, though its US$19 billion spend was a remarkable US$60 billion less than that spent by the US. Its missions, at least on the face of it, are also subject to far less disruption through changing political winds.

A crewed Chinese lunar landing will carry profound symbolism, especially if the country gets there before Nasa’s planned return mission. But such a feat would go beyond simple prestige: “The countries that get there first will write the rules of the road for what we can do on the Moon,” former Nasa Associate Administrator Mike Gold told a recent US Senate hearing.

A Chinese Moon landing would enable the country to start shaping the rules, the research agendas and the geopolitical landscape of this new era in space.

Marissa Martin does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. China is going to the Moon by 2030. Here’s what’s known about the mission – and why it matters – https://theconversation.com/china-is-going-to-the-moon-by-2030-heres-whats-known-about-the-mission-and-why-it-matters-269306

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Sophie E Harrison, Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science, Bangor University, Bangor University

Marathons have quickly become a popular pursuit. Hundreds of thousands of people submit ballots each year to run in some of the most prestigious races. In 2024, a record number of people crossed the finish line at some of the world’s biggest marathons. If you haven’t run a marathon yourself, chances are you know someone who has.

While we know that running has a range of health benefits, including reducing your risk of illness, research also shows that runners are more likely to catch a cold after completing a marathon.

Scientists used to think this was caused by reduced immune function following prolonged exercise, alongside increased exposure to infection due to the large crowds that marathons attract. But our latest research shows that a person’s anxiety, stress and mood may also play a role in whether they’re more vulnerable to getting ill or not after a long run or marathon.

In our first study, we asked 406 runners to complete questionnaires about their anxiety and mood in the month and days before running a marathon. We also asked them to provide saliva samples before and after the race.

The mouth is one of the main routes of access for the majority of viruses and bacteria that cause respiratory infections. The saliva samples allowed us to detect whether there were signs that the defence systems that normally stop these pathogens from entering the body (known as mucosal immunity) were suppressed.

We then tracked their common cold symptoms during the two weeks after their marathon.

Runners who were more anxious generally and those who experienced greater mood disturbance before the race (such as anger, frustration or tension) were more likely to experience a respiratory infection during the two weeks after the marathon. They also had a greater reduction in mucosal immunity.

In the second study, we asked 45 adults to run on a treadmill for an hour inside our laboratory. We asked them to complete questionnaires about their anxiety, stress and mood before they completed the run. We also measured their mucosal immunity in saliva before and after the run.

Men with higher anxiety levels, stress levels and greater mood disturbance were more likely to have a reduction in mucosal immunity after the run compared to men who had lower anxiety and stress levels before the run.

When examining the influence of stress, anxiety and mood on the immune response to one hour of running in women, findings were not as clear cut. There are many potential reasons for this – with factors such as hormone fluctuations, contraceptive use and differences in immune response depending on menstrual cycle phase all potentially having an influence. It will be important for future studies to examine this.

Together, the findings from our studies indicate that people who are more stressed or anxious before a run might be at greater risk of getting sick or catching a cold. This effect seems to apply not only to marathon-length runs, but to moderate-length runs of around an hour, too.

Immune function

One possible reason for this link between stress and immunity is due to the way stress changes how the immune system functions.

Both psychological and physical stressors affect the body through similar mechanisms – specifically through the hypothalamic-pituitary axis and sympathetic-medullary axis. These pathways link the nervous system to the brain and play a role in the stress response. High psychological stress or prolonged exercise can suppress these axes and reduce immune function.

So when runners experience both psychological and physical stress, the impacts on the immune system might be more significant than if they were just experiencing psychological or physical stress alone.

For example, both mucosal immunity and the immune system’s ability to respond to new foreign pathogens are reduced following prolonged running in people with higher anxiety and stress levels. This shows just how significant the effects of both psychological stress and physical stress are when it comes to immune function.

But before you cancel that 10k or withdraw your marathon ballot, it’s important to remember that being physically active still reduces your risk of a respiratory infection compared to not exercising at all.

Physical activity also reduces risk of many other severe health conditions including cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes. Running can also be beneficial for reducing psychological stress and anxiety.

Instead, it’s important to prepare yourself well before your run by dealing with your stress and anxiety beforehand. Finding ways to reduce stress before a run should be treated the same way as you would ensure that you’re hydrated and fuelled well.

Some things you can do to reduce stress include relaxation exercises (such as breathwork, mindfulness or yoga) and getting a good night’s sleep.

It can also help to monitor stress, anxiety and mood so that you can identify when your stress or anxiety starts to increase – or when your mood begins to worsen. This will help you identify triggers and take proactive steps to reduce the impacts before things progress and become worse.

