Category: The Conversation – UK

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Travis LaCroix, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Durham University

For four decades, a controversial idea has shaped how autism is understood by researchers, healthcare professionals and the public: the claim that autistic people are “mind blind”. The phrase suggests an inability to grasp what others think or feel. It is simple, memorable – and wrong.

The claim rests on a concept called “theory of mind”. In everyday terms, theory of mind is the ability to recognise that other people’s thoughts, beliefs and emotions may differ from your own. This idea explains why someone understands that a joke can fall flat, that a promise can be broken, or that a friend can be mistaken without lying. It is often presented as the key to how people make sense of one another.

The idea entered psychology in the late 1970s, when researchers began asking how children learn to reason about other minds. Simple stories were designed to test this ability, often involving a character who holds a false belief. If a child could predict that the character would act on that belief, they were taken to have a theory of mind. These tasks quickly became a standard tool in developmental research.

In 1985, one such test was used in a study of autistic children. In the “Sally-Anne” task, a doll (Sally) hides a marble, leaves the room, and returns after another doll (Anne) has moved it. Asked where Sally will look, many autistic children in that study gave the “wrong” answer. This finding was interpreted as evidence that autistic children lacked theory of mind.

The Sally-Anne test

From this experiment, a vast research programme followed. New tasks multiplied: reading emotions from photos of eyes, interpreting short stories, judging intentions from animated shapes.

Across the late 1980s and 1990s, scientific papers and popular media represented autism as defined by a core failure to understand minds. The theory stuck, appearing in academic articles, textbooks, court rulings and popular science writing.

The problem is that the evidence never supported the claim. Even in the original study, one in five autistic children passed the task. Later research found huge variation. Some studies showed most autistic participants passing theory-of-mind tests; others found little or no difference between autistic and non-autistic groups. A theory meant to describe a key deficit kept running into exceptions.

More troubling is the tests themselves. Many rely heavily on language. Performance is often better predicted by vocabulary level than whether someone is autistic.

Different theory-of-mind tasks also fail to line up with one another, suggesting they are not measuring a single underlying ability at all. If an ability cannot be measured consistently, claims about its absence become doubtful.

At this point, a straightforward scientific response would have been to reconsider the theory. Instead, it was repeatedly patched.

When autistic people passed a task, researchers argued that the task was too simple. New, more complex tasks were introduced, which produced the same mixed results. When findings contradicted the core idea, the definition of “theory of mind” quietly expanded to include eye contact, joint attention, or social motivation.

When science stops testing

This pattern matters because of what it says about how science works. Drawing on the philosophy of science, my recent analysis argues that theory-of-mind research in autism has become “degenerating”. Rather than generating new, risky predictions, the theory survives by shifting definitions and goalposts to avoid being disproved. When no possible result counts against a theory, it stops being scientific. In a subsequent response to commentators, I explore why the theory-of-mind paradigm has persisted despite its deep empirical and conceptual difficulties.

Questioning this idea did not come from a single paper or field. Psychologists, linguists, and philosophers all raised concerns. So did autistic people, whose everyday experiences often flatly contradicted the idea that they lacked insights into others.

Studies began to show that non-autistic people are just as poor at interpreting autistic expressions as the reverse. Social misunderstanding, it turns out, goes both ways.

That insight helped fuel alternative approaches. One approach frames communication breakdowns as mutual mismatches between different styles of thinking and communicating, rather than deficits located in autistic people.

Another focuses on differences in attention and interest, offering an explanation of perception, motivation and learning. These approaches generate new, testable questions and align more closely with people’s actual experiences.

Today, the field is at a crossroads. The idea that autistic people are mind blind lacks a secure foundation. Its empirical support has weakened, and its assumptions are increasingly questioned. What remains is its influence. When educators or healthcare professionals assume a lack of empathy, they are less likely to trust autistic people’s own accounts or involve them in decisions that affect their lives.

Abandoning this myth does not weaken autism science. It strengthens it. Social understanding is not absent in autism; it is shaped differently, expressed in different contexts, and often overlooked when the wrong tools are used. Autistic people are not mind blind. They think and understand differently, and the evidence has pointed that way for some time. It’s time science reflected that.

Travis LaCroix received funding from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (Canada).

– ref. No, autistic people are not ‘mind blind’ – here’s why – https://theconversation.com/no-autistic-people-are-not-mind-blind-heres-why-272848

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Tilly Clough, Lecturer in Law, Queen’s University Belfast

Private schools in England are facing new financial realities. Following the UK general election in July 2024, the new government introduced VAT on school fees and removed charitable business rates relief for independent schools. At the same time, staffing costs have continued to rise. Employer national insurance contributions have increased, and the national minimum wage has risen.

For some schools – particularly smaller institutions with limited endowments or declining enrolments – this has raised questions about their sustainability.

Although the full impact of these funding changes remains to be seen, they have intensified concerns about sustainability within parts of the independent sector and raised broader questions about reform.

One viable yet underexplored option is the conversion of private schools to the state sector.

Although still relatively rare, a small number of independent schools have taken this route over the past two decades. In a new report, commissioned by thinktank the Private Education Policy Forum, my colleague Tom Richmond and I have carried out the first comprehensive analysis of what happens when independent schools become state schools in England.

Between 2007 and 2017, 27 independent schools converted into state-funded academies or free schools. Twenty-four are still operating today. While the legal route from independent to state provision technically still exists, it has largely fallen out of use, with no conversions taking place since 2017. Independent to state conversion is therefore often overlooked in debates about the future of private education.

Conversion is often viewed as a last resort taken only by schools in serious financial trouble. However, while financial pressures were relevant to many of the schools that converted between 2007 and 2017, they were not the whole story. Schools have also framed conversion as a way to return to their founding missions, which were often explicitly about inclusion and serving local communities rather than educating a fee-paying intake.

