Author: Andrew Rogers

Jennifer Lawrence became the youngest recipient of the Donostia Award at the San Sebastian Film Festival, where she used the moment to defend freedom of expression. The 35-year-old Oscar winner said: “Our freedom of speech is under attack in America, including in the world of film, where we realise that we are all connected and need empathy and freedom.” At the festival, Lawrence presented her new film Kill Me Love, which she also produced, and encouraged young filmmakers to persist: “Learn, go to casting tests, keep trying. But above all, watching films is very important.” She also praised women in…

A Cambridge-led trial has found early evidence that a combination of a diabetes drug and an antihistamine can help repair nerve damage in multiple sclerosis (MS), offering fresh hope for a new class of treatments. The CCMR Two trial tested metformin, widely used for type 2 diabetes, alongside clemastine, an antihistamine previously shown to boost myelin repair. In MS, the immune system destroys the protective myelin sheath around nerves, slowing or blocking electrical signals and leading to symptoms such as numbness, vision problems, tremors, and progressive disability. Seventy patients with relapsing MS took part in the six-month trial, with half…

Women who skip their first breast cancer screening appointment face a 40% higher risk of dying from the disease, according to new research. Scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden analysed data from about 500,000 women invited to their first screening between 1991 and 2020, with results published in the British Medical Journal. They found that nearly one in three (32%) did not attend their first mammogram and were more likely to be diagnosed at a later stage and die from breast cancer over the next 25 years. The study showed breast cancer mortality was 9.9 deaths per 1,000 women…

The world’s oceans have crossed a critical threshold for acidity, failing a planetary health check for the first time. A report from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research found that fossil fuel burning has driven ocean surface pH down by 0.1 units since the industrial era, a 30-40% increase in acidity. This shift threatens cold-water corals, tropical reefs, Arctic ecosystems, and countless species reliant on calcium carbonate to build shells and skeletons. Seven of nine planetary boundaries are now breached, with oceans joining climate change, biosphere integrity, land system change, freshwater use, biogeochemical flows, and novel entities. Scientists warn…

Amazon will shut down all 19 of its Fresh stores in the UK, just four years after launching the first outlet in London. Five of the sites will be converted into Whole Foods Market shops, the US organic grocery chain acquired by Amazon in 2017. The Fresh stores, which allowed customers to walk out without using a till thanks to cameras, sensors and an app, failed to gain traction after the pandemic as demand for contactless shopping declined. Amazon struggled to compete with established UK supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s. The company has not confirmed how many staff will…

Vodafone franchisees raised concerns about the “massive impact” commission cuts were having on their mental health four years before 62 small business owners launched a £120m high court case against the telecoms group. The claimants, representing nearly 40% of Vodafone’s total franchise network, allege the company “unjustly enriched” itself by slashing commissions to store operators, leaving many in financial and emotional crisis. A 2020 survey, carried out shortly after Vodafone reduced fees in the wake of pandemic disruption, revealed widespread dissatisfaction and distrust. Franchisees rated their trust in Vodafone at just 1.75 out of five, and their sense of being…

The European Union is considering plans to build a “drone wall” along its eastern frontier, a project championed by Baltic states to counter the growing threat of Russian drone incursions. At the core of the proposal is Eirshield, a multilayered anti-drone system developed by Estonia’s DefSecIntel and Latvia’s Origin Robotics. Using AI-powered radars, cameras, and signal detectors, the platform can identify hostile drones and decide whether to jam, block, or intercept them. Developers say the system has already been deployed in Ukraine, where it is used against Shahed drones, and can operate at a fraction of the cost of conventional…

Massive Attack have removed their catalogue from Spotify in protest at founder Daniel Ek investing €600m (£520m) in the military AI company Helsing, which develops AI software and drones for battlefield use. The band cited a “moral and ethical burden” on artists, arguing that revenue from their work indirectly funds lethal technologies. The announcement coincided with their support for the No Music for Genocide initiative, in which over 400 artists and labels are blocking their music from streaming services in Israel. Massive Attack clarified their Spotify withdrawal was a separate action, emphasizing the ethical implications of Ek’s investment in military…

Donald Trump announced on Friday that Chinese president Xi Jinping had agreed to approve a deal over TikTok, though he provided no details on the agreement or its timeline. Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump suggested that both leaders had signed off on a preliminary arrangement during a phone call earlier in the day—their first direct contact since June. The deal, still lacking clarity, comes as Washington and Beijing remain locked in disputes over trade and technology. Trump said earlier this week that TikTok would be transferred to US control under a framework involving American investors, with Oracle among those…

A major Scandinavian trial has found that a low daily dose of aspirin can cut the risk of colorectal cancer returning after surgery by more than 50% in patients with specific genetic mutations. Researchers at the Karolinska Institute studied over 3,500 patients across Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland, with nearly 40% carrying PI3K pathway mutations linked to bowel cancer. Those given 160mg of aspirin daily for three years were far less likely to see their cancer return compared with patients on placebo. Lead investigator Prof Anna Martling said the findings could change clinical practice, stressing the importance of genetic testing…