If you’re taking part in a race or marathon, some easy ways to reduce stress include:

• Planning your travel route in advance and allowing extra time to avoid rushing and stress
• If you can, try to arrive the night before the race to scope out your route
• Plan some “what if” or “if/then” strategies to be prepared to deal with anything unexpected on race day.

Of course, some of the best ways to avoid getting sick involve sticking to the tried and tested techniques – such as washing your hands properly (and avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth), aim to get at least seven hours of sleep each night, eat a well-balanced diet, plan a recovery week into your training every second or third week and never train if you have an injury.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Stress and anxiety before a marathon can leave runners at risk of getting sick – new research – https://theconversation.com/stress-and-anxiety-before-a-marathon-can-leave-runners-at-risk-of-getting-sick-new-research-267770

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Justin Stebbing, Professor of Biomedical Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University

The NHS is embarking on a trial that could cut prostate cancer diagnosis times from weeks to a single day. The initiative uses artificial intelligence to analyse MRI scans, potentially transforming care for men with the most commonly diagnosed cancer in England.

Up to 15 NHS hospitals, including Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, will pilot the system over the coming months, processing around 10,000 MRI scans. If successful, it could be rolled out nationally – though questions remain about accuracy, costs and whether faster diagnosis always means better outcomes.

The trial represents the NHS’s latest attempt to address both the emotional toll of prolonged uncertainty and the practical problem of late diagnoses that have long characterised prostate cancer care. For many men, the wait between initial suspicion and confirmed diagnosis is marked by weeks of anxiety, often while the disease progresses unchecked.

Currently, men suspected of having prostate cancer face a lengthy process. After a GP referral, it can take days or weeks to get an MRI scan, have it interpreted by a radiologist and undergo a follow-up biopsy if needed. A national shortage of radiologists has created significant bottlenecks, with some men waiting over a month for results.

The AI system changes this timeline. Once a man has had his MRI scan, the software analyses the images in minutes. Building on major researchstudies, it identifies abnormal areas and generates a probability score, mapping the exact location of suspicious lesions in the prostate.

When the software flags a scan as high-risk, it is immediately prioritised for review by a human radiologist, and the patient can be booked for a biopsy the same day. For lower-risk scans, men could receive reassuring news almost immediately rather than enduring weeks of anxious waiting.

The system aims to deliver what clinicians describe as accuracy and speed that rivals traditional methods. In some settings, AI analysis has matched or exceeded human radiologist performance, though real-world implementation will test whether laboratory results translate to busy NHS hospitals.

The case for speed

Prostate cancer is now the most commonly diagnosed cancer among men in England, with about one in eight men expected to be affected in their lifetime. The number of diagnoses has risen steadily, and too many men are still diagnosed when the disease is already advanced, making survival less likely and treatment more challenging.

Reducing diagnostic delay could save lives, though diagnosing some cancers earlier isn’t always better. Some slow-growing prostate cancers may never cause symptoms or shorten life, and early detection can lead to unnecessary treatment and its associated side effects. The challenge is distinguishing aggressive cancers that need urgent intervention from those that can be safely monitored.

There is also troubling variability in cancer diagnosis across the UK, with significant differences in waiting times and outcomes depending on where a patient lives. By making specialist analysis instantly available regardless of whether a hospital has a subspecialist radiologist on hand, every man, regardless of location, could theoretically benefit from the same standard of diagnostic assessment.

The system also promises to ease pressure on NHS teams. By handling initial MRI interpretation, the AI frees up radiologist time to focus on complex or urgent cases. This matters particularly given workforce pressures – the NHS has struggled to recruit and retain enough radiologists to meet growing demand.

As the NHS seeks to do more with strained resources, AI-driven tools have the potential to save time and money.

The AI won’t work alone

The technology is designed to work alongside clinicians rather than replace them. AI acts as a “second reader”, complementing radiologist expertise to ensure nothing is missed. The aim is faster and more reliable decisions – sparing men unnecessary biopsies for benign conditions while swiftly directing those with troubling signs to the right care.

This partnership approach is considered crucial. Although AI can process vast amounts of imaging data rapidly, human judgment remains essential for interpreting results in the context of each patient’s individual circumstances, medical history and symptoms. The technology is not intended to make final diagnostic decisions, but to augment clinical decision-making.

Recent research suggests that most men would welcome the invitation to take part in a national screening programme, countering assumptions about reluctance to engage with health checks. As confidence grows in AI-powered diagnostics, this could encourage more men to come forward for testing, potentially catching cancers earlier in those most at risk.