The transition itself was not straightforward. Schools reported significant challenges in adapting to the expectations of the state sector. These included the loss of academic selection, the requirement to deliver the national curriculum, and regular inspections by Ofsted, England’s school inspectorate. Many also highlighted the absence of clear guidance from government on key aspects of the conversion process.

In practical terms, this meant that schools which had previously operated with considerable autonomy had to adjust to a far more regulated environment. In some cases, early Ofsted inspections highlighted weaknesses in data use, governance and oversight as schools adjusted to the demands of state accountability.

However, these difficulties were not permanent. Over time, outcomes improved markedly. All but one of the schools that converted and remained open are now rated “good” or “outstanding” by Ofsted.

Former independent primary schools perform at broadly similar levels than other schools in their local authorities. Former independent secondary schools generally achieve stronger attainment and progress outcomes than nearby state schools, though performance varies. Initial adjustment challenges, in other words, did not prevent long-term success.

The consequences – and the future

One of the most significant changes following conversion is in pupil intake.

Removing academic selection and fees transformed who these schools serve. Since conversion, the proportion of pupils with special educational needs has more than doubled. The share eligible for free school meals has risen sharply.

Research has shown that while these schools do not perfectly mirror the national state school population, the gap between them and their local communities has narrowed dramatically.

In many cases, they are far more representative of their surrounding areas than they were as independent institutions. Conversion does not simply change how a school is funded. It can reshape who benefits from its facilities and educational offer.

A common concern is that families will withdraw their children once fees are removed. In practice, this rarely appears to have happened at scale.

Consultation evidence and enrolment patterns show that large majorities of parents supported the move, particularly because it eliminated fees and provided financial certainty. Where schools were required to demonstrate parental demand, applications frequently exceeded available places. Widespread collapse in enrolment – a frequently voiced fear – did not materialise.

Conversion to the state sector is not a solution for every school. Local context matters. The availability of places, building condition and leadership capacity all shape whether conversion is viable. But, the experience of the past two decades suggests that, where carefully managed, conversion can preserve provision, widen access and deliver strong outcomes.

As debates about school funding and the future of private education continue, independent to state conversion is likely to resurface.

If the route is to become viable again, greater clarity is necessary. A clear and permanent pathway – assessed case by case and aligned with local need – would reduce uncertainty. Drawing on the more flexible elements of earlier academy reforms and providing practical support during transition could make the process more workable.

This report was commissioned by the Private Education Policy Forum.

– ref. Could joining the state sector be an option for private schools? – https://theconversation.com/could-joining-the-state-sector-be-an-option-for-private-schools-275132

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Andrew Kloeden, PhD Candidate in Management, University of Exeter

For many workers, the benefits of professional relationships and the networks they create are clear. Bringing together people and social spheres that are otherwise unconnected is linked to higher salaries and more rapid promotion. So it’s no surprise that “networking” is a serious business for so many professionals.

In network theory, the process of linking unconnected people and groups – either within the workplace or outside it – is known as “brokerage”. When you’re a broker, your networks are “open”, with lots of links to unconnected people. All these connections give brokers access to potentially useful information – after all, people who don’t know each other are likely to know different things.

And continued networking, where more new relationships are generated over time, is important to maintain the benefits. Otherwise, networks can grow stale. Being close to the “centre” of the network (having more network ties) brings additional benefits in terms of access to knowledge, information and resources.

But as in many other aspects of life, gender is a fundamental force in terms of professional relationships and the structure of professional networks. It may come as little surprise that women face disadvantages compared to men – both in the positions they hold within networks and the characteristics of their contacts.

For example, women’s networks tend to contain fewer men. Men still hold more positions of power than women in organisations, which leaves women with fewer senior-level connections. Women also tend to find themselves closer to the edge than the centre of organisational networks. Separately, they are less likely to be brokers.

Women’s networks also tend to be “stickier” – where old ties are less likely to be replaced with new ones. These new ties can help to keep the access to information fresh. What’s more, women tend to receive lower returns from the positions they occupy in their networks. For example, even when women are brokers they tend not to enjoy the benefits that can lead to rapid promotion in the way that men might.

The root of the problem

There are many reasons for these disadvantages. First, women usually carry a greater burden of unpaid domestic caring work than men in heterosexual couples (the so-called “second shift”). This can eat up the time that women could otherwise use investing in professional networks. It’s even more acute for mothers or the (mostly) women who care for adult relatives.

Second, the stereotypes of “assertive” men and “communal” women have an effect on organisational networks. Women who occupy strong network positions may not conform to this stereotype of co-operation and communality, which might be frowned upon. For the same reason, men are often seen as more legitimate or useful networking partners.

This also explains why women tend to feel “stereotype threat” (where people fear living up to negative stereotypes) when they are brokers. They may be sensitive to being seen negatively for violating this stereotype.

Similarly, homophily (the tendency for people to form relationships with those they see as similar to themselves) can harm women’s network position and the returns they get, especially in organisations with more men than women. In these situations, women can miss out on senior-level connections (who are more likely to be men). Or they may just end up with smaller networks.

While all women face barriers to network success, there are strategies that can help them to overcome these. Successful women tend to embrace network churn by keeping a core group of contacts but otherwise strategically changing their professional networks. This can help to keep contacts fresh.

And the most successful women have been shown to resist the temptation to focus purely on social support from their contacts. Instead (or in addition), they seek more strategic support – things like introductions and information.

Of course, these strategies all involve women doing extra work to navigate environments that were not built for them. So it is important for employers to take steps to mitigate these problems. This can also help organisations retain staff, and it can help to tackle other workplace problems related to gender biases.

It doesn’t have to be difficult. Employers can structure teams or committees to increase opportunities for interaction between women and senior men. They can also run surveys to map the social networks in their organisations to identify exclusion and disadvantage. Lastly, they can educate senior staff and executives about the issues.

