Author Archives: Science Media Centre
David Willetts’ first major speech on science
Ahead of his first major speech as Science Minister, given at the Royal Institution, David Willetts gave a short briefing to UK national science journalists to summarise his views on directions for UK science. read more
expert encounter: Prof David Warburton
California-based international stem cell and regenerative medicine expert Professor David Warburton talked about the landscape of stem cell research funding in California and the rest of the US, his previous breakthroughs in stem cell research and his current work. read more
independent climate change e-mails review: publication of final report
The Independent Climate Change E-mails Review (ICCER), chaired by Sir Muir Russell, presented its final report into the emails hacked from computers at the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit last December. read more
Nature paper on Norfolk fossils
The SMC hosted this Nature press briefing on the discovery of new fossil evidence regarding early humans settling in Norfolk. read more
experts react to publication of the Muir Russell report into UEA emails
Experts responded to the publication of the long-awaited final report of the third inquiry into the emails stolen from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit at the end of last year. read more
geological disposal of radioactive waste
In their new report, Geological Disposal: Steps towards implementation, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) presented early plans for development of a deep geological storage facility for nuclear waste, subject to selection of a suitable site. read more
IPCC response to Dutch Environment Agency review of IPCC AR4
Earlier this year, the Dutch Environment Agency (PBL) was asked to look into the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report on human influences on climate change, following the identification of an incorrect figure for the proportion of the Netherlands that is below sea level. At this briefing the IPCC authors involved responded to the PBL findings. read more
expert reaction to the independent review into the response to the 2009 swine flu pandemic
An independent review lead by Dame Deirdre Hine looked into the UK government’s response to the 2009 influenza pandemic. read more
are embargo breaks bad for science?
The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE)’s very public ticking off of Jonathan Leake for breaking an embargo has prompted … read more
Forum of European Neuroscience societies pre-conference briefing
The SMC ran this briefing in advance of this year’s Forum of European Neuroscience, featuring several top scientists talking about their latest research which will be reported at the conference. Topics included what yeast and mice can tell us about the human brain, identifying brain activity markers for mental health disorders, and using robots to understand human interactions. read more
Huntington’s disease – hidden no more
Huntington’s Disease (HD) is an incurable hereditary disorder of the central nervous system which affects muscle co-ordination and cognitive functions. Every child of someone with HD has a 50% chance of inheriting the disease; this level of genetic certainty medical science a chance of finding the key to unlocking the door for a whole range of more common neuro-degenerative diseases such as Alzheimers and Parkinsons. The SMC ran this background briefing to coincide with a new study in the Lancet revealing unexpected new figures on the prevalence of the disease, the launch of an All Party Parliamentary Group on Huntington’s Disease. read more
experts react to the publication of new ARRIVE guidelines for reporting animal research
New guidelines for the scientific reporting of research involving animals have been published by the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs). read more
the truth about about oil spills
The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has huge environmental, political and financial implications. For the 8 weeks since the start of the leak scientists have been striving to assess its size, nature and toxicity in order to work out just how much damage is being done. Various methods have been suggested to not only stem but also clean up the spill, each with huge consequences of its own. The SMC gathered experts in various aspects of this subject to brief journalists on the background to the spill, its size, its impact and what can be done to prevent similar accidents in the future. read more
pre-conference briefing: fertility experts discuss research at ESHRE
This informal briefing was run to coincide with the annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE). Leading experts from the British Fertility Society came to the SMC to discuss the leading research topics being presented at the conference and talk about the scientific background. read more
expert reaction to the epidemiological study into mobile phone masts and early childhood cancers, as published in the British Medical Journal
Researchers at Imperial College London have published a study looking at the possible relationship between exposure to mobile phone masts during pregnancy and early childhood cancers in offspring. read more
insect pollinators – why are they declining and what can we do about it
Pollinating insects such as honeybees, bumblebees, hoverflies and moths pollinate one third of the agricultural crops across the world, but they are vulnerable to threats including pests, diseases and environmental change, all of which have increased over the last five to ten years. This raises significant concern about our ability to feed a growing population set to reach 9 billion by 2050. Nine new projects totalling up to £10M are being funded by a consortium of public and charity funders, and leading researchers came to the SMC to discuss the challenges involved and the work being done to tackle them. read more
expert reaction to the meta-analysis on blood pressure treatments and cancer, as published in Lancet Oncology
Researchers in the US have found a possible link between a certain class of blood pressure drugs and the risk of developing cancer, after a review of 13 previous trials of the drugs. read more
on Ben v Jeremy
Given the history and role of the SMC I’m afraid I can’t stay out of the debate that has broken out this … read more
GB energy and climate change survey
A major new study by Cardiff University and Ipsos MORI has examined public perceptions of climate change and future electricity generation options, as well as for the first time beliefs about energy security. It is the first major piece of independent academic research on British public attitudes to climate change following the recent climate controversies. Lead authors of the research came to the SMC to brief journalists on their findings. read more
expert reaction to the meta-analysis on short people and heart disease, as published in the European Heart Journal
A review of existing studies carried out by scientists at the University of Tampere has found that people of short stature may be at greater risk of coronary heart disease. read more