Whether the pilot delivers on its promise of reducing the time from referral to diagnosis – and whether speed translates to better outcomes – will become clearer over the coming months. The results will be closely watched by other health services considering similar approaches.

Justin Stebbing does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. NHS trials AI tool for faster prostate cancer diagnosis – https://theconversation.com/nhs-trials-ai-tool-for-faster-prostate-cancer-diagnosis-268932

Source: The Conversation – UK – By David C. Gaze, Senior Lecturer in Chemical Pathology, University of Westminster

For generations, medicine treated the heart and brain as separate domains. However, a new study suggests the two are more closely connected than we thought, especially as we age.

A 25-year study of nearly 6,000 adults found that subtle heart muscle damage in middle age predicts dementia risk decades later.

The research, known as the Whitehall study, tracked UK civil servants aged 45 to 69 and measured levels of a protein called “cardiac troponin I” in their blood. Troponin I appears in the blood when heart cells are damaged and is used to help diagnose heart attacks.

The protein is detected using a standard blood test. These tests have become more sensitive in recent years, so even very small amounts of troponin can now be detected – levels far below those seen in a heart attack – and these small changes can signal many other conditions.

In the Whitehall study, people with the highest levels of troponin I in midlife were 38% more likely to be diagnosed with dementia later in life than those with the lowest levels. These small increases don’t cause obvious symptoms, such as chest pain, but they suggest the heart is under strain even if a person feels fine.

Over 25 years, people with higher starting troponin levels were more likely to develop dementia than those with lower levels. For every doubling of troponin, dementia risk rose by 10%, even after considering age, sex, blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes and other cardiac risk factors.

Fifteen years into the study, MRI brain scans of 641 participants showed clear differences. Those who had the highest midlife troponin levels had smaller grey-matter volume and more shrinkage of the hippocampus, the area important for memory, compared with the low troponin group. This was similar to around three extra years of ageing in the brain.

Why does heart health in your 50s foretell brain decline decades later? The answer lies in circulation.

The brain relies on a constant, rich blood supply. If the heart pumps less efficiently, or if the arteries are stiff and narrow due to atherosclerosis, the brain’s delicate network of small vessels become starved of oxygen. This chronic low-grade damage can accelerate the processes that lead to dementia.

The same study found that people with higher midlife troponin levels also experienced faster declines in memory and reasoning over time. By age 90, their cognitive performance was equivalent to that of people two years older than those with lower troponin levels.

Matters of the heart

These results fit neatly with what is already known. The 2024 Lancet Commission on dementia estimated that 17% of dementia cases could be prevented or delayed by improving cardiovascular health, through lowering blood pressure, managing cholesterol, staying active, and avoiding smoking and excess alcohol.

Likewise, an earlier analysis from the same Whitehall cohort showed that people with good cardiovascular health at age 50 were less likely to develop dementia 25 years later. Taken together, the message is simple: what’s good for the heart is good for the brain.

The two organs share a vascular network, and damage to one inevitably affects the other. Yet the long time lag uncovered by the Whitehall study suggests that troponin elevations seen up to 25 years before dementia onset, pathological processes linking the heart and brain start far earlier than first thought.

Raised troponin doesn’t guarantee dementia. Levels can fluctuate with age, kidney function or even after vigorous exercise. But as a population marker, troponin may identify people whose cardiovascular systems are already under stress while they still feel healthy.

The idea that a single blood test in middle age might one day help flag those at higher risk of cognitive decline is appealing, not as a diagnosis but as an early warning.

Medicine often divides the body into organ systems, each treated in isolation. This study reminds us that biology doesn’t respect those boundaries. A struggling heart doesn’t just affect circulation – it may, quietly and imperceptibly, change the brain’s future too.

David C. Gaze does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Poor heart health in middle age linked to dementia in old age – new study – https://theconversation.com/poor-heart-health-in-middle-age-linked-to-dementia-in-old-age-new-study-269324

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Hussein Boon, Principal Lecturer – Music, University of Westminster

Spanish singer-songwriter Rosalía’s highly anticipated album LUX has been met with widespread acclaim from critics and fans alike. It’s a fusion of ideas drawn from diverse storytelling traditions, cultures and languages, offering a rich tapestry that rewards repeated listening.

The album explores perennial themes – love, betrayal, abandonment – alongside spiritual and divine motifs. The result is a pop record with substance and bite. Critics have debated whether LUX should be classified as pop or classical music.

But this binary misses the point. The presence of operatic, orchestral and symphonic influences and flourishes doesn’t necessarily make the album classical any more than driving a high-performance car makes someone an F1 driver.