Ultimately, everyone should understand the importance of networking to an employee’s prospects and how they can help to share out the benefits equally.

Andrew Kloeden 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. Networking can boost your earnings and get you promoted – but it’s harder for women to reap the benefits – https://theconversation.com/networking-can-boost-your-earnings-and-get-you-promoted-but-its-harder-for-women-to-reap-the-benefits-276315

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ruth Dunn, Senior Research Associate in Marine Ecology, Lancaster University

February 2026 has seen thousands of dead seabirds washing up along the coastlines of the UK, France, Spain and Portugal.

There’s evidence that these “wrecks” (where large numbers of seabirds are found along beaches) are becoming increasingly common because of climate change. Worse still, these dead birds – including Atlantic puffins and European shags – only tell a fraction of the story. Many more are likely to have been lost out in the stormy open ocean.

Even as someone who has dedicated the last decade of my life to researching seabirds, I have found myself beginning to feel desensitised to the increasingly regular news of these dead birds found in great numbers. Current estimates are high: over 20,000 birds swept up along beaches in France alone since mid January.

Seabirds’ bodies are also being found on beaches along the the North Sea, off the southern coast of Ireland and the Bay of Biscay.

Although increasing temperatures are perhaps the most well-known consequence of human-induced climate change, increased storm frequencies and intensities are another critical symptom.

A number of storms have swept across Europe so far this year. Storm Chandra poured down over the UK and other parts of Europe in late January, while six further named storms blew across Portugal, Spain and France in quick succession throughout February. Looking at the evidence, it is possible that this ensemble of storms concocted a lethal cocktail of conditions for wintering seabirds, by creating multiple wreck events over a short amount of time.

The back-to-back barrage of storms this winter has provided little respite for seabirds that must struggle with strong winds, torrential rain and high seas, desperately hungry but apparently unable to feed. The bodies of birds washed up in wreck events are skinny and their muscles are very hard (indicated by high levels of lactate). Despite paddling hard amongst the waves, they were unable to catch enough prey to survive.

Studying survival

The Isle of May Long-Term Study, led by the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, has been monitoring seabirds since 1973, making it one of the most data-rich studies of its kind.

This monitoring includes looping small metal rings, engraved with unique identification codes, around the legs of seabirds. These rings allow corpses to be traced back to the Isle of May, off the east coast of Scotland, or other seabird colonies where seabird ringing takes place.

Every year, the Isle of May team deal with these reports and use them to understand seabird deaths and survival rates. In 2026, Josie Hewitt, an expert in avian ecology, has received more than usual: 33 dead shags and nine dead puffins throughout February.

Among these numbers are birds that survived the avian flu outbreak in 2022-23, and the stormy 2023-24 winter, making these reports even more heartbreaking.

Seabird colonies are often home to thousands of birds during the breeding season – too many to ring. Many more that don’t have these rings are also being found. Others swallowed by the waves may never be recovered.

In winter, seabirds must forage intensively to catch enough prey to survive the cold, while also building up reserves for the approaching breeding season. Many are therefore experts at navigating the underwater marine environment.

Puffins flap their wings to move through the water to chase fish, while shags propel themselves by thrusting their feet.

However, when bad weather hits, seabirds can struggle. Even during their summer breeding seasons, when storms are less common and less severe, they are more reluctant to forage in high winds, struggling to capture prey in churned-up waters.

Populations in crisis

Seabirds live for a long time (one victim of the current wreck was a 34-year-old puffin) and only breed once a year, meaning their populations rely on adults surviving. These huge numbers of deaths can therefore have a long-term impact on population trends.

This is especially true when adult birds, which are generally better at surviving winters than juveniles, are among the casualties. Worse still, these events are happening increasingly regularly, with less time to recover in between.

When I stayed on the Isle of May last summer, there was an eerie quietness along large stretches of the island’s rocky borders. During previous visits, I had become used to sharing the island with more than 500 noisy, smelly pairs of breeding shags – each pair taking great care of their oversized nests, gently shifting broken twigs and fronds of seaweed into the perfect position with their beaks.

Though widely considered less charismatic than the puffins that strut around clumps of grass and sea campion, proudly displaying beaks full of silver fish, fierce-looking shags have a beauty too – with their shining black plumage, piercing green eyes and prehistoric-looking webbed feet.

The Isle of May shag population declined to a fraction of its previous size following the storms of winter 2023-24, and is being hit again by this year’s storms. It’s devastating to think just how few of these birds might be on the island this summer.

It is disappointing that at a time when our seabirds are facing unprecedented threats to their survival, scientific funding is becoming increasingly squeezed in the US and the UK. Continuation of long-term studies such as the one on the Isle of May is crucial to understanding the impacts of climate change on our seabirds.

Ruth Dunn has previously received funding from NERC.

– ref. Thousands of dead puffins are washing up on Europe’s beaches – why it’s been such a dangerous winter for seabirds – https://theconversation.com/thousands-of-dead-puffins-are-washing-up-on-europes-beaches-why-its-been-such-a-dangerous-winter-for-seabirds-276545

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Mark Ireland, Senior Lecturer in Energy Geoscience, Newcastle University

More than half of the UK’s electrical power was supplied by renewable energy on February 25 2026.

That consisted mainly of solar, wind and hydroelectric sources. The next day, a new source of electricity started feeding into the grid for the first time – geothermal power.

At a site near Redruth called United Downs, in Cornwall, a company called Geothermal Engineering Ltd has started producing geothermal electricity.

To generate power (electricity), this project is using two of the deepest wells ever drilled in the UK – down to three miles beneath the surface. A considerable feat of engineering.

To understand why the Cornish landscape is so suitable for geothermal power, imagine life on Earth roughly 300 million years ago, when magma from deep beneath the Earth’s surface cooled to formed large bodies of granite. This igneous rock with a crystalline structure contains small amounts of naturally radioactive elements, such as uranium, thorium and potassium.

