Minimum effort, maximum reward
Once you turn 30, things go downhill… fast. Your health, happiness and wellbeing all take a hit, and never really recover. So says conventional wisdom, anyway. Science, however, says otherwise. With a few small changes, you can make a big difference to the way you feel
The hidden rooms of Tutankhamun’s Tomb
A century ago, Tutankhamun’s tomb was discovered. But even today, controversy still rages over whether it contains undiscovered chambers. Here, an Egyptologist puts the rumours to bed… or, rather, firmly into their sarcophagus
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How much cheese is too much cheese?
AGNES CUNNINGHAM, FIFE Your stomach is likely to tell you when you have reached peak cheese, but there is no exact measure of how much is too much. Cheese is packed with healthy protein and calcium but is also high in saturated fat and salt. According to the British Heart Foundation, a 30g portion of […]
Our experts
Why do some people get so defensive?
ANUSHA KAPOOR, VIA EMAIL As flawed beings with fragile egos making our way in a hostile, unpredictable world, psychologists have long recognised that we cope by deploying psychological defences. These often take the form of self-serving cognitive biases. For instance, we’re prone to the ‘better-than-average’ effect, whereby we think we’re better than most others at […]
Crowdscience: Is there a language of laughter?
IMAGE: GETTY IMAGES
How different would Earth be on the outside, if it wasn’t hot on the inside?
B KIRKBY, VIA EMAIL Earth has been slowly cooling since it formed 4.5 billion years ago, and sometime between 1.5 and 0.5 billion years ago, the core began to crystallise into a solid ball of mainly iron and nickel. The core is growing by around one millimetre per year, and at that rate, Earth won’t […]
Can baby birds really imprint on humans?
GARY SIMMS, VIA EMAIL Imprinting is a survival strategy that occurs when a newly hatched bird sees another animal and then forms a strong attachment to it. Usually it’s the baby’s mother, but sometimes it can be an inanimate object, such as a stick, or a different animal, such as a human. The most impressive […]
Why is my fitbit giving me a rash under the strap?
MARJORIE EASTMAN, CHESTER The Fitbit rash first made headlines back in 2014 – there was a nationwide recall of the Force wearable fitness tracker due to reports of a wrist rash. Today, many Fitbit wearers continue to report rashes with the company’s latest line of fitness trackers. It might be due to contact dermatitis, which […]