What LUX demonstrates is Rosalía’s attention to detail, technical mastery and stylistic fluency. Much of this was honed through nine years of rigorous training at the prestigious Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya school in Barcelona.

The video for the first single, Berghain, exemplifies Rosalía’s visual and narrative expressiveness. It melds high fashion and urban grit reminiscent of films like The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1989) or The Devil Wears Prada (2006).

In the video, Rosalía can be seen carrying out everyday activities – like ironing or going to the doctor – within grand, orchestral settings. This creates a surreal yet relatable tableau, a recurring aspect of her videographic work with director Nicolás Méndez.

Speaking about the project, Méndez has highlighted the influence of Rosalía’s sister, Pili, who is integral in these shared projects. Rosalía recalled a tense discussion with her sister about Motomami, which forced her to reflect on why she made music and the depth of feeling she conveyed in her songs and recordings.

Multilingualism is another hallmark of LUX, which features songs in 14 languages, including Catalan, Mandarin, Ukrainian and English. Languages are used to support one of the album’s most compelling devices – its use of sainthood as a multifaceted storytelling vessel.

Rosalía draws inspiration from female saints worldwide, not only from Judeo-Christian traditions but also from Islam, Hinduism and Taoism. These figures allow her to explore the tension between earthly hardship and spiritual transcendence. The stories offer a framework through which personal and collective struggles are elevated to the divine.

Rosalía is no stranger to literary adaptation. Her 2018 song Malamente, from the album El Mal Querer, fused flamenco with contemporary R&B and hip-hop production. It drew on the 13th-century Occitan romance Flamenca, a tale of love, jealousy and courtly intrigue.

In Flamenca, the titular noblewoman is imprisoned by her jealous husband Archambaut, but she orchestrates a secret romance with the knight Guillaume, outwitting her captor. Rosalía’s adaptation of this story in both song and video underscores her commitment to storytelling as a central artistic practice.

Rosalía the troubadour

At the heart of Rosalía’s work lies an older tradition: the troubadour. These poet-musicians, including women known as trobairitz, composed some of the earliest vernacular songs of courtly love.

As expert in material culture in medieval texts E. Jane Burns has noted, these love songs often served as “an expression of female resistance to marital, moral, and legal constraint”. This historical lens reframes lyrics of love and devotion as a site of agency and defiance; ideas that resonate deeply in Rosalía’s work.

Some listeners may argue that LUX should be recognised as classical, especially with an eye towards awards season. However, it may be more accurate to say that it draws from classical traditions – musical, literary and visual – while remaining firmly rooted in popular culture.

It is essential to remember that flamenco, a disciplined folk form, serves as the foundation for her work, both technically and emotionally, while literary references and saintly iconography enhance the narrative.

Rosalía’s ability to weave sound, story, and spectacle into a cohesive whole exemplifies what popular music can achieve when at its best: a space where tradition and innovation meet, and where the personal becomes universal. No wonder Madonna has called her a “true visionary”.

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Hussein Boon does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. LUX: the tradition of the troubadour is at the heart of Rosalía’s songwriting – https://theconversation.com/lux-the-tradition-of-the-troubadour-is-at-the-heart-of-rosalias-songwriting-269429

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Tory Young, Associate Professor in Department of English Literature, Anglia Ruskin University

Canadian-born, Hungarian-British writer David Szalay has won the Booker prize for his novel, Flesh. It follows the eventful life of one Hungarian, István, from his teen years to middle age.

The novel begins when István, aged 15, and his mother move to a new town – “it’s not an easy age to do that”. Although he struggles to make friends, he hangs out with “another solitary individual” who asks him if he’s “ever done it”. This new friend sets him up with “a girl” but nothing happens. István is confused by this and his blank passivity sets the tone for the novel and his life.

Within only a few pages, an older woman neighbour for whom he’s undertaking chores at the behest of his mother, grooms him into a sexual relationship. It ends in tragedy when he falls in love with her and pushes her husband down the stairs, to his death.

Put crudely, István is motivated by sex and acts with violence. But this misrepresents the novel and its power. Rather than presenting a cliché of brute manhood, Szalay portrays a man who is simply responsive to the world around him. István’s emotions and tragedies are often left out of the third-person storytelling, as if they cannot be explained. Other men in the novel are equally uncommunicative.

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Read more:
Booker prize 2025: the six shortlisted books, reviewed by experts

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It’s a propulsive novel that’s quite quick to read because sparse dialogue is interspersed with István’s blank thoughts. He responds to declarations of love and desire with a mere “OK” or acknowledgement that: “He hadn’t actually known what he was about to say.” This is what is so singular about the storytelling of Flesh; it is spare rather than voluptuous, trimmed to the bone rather than fleshy.