Over a long geological timescale, these give off heat. Geologists call this a “granite‑hosted geothermal system”. Fractures throughout this granite provide pathways for fluids to flow. This is key to harnessing the thermal energy (heat) from within these rocks.

To exploit the heat in the rocks, Geothermal Engineering Ltd has drilled two angled wells. The production well reaches a depth of approximately three miles, intersecting an area known as the Porthtowan fault zone. This well produces hot fluid, at over 150°C. The vapour from this fluid is used to turn a turbine to produce electricity. The second well, drilled to a depth of almost 1.5 miles is used to inject the slightly cooled fluid back into the ground after it has passed through the turbine.

Unlike wind and solar which are weather-dependent sources of renewable energy, geothermal is always “on”. Geothermal heat is not susceptible to changes at the surface – and this means it can produce power steadily, day and night, all year round.

The deep geothermal power plant at United Downs will produce approximately 3 megawatts (MW) of electricity, the equivalent of enough power for 10,000 homes. This will meet only around 0.01% of the UK’s electricity demand. But capacity isn’t the only consideration. We need to look beyond the capacity to understand the full picture and future opportunity.

First, there is the cost of generation. Geothermal, like other renewable sources, has lower operating costs compared with traditional gas power, however the upfront costs for developers and investors are high. The cost of electricity from wind and solar has fallen significantly over the past decade. Geothermal is just at the start of its cost reduction journey. As the potential for reduced drilling time and costs increases, the scale up of geothermal could become more affordable.

Then there is the wider grid benefits. As the UK grid will rely more heavily on wind and solar in the future, it will require much more flexibility. Any source that is less susceptible to variability in energy generation can better match supply to demand. This makes it easier to incorporate other less consistent renewable sources into the grid.

While the capacity of some geothermal power plants such as United Downs is not comparable to the scale of an offshore wind development or a nuclear plant, they can deliver meaningful grid support, resilience and, in particular, benefits for consumers. For example, the UK government’s planned expansion of AI and data centres could further increase electricity demand; cooling them alone currently accounts for about 40% of a data centre’s electricity use, so matching them with local sources of energy makes sense.

While electricity production is the primary goal, United Downs will also produce lithium, a critical mineral that is essential for batteries. Fluids at depth contain relatively high concentrations of lithium. Locally sourced lithium can help reduce the UK’s reliance on importing sources.

The future outlook

Geothermal Engineering Ltd is currently developing two other sites in Cornwall. These could deliver a further 10MW of geothermal power in the UK by 2030. Recent estimates suggest that the eventual resource potential for electricity from geothermal is around 25GW nationally – roughly 2.5 times the contribution that wind currently provides.

However, it took wind more than 25 years to scale to 30GW of installed capacity in the UK. So perhaps the most pertinent question isn’t a geological one, but rather a question of economic feasibility: can geothermal electricity compete on the same scale and cost as other options for low-carbon electricity?

Looking beyond power generation, several recent reports, including work commissioned by Department of Energy Security and Net Zero shows that geothermal can be a significant low-carbon source of heating and cooling. Resource estimates for heating and cooling are more than 100 times greater than the estimated electricity generation potential. Geothermal heating can help address the cost of heating and greenhouse gas emissions associated with natural gas.

This single development in Cornwall, or even a small number of other projects, probably won’t change household electricity bills in the near future. However with gas still setting the price for electricity in the UK, the cumulative potential for geothermal energy to complement other renewable energy sources and deliver energy that could reduce this reliance is considerable.

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He has previously provided consulting services to Project InnerSpace and has received UKRI funding for geothermal‑energy research in the past.

– ref. What the UK’s first geothermal power plant means for the nation’s electricity supply – https://theconversation.com/what-the-uks-first-geothermal-power-plant-means-for-the-nations-electricity-supply-276909

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Lucy Core, Postdoctoral Researcher in the Brain Behaviour Group, UCL

When people hear the word dementia, they often think of someone who has problems with memory. While memory is often affected in dementia, this is not always the case. There are many different types of dementia – and each can produce a wide range of symptoms.

A recent case study has even described a 68-year-old man with a rare form of dementia that caused him to develop a fascination with a very specific type of noise. As this type of dementia has only been recently recognised by medical experts, this finding suggests that changes in preferences for sounds may be a key feature of the syndrome.

Dementia is an umbrella term to describe cognitive (thinking) problems that are severe enough to affect everyday life. There are many types of dementia – such as Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common form. It is characterised by memory loss and other cognitive changes.

Another subtype is frontotemporal dementia, which tends to affect people before age 65.

As the name suggests, frontotemporal dementia affects brain regions in the frontal and temporal lobes, which sit behind the forehead and above the ears. These areas of the brain are involved in a wide range of functions – including personality, behaviour, problem solving, planning, language, processing and understanding sounds. This form of dementia mainly affects behaviour or language abilities.

There are three main variants of frontotemporal dementia, each of which have differing symptoms: the behavioural variant (affecting behaviour and personality), the non-fluent variant (affecting speech production) and the semantic variant (affecting knowledge and understanding speech).

But some researchers believe there’s a fourth variant of frontotemporal dementia, as well. Evidence for this fourth variant was described in a case study I helped conduct.

A 68-year-old man, who we called “CP”, developed an unusual love for Spitfire engine noises. CP’s wife first noticed this strange behaviour about two years before he was diagnosed with dementia.

CP lived near an airfield, and veteran aircraft would frequently fly over his home. He would drop whatever he was doing and run outside, waving at the planes and crying tears of joy whenever he heard them. He had never reacted this way before the onset of his condition.

