How cooler heads could have avoided the ‘Galileo affair’Conventional account ignores gaps in scientist’s evidence to Catholic Church inquisitionThu Sept 03 2020 - 05:30
Great human advances were made throughout the ‘Dark Ages’The major discoveries of the Scientific Revolution were made in universities strongly supported by the churchThu Aug 20 2020 - 01:00
How Pavlov’s doggedness led to a breakthrough in psychologyDiscovery of conditioned reflex played large role in development of behaviourismThu Aug 06 2020 - 06:00
The world on a string – a primerString theory is beautifully explained by Brian Greene in The Elegant UniverseThu Jul 16 2020 - 01:26
Are ‘designer babies’ something we really want?Ability to alter genetics of embyros remains limited but progress will bring big questionsThu Jul 02 2020 - 01:00
Are societies really ageing?In advanced economies today 75-year-olds have the same mortality rates as 65-year-olds in 1950Thu Jun 18 2020 - 05:00
Academic freedom is under pressure in Irish universitiesAcademic freedom thrives on diversity and encouraging contrasting ideasThu Jun 04 2020 - 06:00
Blanket cocooning for over-70s has done more harm than goodTelling healthy older people to lock themselves away has been counterproductiveThu May 21 2020 - 03:00
New evidence emerges on decline of monarch butterfliesDramatic fall in monarch numbers has been widely blamed on Roundup weedkillerThu May 07 2020 - 06:00
Viruses hijack living host cells, and then replicate themselvesWilliam Reville: Antibiotics do not work against coronavirus because they are designed to fight bacteriaThu Apr 16 2020 - 01:00
William Reville: There are no shortcuts to high achievementYou can only become a critical thinker in areas where you have deep knowledgeThu Apr 02 2020 - 00:01
Aerobic exercise – the route to lifelong brain sharpnessContinuous, lifelong exercise is the antidote to gradual decline in cognitive capacityThu Mar 19 2020 - 06:00
Australian bush fires were not caused by climate change aloneReducing the fuel load is one immediate step we can take to tackle wild firesThu Feb 20 2020 - 15:47
Dead white men: What have they ever done for us?William Reville: We have good reason to be proud of our European heritageThu Feb 06 2020 - 01:00
Are we alone in the Milky Way galaxy?One possible reason Earth has not been visited by aliens is that we’re a lonely planet with few other inhabitable neighbours in our galaxyThu Feb 06 2020 - 00:00
Serendipity has played a prominent part in many scientific discoveriesFortunate unplanned discoveries include penicillin, Viagra, x-rays, radioactivity and microwave ovensThu Jan 16 2020 - 01:00
How William Harvey taught the world how the heart worksEnglishman defied popular wisdom with his research of blood circulation systemThu Dec 19 2019 - 01:00
Pushing up the daisies . . . literallyA new, greener, option for disposing of human remains is to turn the corpse into a compost suitable for fertilising garden soilThu Dec 19 2019 - 00:00
The free market is a rigged casinoSo much for notion that redistribution of wealth is soft-hearted generosity pandering to the lazyThu Dec 05 2019 - 00:00
Why ‘jazz hands’ is not the way to combat anxietyYoung people must learn to be resilient rather than avoid stressful situationsThu Nov 21 2019 - 06:00
Ultraprocessed food linked to the worldwide epidemic of obesityThere is a hypothesis that eating ultraprocessed foods can disrupt signals between the gut and the brain, encouraging us to keep eatingThu Nov 07 2019 - 09:55
How to perform well under pressureHaving a positive attitude about yourself can help you to perform better under stressTue Oct 08 2019 - 10:13
Mental fragility and the traditional familyA weakened sense of identity is contributing to a surge in loneliness and depressionThu Oct 03 2019 - 01:00
Story of life: Seven wonders of biological researchFrom cells and DNA to cloning and biochemistry, here are life’s milestonesThu Sept 19 2019 - 06:00
America’s nuclear shield may not be as secure as Trump saysRecent articles highlight deficiencies in system used to protect against nuclear attackThu Sept 05 2019 - 10:42