There are jumps between chapters. We don’t hear about István’s time in a young offenders’ institution or anything at all about his father, for example. But we learn during an exit interview from the army that he’s “a brave man” and it’s clear that he is attractive to women, who perhaps perceive his taciturnity as masculine. We don’t hear what they think either.

Flesh wouldn’t pass the Bechdel test – a criteria for films that stipulates they should feature at least two named women who have a conversation about something other than a man. The novel is entirely focused on István’s point of view and all the women, apart from his mother, are those he chances upon – other men’s wives, the nanny employed by the family he works for – and then has a sexual relationship with. Sex comes his way; women try and fail to get him to talk.

Good fortune arrives along with the tragedies. István moves to London, working as a bouncer until, in another chance encounter and moment of fearlessness, he helps a man who wishes to repay this act. He offers to employ him in his private security agency. Like the women in the novel, men are also eager to exploit István’s physicality. This man grooms him for “higher-end work”, by paying for expensive suits and the necessary training courses, which István finds populated half by “foreigners, mainly from Eastern Europe”. It’s the start of his ascent into wealthy, sometimes corrupt, London society.

“Flesh” then refers to the way István is seen, as only a body, a member of the new working classes whose lives are defined by precarity. Kept outside, overhearing only his bare responses – “OK” – readers become complicit in this failure to consider all that man is. And it is precisely this innovative, spare narration that makes the novel so deeply affecting.

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This article features references to books that have been included for editorial reasons, and may contain links to bookshop.org. If you click on one of the links and go on to buy something from bookshop.org The Conversation UK may earn a commission.

Tory Young does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. David Szalay’s Flesh wins the Booker prize – a deeply affecting novel about masculinity – https://theconversation.com/david-szalays-flesh-wins-the-booker-prize-a-deeply-affecting-novel-about-masculinity-269523

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Anna Walker, Senior Arts + Culture Editor, The Conversation

Jane Austen’s Paper Trail is a podcast from The Conversation celebrating 250 years since Jane Austen’s birth. In each episode, we’ll be investigating a different aspect of Austen’s personality by interrogating one of her novels with leading Austen researchers. Along the way we’ll visit locations important to Austen to uncover a particular aspect of her life and the times she lived in. In episode 2, we look at Jane the romantic, through the pages of Pride and Prejudice.

Every heroine in a Jane Austen novel ends up married. It is the bow on the end of every story that ties up all the loose threads – seemingly the ultimate happy ending. However, while marriage is an conclusion she chose for her characters, it is not one she chose for herself.

Austen did have suitors – most famously the dashing Irishman Thomas Lefroy, with whom she had a brief but intense flirtation. There were even proposals, notably one in 1802 from Harris Bigg-Wither, the wealthy brother of a friend, which she accepted only to promptly break off the very next morning.

It seems likely that Austen chose singledom, even though she was clearly preoccupied with romance and marriage. Many readers consider her one of history’s greatest writers of romance.

That her novels centre on love and marriage has sometimes led critics to dismiss them as light or frivolous. But beneath every courtship and proposal lies a sharp commentary on class, money, morality and the limited choices available to women in Georgian England.

Austen’s heroines are smart, capable women – often more so than the men in their lives, many of whom have made choices that have left their families in financial straits. But these middle-class women are unable to work and so must pursue the only option really available to them, marriage.

Nowhere is this tension clearer than in Austen’s second novel, Pride and Prejudice. Published in 1813, it follows Elizabeth Bennet – bright, outspoken, and sceptical of society’s conventions. Unluckily for her, she has a mother who is obsessed with securing suitable marriages for her and her four sisters – an obsession that is sent into overdrive when the eligible Mr Bingley moves into the neighbourhood, bringing his arrogant but equally eligible friend Mr Darcy with him.

In the second episode of Jane Austen’s Paper Trail, as we explore romance in the world of Jane Austen, Naomi Joseph visits a Regency ball at the Grand Assembly Rooms in York with Meg Kobza. An expert in the Georgian social calendar, at Newcastle University, Kobza has produced similar recreations at the Bath Assembly Rooms – where Austen attended balls and was courted by several men.

As dancers in all manner of Regency dress attempt a minuet in the soft candlelight of the main ballroom, Kobza helps us understand the complicated relationship Austen had with romance.

Over the course of Pride and Prejudice, Lizzie, and the other women in her life, must navigate their feelings on the whole institution of marriage. There are marriages of convenience, potentially socially ruinous unions, hasty weddings, quiet passions and, of course, love matches – and Austen seems to have opinions on them all.