His love for engine noises was very specific to this type of plane. He did not react the same way to the sound of other planes, nor show a general interest in aircraft or vehicles. He also found birdsong and people with high-pitched voices irritating. He even became very particular about music, disliking covers and preferring originals.

A few years before his sudden love for Spitfire noises began, CP became moody and short-tempered. He became increasingly cold and apathetic towards others and lacked impulse control and awareness of socially acceptable behaviour. For instance, he was indifferent to a death in the family and frequently interrupted other people when they were speaking – things he would have never done before his disease.

He also lost understanding of humour, developed a sweet tooth and became fixated on playing chess and doing word searches. He sometimes failed to recognise the faces of acquaintances but did not have problems recognising people’s voices over the telephone. CP did not show any problems with remembering previous events or language.

About five years after symptoms emerged, CP was diagnosed with behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia. But we believe CP had a newer, fourth variant – sometimes referred to as the “right temporal variant”.

This variant was given its name because most of the tissue loss occurs in the right temporal lobe of the brain. This brain area is mainly involved in understanding concepts and deriving meaning from nonverbal information, such as social cues. Scans of CP’s brain showed that large portions of this region were missing.

The right temporal variant of frontotemporal dementia also appears to cause a mix of symptoms typically seen in both the behavioural and semantic variants. However, there’s still debate within the research community over how to define it.

Learning about dementia

There’s a lot that can be learned from CP.

First, his story helps spread awareness of frontotemporal dementia. Lack of awareness is a major issue – even among doctors, as it’s commonly misdiagnosed as other psychiatric illnesses or Alzheimer’s disease.

CP’s story also helps to clarify the right temporal variant of frontotemporal dementia. His symptoms suggest that the development of new fixations may be a defining feature of the syndrome.

CP’s case is also an example of how dementia can cause changes in how people process sounds.

A link between hearing impairment and dementia is already well established. However, the nature of this relationship is unclear.

Although it has been widely claimed in the media that hearing loss causes dementia, it might also be the other way around – that dementia causes hearing changes. CP’s story provides evidence of this, as his abnormal love for specific noises only occurred after disease onset.

Alzheimer’s disease research also supports the idea of dementia causing hearing changes. For instance, impairments in auditory scene analysis – the ability to separate overlapping sounds, such as listening to one speaker among background noise – has emerged as a common symptom.

CP’s story also demonstrates how dementia can change what people find pleasurable as well as their emotions. Intense obsessions, aversions and changes in preferences (such as suddenly loving or hating certain foods, music or colours) have been widely reported in frontotemporal dementia.

I had the pleasure of meeting CP and his wife and learning about their dementia journey first-hand. CP’s story illustrates how important it is to recognise the variety of symptoms in dementia. This will in turn help lead to earlier diagnosis and the development of tailored interventions.

Lucy Core was supported by the UCL Research Excellence Scholarship while the case study was conducted and received funding from the Royal National Institute of the Deaf while preparing this article.

– ref. The man who fell in love with the sound of Spitfires – here’s what this unusual symptom can teach us about dementia – https://theconversation.com/the-man-who-fell-in-love-with-the-sound-of-spitfires-heres-what-this-unusual-symptom-can-teach-us-about-dementia-275107

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Amalendu Misra, Professor of International Politics, Lancaster University

Crime is deeply entrenched in Mexico. The Global Organized Crime Index, a tool designed to measure levels of organised crime in a country, places Mexico third out of 193 nations in terms of criminality. At the core of Mexico’s struggle with organised crime is its network of powerful drug cartels.

The Mexican state and society have long been held hostage to the power and influence of these organisations, the most recent manifestation being the anarchy that followed the killing of Jalisco cartel leader, Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, by security forces on February 22.

His killing unleashed a wave of violent unrest. Cartel members blockaded roads and torched vehicles across various towns and cities in retaliation. And a number of inmates were sprung from a prison in the coastal city of Puerto Vallarta, prompting the authorities to urge people not to venture out.

Mexico has been following the same rulebook of engagement with the cartels for much of the past two decades, with limited success. The war on drugs that started in 2006 under the then-Mexican president, Felipe Calderón, has seen the authorities go after cartel bosses.

This has resulted in the capture of senior Sinaloa cartel figures like Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, Ovidio Guzmán López and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. It has also led to a number of high-profile killings, including Los Zetas cartel leader Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano in 2010 and now El Mencho.

As I have argued in the past, this is a futile strategy. The killing or arrest of cartel leaders rarely spells the end for an affected organisation. As El Mayo said in an interview with a Mexican news magazine called El Proceso in 2010: “As soon as capos [leaders] are locked up, killed or extradited, their replacements are already around.”

Killings and arrests can also create openings for other cartels or splinter groups to fill the vacuum left behind by the previous leadership. This often results in violent turf wars. The arrest of Sinaloa cartel leader El Chapo in 2016, for example, led to hundreds of killings within the cartel itself as well between rival cartels that continue to this day. The killing of El Mencho is likewise bound to stir the pot of violence.

Explaining cartel violence

There are several interrelated factors that contribute to the power of Mexican cartels, complicating the government’s efforts to tackle crime. Restricting cartel violence in Mexico requires overcoming criminal impunity, youth unemployment and, perhaps the most challenging problem, the complete disregard for life among cartel members.

The Mexican judiciary has long been plagued by impunity, corruption and mismanagement. The rate of impunity for violent crimes in Mexico is estimated to stand at close to 95%, while just 16% of criminal investigations in the country were resolved in 2022. According to Human Rights watch, the violence perpetrated by Mexican criminal groups is directly linked to the impunity they enjoy.

Mexico, like many other countries in Latin America, is also affected by rampant youth unemployment. Figures released by the International Labour Organization suggest the unemployment rate for young people in the region was three times higher than that of adults in 2025. And around 60% of the young people who are employed in Latin America work under informal conditions.