Fallout after my science and religion columnWhat I said was inaccurately portrayed and my intentions misinterpretedThu Aug 01 2019 - 06:03
Why man’s best friend should be treasuredDogs give us great pleasure and companionship, they give us the precious gift of unconditional love and they teach us to appreciate non-human animal lifeThu Aug 01 2019 - 00:00
Philosophers claim global warming makes having children immoralIf we were to accept the argument and act ‘morally’, the world’s population would die out – as a solution to climate change, it seems a bit nutsThu Jul 18 2019 - 00:00
Did early scientists owe a debt to the slave trade?Naturalists in need of samples took advantage of the routes taken by slave shipsThu Jul 04 2019 - 06:00
Is dark matter composed of black holes?The embarrassing gap in science’s understanding of the universe may soon be filledThu Jun 20 2019 - 01:00
How to recognise alien lifeLife on other planets may not be carbon- and water-based but the familiar principles of natural selection will almost certainly applyThu Jun 06 2019 - 00:00
Science would be well advised to avoid picking fights with religionPromoting science to replace religion often has the opposite effect, and scientists would be well-advised to stop picking futile fightsThu May 16 2019 - 13:48
Plants are worthy of same compassion we show animalsIncredibly versatile life forms that dominate the planet deserve greater respectThu May 02 2019 - 01:00
The mirror test of self-awarenessOnly a handful of species have been shown to possess the ability of visual self-recognitionThu Apr 18 2019 - 01:00
Hyping the microbiome may have unpleasant side effectsData is piling up but a theory with which to interpret it remains to be developedThu Apr 04 2019 - 01:00
Israeli cancer treatment could be something specialCompany’s efforts to address issues around cell mutations met with scepticismThu Mar 21 2019 - 04:00
Earth’s population may start to fall from 2040. Does it matter?William Reville: As populations age and are not replenished, societies could be strainedThu Mar 07 2019 - 01:00
Humans are not ready to take red meat totally off the menuOur diets may be bad for our health, but a vegetarian world would create new problemsThu Feb 21 2019 - 06:00
Apes can be lazy and never get fat. We can’t. How come?Understanding the difference explains why modern lifestyles damage our healthThu Jan 31 2019 - 06:00
Patient care and enzyme release appear crucial to placebo effectResearch points to biochemical basis for perplexing but powerful medical treatmentThu Jan 17 2019 - 01:30
New doctrine threatens freedom of speech in universitiesBowing to fear of causing offence undermines fundamental principle of free enquiryThu Jan 03 2019 - 01:00
Did life begin on Earth in volcanic pools?Confirmation of hypothesis could guide exploration for life on other planetsThu Dec 20 2018 - 06:00
New eugenics proposals must be interrogated very carefullyWilliam Reville: Social pressure on parents to go along with genetic enhancement of offspring would be greatFri Nov 30 2018 - 14:14
Self-esteem is great – so long as it is rooted in realityWilliam Reville: The misguided US self-esteem fad lingers on this side of the AtlanticThu Nov 15 2018 - 05:00
Is religion good for children?Harvard study indicates religious upbringing helps adolescents navigate life’s challengesThu Nov 01 2018 - 01:00
We know Earth is special. So are we alone in the galaxy?The Milky Way is extremely unlikely to contain another technological civilisationThu Oct 18 2018 - 01:00
Are humans naturally monogamous or polygamous?Balance of evidence indicates we are biologically inclined towards monogamyThu Oct 04 2018 - 01:00
The dodgy science of wiping your backsideWilliam Reville: Predatory journals can contaminate scientific literatureThu Sept 20 2018 - 01:00
Biological elitism: the result of tinkering with human genomes?Despite ethical unease, germ-line modification will surely find mainstream acceptanceThu Sept 06 2018 - 07:00
How human cells can be reprogrammed to renew our bodiesScientists hope to use pluripotent stem cells to replace organs that have failedThu Aug 16 2018 - 01:00