“Jane herself was dependent on her father and then later her brothers for financial security. And we see in many of her novels financial security is driving a lot of her heroines to opt for or against certain matches,” says Kobza. “If you didn’t get married at all, you became a spinster, you’re a burden to your family.”

Later on in the episode, Anna Walker takes a deeper dive into Austen’s view of romance in Pride and Prejudice with two more experts. Octavia Cox is a lecturer in 18th and 19th century literature at the University of Oxford, and founder of the popular YouTube channel All Things Classic Literature. Joining her round the table is Adam J. Smith, an associate professor in English literature at York, St. John University who researches satire and the gothic, romantic and sentimental genres.

As Cox explains, Pride and Prejudice is “a joyful love story in that the two central characters, Darcy and Lizzie talk about and value happiness and how to achieve happiness. But there’s a lot more going on too.” Smith agrees: “The more I read Austen, the more I feel that all of the books are really about how to read and understand and interpret the world.”

Listen to episode 2 of Jane Austen’s Paper Trail wherever you get your podcasts. If you’re craving more Austen, check out our Jane Austen 250 page for more expert articles celebrating the anniversary.

Disclosure statement:

Meg Kobza recieved funding from the Leverhulme Trust and the British Academy and the Society of Antiquaries funded the Bath fancy dress pop up ball and exhibition.

Adam J Smith sits on the Senate of the British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, which is a registered charity.

Octavia Cox does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

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Jane Austen’s Paper Trail is hosted by Anna Walker with reporting from Jane Wright and Naomi Joseph. Senior producer and sound designer is Eloise Stevens and the executive producer is Gemma Ware. Artwork by Alice Mason and Naomi Joseph.

Listen to The Conversation Weekly via any of the apps listed above, download it directly via our RSS feed or find out how else to listen here.

– ref. Jane Austen perfected the love story – but kept her own independence – https://theconversation.com/jane-austen-perfected-the-love-story-but-kept-her-own-independence-269048

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Gabrielle Samuel, Lecturer in Environmental Justice and Health, Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, King’s College London

Environmental deaths in the UK are primarily attributed to air pollution, which the Royal College of Physicians estimates contributed to around 30,000 deaths in 2025, costing the economy billions each year. Other environmental risks include climate-related events such as extreme heat, which could cause tens of thousands of deaths annually, and pollutants from diesel emissions or home wood-burning stoves.

But environmental harm does not fall evenly. It is shaped by race and social class. The unequal distribution of risk and damage, known as environmental racism, is systemic, not accidental. It is the product of decades of inequity and political neglect.

In many countries, marginalised communities are more likely to live with polluted air, unsafe water and toxic land. In England, for example, data shows people from ethnic minority backgrounds are around three times more likely than white people to live in neighbourhoods with high air pollution.

A joint Greenpeace UK and Runnymede Trust report found that communities of colour are disproportionately affected by waste incinerators, poor housing quality and limited access to green space.

Environmental racism shows up in decisions about where factories are built, whose neighbourhoods get green spaces, whose water systems are upgraded, and who lives next to landfills, toxic waste facilities or heavy-polluting industries. Put bluntly, some communities are forced to carry the weight of environmental damage so others do not have to.

The term gained prominence in the US in the late 20th century when low-income communities of colour mobilised around anti-waste and anti-dumping campaigns. The 1987 toxic wastes and race report by the United Church of Christ showed that hazardous waste facilities were overwhelmingly located in minority and low-income areas.

It helped launch the modern environmental justice movement, which crystallised in 1991 at the first National People of Colour Environmental Leadership Summit, where delegates drafted the seventeen principles of environmental justice.

Since then, evidence of environmental racism has been documented worldwide — from the siting of polluting industries and the dumping of waste in the global south to unequal access to renewable energy and the health impacts of climate change itself.

Where we live is one of the strongest predictors of our health. When environments are unsafe, polluted or neglected, the consequences are devastating. The World Health Organization estimates that environmental factors contribute to nearly one-quarter of all deaths worldwide and almost 20% of cancers. Living with constant exposure to hazards also takes a toll on mental health, fuelling stress, anxiety and despair.

In the UK, air pollution remains the single biggest environmental threat to health. It is linked to asthma, heart disease and respiratory illness.

Yet exposure is not equally distributed. Local emissions from transport, heating and industry are higher on average in more deprived areas. A 2024 study also showed that, even after accounting for deprivation, minoritised ethnic groups in England remain exposed to higher levels of harmful emissions.