Mexican governments have consistently failed to produce a national strategy to address this, with the perpetually reproducing ecosystem of grinding poverty and government apathy pushing generations of underprivileged young people towards the cartels.

As various studies show in Mexico and elsewhere, those without a social security umbrella or access to opportunities to address their everyday economic needs are more likely to join criminal groups. Now, estimates of cartel membership in Mexico suggest that such groups would rank as the fourth-largest employer in the country.

Meanwhile, the Mexican authorities lack a nationwide strategy aimed at the voluntary demobilisation of cartel members and their reintegration into society. Successive governments have responded to rising violence with policies that favour military force and arrest over rehabilitation.

Weak law enforcement and a void of economic opportunities have undoubtedly contributed to the spread of cartel violence in Mexico. But the complete disregard for life among cartel members is another contributing factor. As UK-based researcher Karina García Reyes, whose work involves speaking to former cartel members, wrote in a recent article in the Spanish-language newspaper El País:

Mexico’s narcos may not blame the state or society for their condition of poverty – each is, after all, his own man – but they don’t feel remorse for their crimes, either. They had the ‘bad luck’ of being born in poverty, they told me, and their victims had the ‘bad luck’ to be in their way.

The Mexican state is taking steps to address youth unemployment and criminal impunity. Through the Plan México initiative, for example, the president, Claudia Sheinbaum, has promised to provide apprenticeships and monthly stipends to young people and boost educational infrastructure. The initiative also involves a pledge to expand university spots by 330,000 places.

However, with Mexico’s sluggish GDP growth of only 1% over the past 12 months, achieving these goals appears more difficult now than when Sheinbaum announced the plan in January 2025. And, even with these efforts, weaning criminals away from their established practice of violence will be a difficult undertaking.

Clearly, countering cartel violence in Mexico through military action has its limitations. In order to achieve greater success in addressing the problem, the government needs to undertake wholesale reforms to tackle the root causes of criminality – poverty, inequality and corruption – rather than relying solely on force to silence criminals.

Until then, Mexico will remain hostage to cycles of violence at the hands of its cartels.

Amalendu Misra is a recipient of British Academy and Nuffield Foundation Fellowships.

– ref. Mexico is losing its battle with the cartels after years of flawed strategy – https://theconversation.com/mexico-is-losing-its-battle-with-the-cartels-after-years-of-flawed-strategy-277104

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Nektarios Tzempelikos, Professor of Marketing and Deputy Director of the Research Centre for Intelligent Supply Chains, School of Management, Anglia Ruskin University

A selling point of hotels has traditionally been the standardised service offered by their trained staff. In contrast, “peer-to-peer” accommodation – of which Airbnb is the most popular host platform – is usually run more informally by individual hosts who have little if any formal hospitality training.

What they offer instead is personal interaction, a sense of authenticity, and local knowledge about the area. And our multi-year research shows that this is often rated much more highly by visiting guests.

Our study (with colleagues), recently published in the International Journal of Hospitality Management, investigates the key reasons international guests staying all over India – one of the world’s fastest growing tourist markets – give their Airbnb accommodation a five-star review, or rather less.

One clear pattern was how guests talked about their relationship with hosts. Many appreciated meeting friendly, helpful hosts – but only when contact felt optional. Our survey and interview findings showed around one-third of guests said they were uncomfortable when communication felt too frequent or too personal.

This points to an important tension in Airbnb stays. Guests often want reassurance without intrusion. A takeaway recommendation was the importance of short, polite messages that reassure guests help is available if needed – but not excessive contact. Feeling welcome is less about ongoing interaction and more about responsiveness, clarity and respect for boundaries.

Our study began in 2019 by developing a new way of analysing thousands of Airbnb guest reviews in India to understand the key indicators of satisfaction (and dissatisfaction). After being interrupted by COVID, we followed this up with surveys and in-depth interviews in the same country to establish the priorities guests give to different aspects of how they were hosted.

Some guests also talked about experiences that stood out for the wrong reasons. These were not “horror stories”, but moments where boundaries felt unclear – such as hosts dropping by unexpectedly, asking too many personal questions, or being slow to respond when something went wrong.

Expectations also played a big role in how stays were judged. Guests who felt well-informed before arrival – about the space, the rules and the neighbourhood – tended to be more relaxed and forgiving of small issues. By contrast, even minor surprises could negatively affect how the entire experience was remembered.

These patterns became stronger after COVID. Guests became more sensitive to cleanliness, safety and communication, and many preferred less face-to-face contact than before.

With all this in mind, here are five practical ways our research suggests hosts can increase their prospects of a five-star rating – and a return stay.

1. Tell guests what to expect – truthfully

Frustrations sometimes start building before they have even arrived. Many guests, particularly from other countries, rely on clear, practical information to feel confident about their choice.

Hosts should make sure their listing answers all common questions upfront and truthfully: how check-in works, what the neighbourhood is like, whether the space suits families or remote work, and what amenities are (and are not!) available.

Small gaps between what guests expect and what they find can shape how they judge their entire stay. Guests who feel well informed are less likely to focus on minor issues.

2. Comfort counts, not just appearance

Good photos matter, but guests judge accommodation on how it feels to actually stay there. We found features such as comfortable furniture, a calm atmosphere and a sense of privacy strongly influence how enjoyable a stay feels.

Hosts do not need to make expensive upgrades. But paying attention to lighting, noise, clutter and basic comfort is non-negotiable.

3. Be responsive, but don’t overdo it

Guests value personal interaction in different ways, but they consistently appreciate hosts who are reliable and easy to reach. Yet feeling welcome does not require constant communication.

Simple actions matter: replying promptly to messages, giving clear instructions, and dealing calmly with problems when they arise. We found this sense of feeling “looked after” is closely linked to whether guests want to return.

4. Anticipate small issues before they snowball

It’s notable how often small problems can snowball during a stay. Issues such as non-working equipment are usually forgotten if clearly explained and calmly dealt with. But slow responses to concerns – or worse, displays of frustration or anger from hosts – can quickly affect how a stay is judged.

Anticipating common issues and dealing with them early can prevent small problems from overshadowing the guest experience. Clear house information, well-maintained facilities and simple backup plans all help.

5. Focus on return visits, not ratings

Positive reviews matter, but they do not tell the whole story. In our research, the most important indicator of guest satisfaction was whether they said they wanted to return.

While enjoyment and value are closely linked with recommendations, feeling comfortable and welcome plays a stronger role in repeat bookings. Creating a space that is easy to use, pleasant to stay in and welcoming will encourage guests to come back, even in a crowded market.

Small, thoughtful choices in these areas shape how guests remember their visit. Hosts who want long-term success should think beyond ratings and consider whether guests will genuinely want to return.

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. What makes the ideal Airbnb host? We studied guest experiences to find out – https://theconversation.com/what-makes-the-ideal-airbnb-host-we-studied-guest-experiences-to-find-out-276844

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Lewis Mattin, Senior Lecturer, Life Sciences, University of Westminster

Hunger is often discussed as a matter of willpower. In appetite research, it looks very different. Physiologists who study eating behaviour and metabolism see hunger as a fluctuating biological signal shaped by hormones, digestion, activity and environment. The recent surge of interest in GLP-1 drugs has brought one part of this system into public view.

GLP-1, or glucagon-like peptide-1, is a hormone produced naturally in the gut and plays a key role in controlling blood sugar, appetite and digestion. After eating, it helps signal fullness and slows the rate at which food leaves the stomach, shaping how quickly nutrients enter the bloodstream and how much energy the body takes in.

Appetite regulation begins in the gut rather than the brain alone. Signals from digestion, microbes and nutrient absorption activate hormonal pathways that travel to the brain through the bloodstream and nervous system.

Hunger is shaped by several of these signals. Ghrelin, released from the stomach, stimulates appetite. After food is eaten, levels of GLP-1 typically rise, helping signal satiety. Research shows appetite is closely linked to this increase in GLP-1 and how it communicates with brain regions involved in regulating eating.

Drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro are known as GLP-1 receptor agonists. They were originally developed for diabetes treatment and have been used to treat Type 2 diabetes since 2025. More recently, they have been prescribed for obesity management.

These medications activate the same biological pathways as natural GLP-1, but for much longer. Under normal conditions, GLP-1 rises for a relatively short period after eating, typically around two hours. This post-meal phase is when appetite is naturally suppressed and digestion slows. GLP-1 medications extend that state. Rather than simply blocking hunger, they maintain a physiological signal associated with having recently eaten.

This helps explain their impact. By reducing appetite and slowing gastric emptying, they can support sustained weight loss. But they also highlight how dynamic appetite is.

Research in exercise and nutrition shows that hunger does not increase in a simple, linear way with energy expenditure. Intense physical activity can temporarily suppress appetite through shifts in gut hormones, including GLP-1, even as energy needs rise.

Appetite often returns later as the body re-balances. In some cases, particularly after sessions such as high intensity intermittent training (HIIT), cravings for food can increase substantially.

Typically, weight loss of up to 5 to 8% can be achieved with a GLP-1 receptor agonist, although outcomes vary and tend to occur gradually over months. Medical advice should always be sought before starting treatment, and nutritional strategies should be discussed with a dietician or qualified nutritionist.

The rise of these medications has also reshaped how obesity is understood. For decades, weight was often framed primarily in terms of personal responsibility. GLP-1 therapies instead highlight the biological regulation of appetite and metabolism. They shift attention toward physiology and the gut-brain axis, rather than willpower alone, and have influenced public conversations about stigma, treatment access and the medicalisation of weight management.

Yet appetite reduction does not remove the body’s need for nutrients and fluids. When food intake falls, the challenge becomes maintaining nutritional balance. Hydration remains essential, as the body can lose around 2 to 3 litres of fluid each day through urine, sweat, breathing and bowel movements. Replacing this fluid supports circulation, temperature regulation and organ function. Hydration therefore remains fundamental even when appetite is reduced.

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Read more:
Weight loss drugs make it harder to get the nutrients you need – here’s what to do about it

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Electrolytes also play a central role in nerve activity, muscle contraction and fluid balance. These charged minerals, including sodium, potassium, chloride, magnesium and calcium, are present in everyday foods and drinks, but reduced intake can lower overall levels.

Maintaining muscle mass is another consideration. When calorie intake drops substantially, the body may begin to break down muscle tissue for energy. Preserving muscle supports metabolic health and physical function. Protein intake of around 1.2 g per kg of body weight per day is often recommended, with sources including eggs, dairy, legumes, tofu and lean meats.

Changes in eating patterns can also affect digestion. Reduced food intake increases the likelihood of constipation, particularly if fibre consumption falls. Foods that are high in fibre help maintain bowel health by supporting regular movement and gut function.

Like most medications, GLP-1 drugs can have side effects. These may include nausea, abdominal discomfort, fatigue, bloating, constipation or diarrhoea. In some cases, there may be muscle loss and gallbladder problems. Ongoing monitoring is therefore important.

Another key question is what happens when treatment stops. Research suggests weight regain is common once medication is discontinued. When the prolonged satiety signal is removed, appetite-regulating hormones return to previous patterns. The biological drive to regain lost weight can re-emerge, highlighting that these drugs modify appetite while they are taken but do not permanently reset the systems that regulate it.

The wider implications extend beyond individual treatment. Appetite is influenced by multiple factors, including gut hormones, microbiome activity, physical activity, circadian rhythms and metabolic health. GLP-1 therapies interact with this wider system rather than replacing it. They also raise questions about long-term use, access and how food environments might respond to widespread appetite suppression.