These environmental burdens do not just damage lungs; they affect livelihoods. Poor health means missed work or school, deepening financial and educational struggles. Families who want to move to safer areas often cannot afford to, trapping communities in a cycle of disadvantage.

There are, however, signs of progress. Recent data show that ethnic minorities’ exposure to air pollution in England fell from 13% above the national average in 2003 to 6% in 2023.

This narrowing reflects two decades of cleaner-air policies: low-emission zones, stricter vehicle standards and tighter industrial regulation. Yet it also reflects residential shifts, as some families move away from heavily polluted urban centres, rather than the full dismantling of structural inequalities.

So while the trend is encouraging, it does not mean environmental racism has been solved. As the Race Equality Foundation warns, the UK still lacks a coordinated strategy that explicitly addresses race and class disparities in environmental exposure, community consultation and land-use decision-making.

Polluted air, toxic stress and systemic neglect become embodied as disease — quite literally getting “under the skin”, as public health scholar Nancy Krieger puts it. The damage accumulates across lifetimes and generations.

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Read more:
Who controls the air we breathe at home? Awaab’s law and the limits of individual actions

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Environmental racism is not just an environmental issue. It is a health issue, a justice issue and a life-or-death issue. That reality places a moral obligation on governments, institutions and industries to act.

But history shows that change rarely comes easily. Too often, action only follows public outrage, and solutions are framed as technical fixes — treating the symptoms rather than the causes. Those causes are about power: who holds it, who benefits from it, and who is left to suffer its consequences.

Dismantling environmental racism requires more than installing air filters or building treatment plants. It demands a reckoning with history and a redistribution of power – giving the communities most affected a real seat at the table when decisions are made. Only then can we begin to talk about health for all.

Gabrielle Samuel does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Pollution, poverty and power: the real cost of environmental inequality in the UK – https://theconversation.com/pollution-poverty-and-power-the-real-cost-of-environmental-inequality-in-the-uk-263936

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Maha Rafi Atal, Adam Smith Senior Lecturer in Political Economy, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow

The Cop30 climate summit is under way in Brazil under the shadow of US president Donald Trump’s second term. Delegates from around the world have poured into the Amazonian port of Belém for the conference, which promises to focus on economic development and the fight against global poverty, as well as green tech and finance.

For the first time in three decades of the talks, there are no high-level US officials expected at Cop30. Since taking office in January, the Trump administration has withdrawn the United States from the Paris climate agreement, dismantled key environmental regulations, and scrapped Biden-era tax credits which were designed to promote wind and solar power.

And now Trump’s aggressive tariff policy is rippling through the global economy, forcing countries to rethink how they balance trade and climate commitments.

For the UK, the consequences are particularly acute. Post-Brexit, Britain must maintain close regulatory alignment with the European Union on many goods. This effectively means that despite having quit the EU, the UK voluntarily follows its single market rules in some sectors in order to minimise trade friction.

For its part, the bloc has made compliance with European environmental standards a requirement for firms in key sectors looking to export into the EU market. Under this regulation, a foreign company selling products to European consumers must report on the carbon footprint of their factories overseas. Companies are fined per unit of carbon emitted before the product gets to the EU.

To be exempt, companies will have to show that the foreign countries where the good was produced impose an equivalent type of carbon regulation to that in EU law.

These “carbon border” mechanisms are vital for cutting emissions in a globalised economy. The UK has committed to introducing a similar measure to some of the most polluting sectors (such as steel, aluminium, cement and fertiliser) in 2027.

At the same time, the UK government hopes that closer trade with the United States will drive economic growth. But the Trump administration is pressuring its European partners to relax environmental standards, or exempt US companies from complying with them, in exchange for tariff relief. This could leave the UK caught between its two most important allies.

Race to the bottom

The ripple effects extend far beyond Europe. With the carbon border increasing the cost of exports to the EU and Trump’s tariffs doing the same for access to US markets, many countries are seeking new trading routes.

This creates openings for major carbon emitters such as China, Russia and the Gulf states to expand their influence through deals with developing nations that are unable to pay the premium for entry into US or European markets.

The result could be the creation of “sacrifice zones” – regions that become dumping grounds for high-emission products such as electronics or vehicles made with steel or aluminium produced using cheaper, less sustainable production methods. This both damages local environments and deepens global inequality in the transition to a more sustainable economy.

Meanwhile, tariffs are expected to slow down global economic growth. Businesses are diverting funds from investment and job creation to cover the extra cost of trade barriers – potentially wiping US$2 trillion (£1.5 trillion) off world GDP over the next two years.

That shortfall could have serious implications for Cop30, where rich countries will be asked to increase financial support for poorer nations so that they can build renewable energy systems and recover from climate-related disasters such as floods and wildfires.