From a physiological perspective, the significance of GLP-1 medications lies not only in their clinical effects but in what they reveal. Hunger is not a fixed trait. It is a fluctuating signal shaped by gut-derived hormones, digestion, activity and environment. These drugs amplify one part of that system by extending the post-meal state, but they do not replace the broader mechanisms that govern appetite, nutrition and metabolism.

Weight management therefore remains embedded in a wider biological and social context. Hormones matter, but so do daily routines, physical activity, food availability and long-term health patterns. GLP-1 therapies highlight how strongly biology shapes hunger, while also underscoring how complex and interconnected appetite regulation really is.

Lewis Mattin is affiliated with The Physiological Society, The Society for Endocrinology, UKRI funded Ageing and Nutrient Sensing Network, BBSRC UK GIBA network & SENr-Academic Associate Registration

– ref. What weight loss jabs teach us about how appetite works – https://theconversation.com/what-weight-loss-jabs-teach-us-about-how-appetite-works-276105

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Anna Nekaris, Professor of Ecology, Conservation and Environment, Anglia Ruskin University

The moment a cage door is opened and an animal released is often seen as the ultimate good news. When a captive wild animal is freed, the media often applauds, public support swells and donations to welfare charities surge.

But as a new study by myself and colleagues reveals, there is a dark side to returning animals to the wild.

Illegal trafficking in wildlife yields billions of dollars per year, making it one of the highest grossing illegal trades. It poses a serious risk to conservation, so it’s no wonder the confiscation of an illegally trafficked animal feels like a win.

One of the problems is that for many species, especially smaller species perceived as less charismatic, or less ecologically important, little is known what happens after the animal is set “free”.

In our new study published in Global Ecology and Conservation, my colleagues and I tracked nine individual animals of the endangered Bengal slow loris, a small primate with large round brown eyes found in tropical forests throughout southern Asia. We showed that the wild is not necessarily freedom. Seven of the nine animals died within weeks of release, most killed by resident slow lorises.

Ten species of the slow loris can be found from India to the Philippines. All are threatened by trade in various guises – including as pets and tourist photo props, traditional “medicines” and meat, and even black magic.

Despite being legally protected in all the countries where they live, trade in these nocturnal primates persists locally and internationally. It is fuelled in part by viral social media videos of smuggled lorises kept as pets. With their large eyes and teddy bear-like faces, they are seen as an adorable companion, with online videos inciting viewers to “want one”. They certainly do not make good pets – from scent marking every space with foul-smelling urine, to a bite that can kill a human.

Indeed, they are the only venomous primate, with sharp teeth used to inject venom into other lorises as a means of territorial defence. Often in trade these teeth are ripped out or clipped to make them “suitable pets”.

Despite the evolutionary uniqueness of the slow loris, only a handful of studies have been conducted in the wild. This creates a disconnect.

Welfare agencies and government agents are often pressured to release these primates to the wild. But a lack of funding, manpower and knowledge of their behaviour means most reintroductions of loris species do not follow international guidelines. For example, agencies must know which species they are releasing; slow loris species may look very similar but they are genetically and behaviourally unique. It’s almost impossible for non-experts to tell them apart.

Freedom or death trap?

In our study, the Bangladesh Forest Department allowed us to follow the fate of nine released Bengal slow lorises. The site, Lawachara National Park in the country’s northeast, has been used for relocating lorises for decades. With a high density of slow lorises in the area, conservationists recommend against more releases. A variety of sociopolitical and logistic factors, however, means that releases continue. For example, the fact that these releases are seen as good news stories.

Within ten days of release, three lorises died, with four others surviving only a few weeks more. For four of seven whose bodies could be examined, all died of fatal venomous bite wounds from resident lorises.

After eight months of study, the two survivors had not settled into a permanent area. Wild slow loris typically achieve this within a few months of dispersal, settling with a mate to raise families with for at least 12 years.

This suggests that even if an animal survives “getting back to the wild”, they may still struggle to find a permanent home. A species with extremely territorial behaviour, these “floating” individuals are often killed by resident slow lorises.

In Bangladesh, slow lorises are often “rescued” from agricultural areas, where they can live happily if the right food plants persist, because locals are not familiar with nocturnal animals and think they have “wandered in”. Thus, the forest that people perceive as a good place for them is alien, and one in which ultimately, returned lorises may never be able to find a home.

Other studies also have found high death rates or lack of “settling” of released slow lorises. Projects in Vietnam and Java have yielded similar results, including reintroduced lorises killing the resident animals, as well as animals starving to death in the new habitats.

Poor release practices have become so common that the IUCN Red List includes releases of slow lorises as one of the threats to their survival. Despite this increasing evidence, incidences of up to 65 lorises released at a single time are sometimes reported as good news.

Slow lorises are just one of many lesser-known mammals frequently traded and released. These animals are easy to pick up and hold because their strategy is sometimes to curl into a silent ball of terror, instead of biting. They may even be bought by tourists at wildlife markets and placed somewhere where the purchaser perceives to be wild.

Other examples include civets, otters and various monkeys. Indeed, in the case of Brazil’s marmosets, monkeys released by pet owners threaten to out-compete native species or mate with them, leading to hyrid offspring.

This scenario is not exclusive to the tropics. In the UK, well meaning people often move hedgehogs and other animals long distances away from where they found them. However hedgehogs are homebodies who need to stay close to their favourite haunts, where they know where to find shelter and food.

As appealing as it is to put animals back to the wild, for many species, their only hope may truly be a lifetime in captivity. Even when these animals survive, their ecological role is lost.

Anna Nekaris receives funding from Plumploris e.V.

– ref. Freeing poached wildlife ‘safely’ is a dangerous myth – new study – https://theconversation.com/freeing-poached-wildlife-safely-is-a-dangerous-myth-new-study-275586