Amid all the uncertainty that Trump is creating with his impulsive and inconsistent approach to trade, governments may feel that they cannot afford to make these commitments right now. But the planet cannot afford for them to wait.

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The Conversation and LSE’s International Inequalities Institute have teamed up for a special online event on Tuesday, November 18 from 5pm-6.30pm. Join experts from the worlds of business, taxation and government policy as they discuss the difficult choices facing Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her budget. Sign up for free here

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Maha Rafi Atal does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. How Trump’s trade policies are weakening international climate commitments – https://theconversation.com/how-trumps-trade-policies-are-weakening-international-climate-commitments-269409

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Nicola Walshe, Professor of Education, UCL

Education about climate change and sustainability is a vital part of responding to a rapidly changing world, including the negative effects of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.

Teachers, including in Brazil and England, help young people live with futures shaped by local and global environmental challenges. However, despite expressing overwhelming concern about issues related to climate change and sustainability, many teachers do not feel equipped to teach it in schools.

Urgent action from policymakers is needed to support them.

Teachers shape how young people understand and respond to environmental crises. Without proper support, students risk leaving school unprepared for some of the most urgent challenges of our time: this is a societal risk, not just an educational issue.

Despite public demand for action in response to climate change, schools often lack the expertise and resources to realise this. Empowering teachers means building stronger communities: when well-equipped teachers foster agency and action, not just knowledge and skills.

Young people can bring ideas home, influence families and drive local change. So climate change and sustainability education becomes a catalyst for resilience and transformation, essential for preparing the next generation to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

Leaders from across the world are coming together in Brazil to discuss progress and negotiate actions in response to climate change as part of an annual UN climate summit (Cop30). This provides a vital opportunity to underline for global leaders the support that teachers and schools need.

Over the last few years, we have worked with hundreds of teachers in both England and Brazil to explore their experiences of teaching climate change and sustainability. Teachers have shared with us the barriers they experience related to climate change and sustainability education and the support they need to overcome them. While there is diversity in terms of geographical context, there are many commonalities.

Barriers

Education systems which have a rigid national curriculum with an emphasis on high-stakes examinations create barriers for teachers in both England and Brazil. Existing systems require teachers to prioritise examination content which frequently has limited focus on climate change and sustainability topics.

Teachers in both countries reported challenges in teaching climate change and sustainability in ways that underlined the real-world relevance to the lives of the young people they teach.

Another limitation is the lack of opportunities for professional learning that support teachers in integrating climate change and sustainability into their teaching. This gap exists throughout their careers, such that they frequently share they have insufficient or insecure knowledge and understanding of climate change and sustainability issues. This lowers teachers’ confidence and limits their classroom practices.

Boosts

Governments can better support teachers by ensuring that climate change and sustainability is explicitly recognised and valued in local, regional and national policies that govern schools. This could include national curricula, professional standards for teachers and school leaders and school-inspection frameworks.

Teachers in both England and Brazil recognise how important it is to have school leaders who value climate change and sustainability and how – when school leaders provide a culture of support across the school community – this is transformational for climate change and sustainability education.

All teachers can benefit from high-quality professional learning focused on climate change and sustainability education from the beginning of their careers and throughout their professional lives. When teachers have the time and support to co-design learning – with each other and with their students – which draws on different ways of understanding climate change and sustainability issues, this builds teacher confidence and provides richer learning experiences for children and young people.

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Read more:
Three ways for schools to make climate education inclusive for all children

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Climate change and sustainability education is essential for preparing young people to navigate and shape a rapidly changing world, but teachers cannot carry this responsibility alone.

By embedding climate change and sustainability in curricula and supporting career-long professional learning for teachers, classrooms can be transformed into sites of agency and local action. This can amplify young people’s influence in their communities and reduce a wider societal risk of leaving a generation unprepared.

Cop30 offers a timely moment for leaders to commit to support for teachers so that policy matches public concern and evidence-based practice translates into real-world resilience.

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Nicola Walshe acknowledges the significant input of our co-researcher Lizzie Rushton, Danielle Aparecida Reis Leite for her support with the in-person workshop in Brazil, and the contribution of colleagues based at the UCL Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education in the creation and implementation of the Teacher survey. Thanks also go to the teachers in England and Brazil who contributed to the research. This work was supported by funding from UCL Institute of Education’s Strategic Investment Board.

Denise Quiroz Martinez and Luciano Fernandes Silva do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. How to empower teachers and help students prepare for a sustainable future – https://theconversation.com/how-to-empower-teachers-and-help-students-prepare-for-a-sustainable-future-268689