Oxford's biggest student newspaper, produced by and for members of the University of Oxford, since 1991.
Image description: A mask and a vial of vitamin D Amid the coronavirus pandemic the demand for vitamin supplements has skyrocketed as millions seek to ‘boost their immunity’ to combat infection. Although evidence underlying their efficacy in reducing case incidence and severity is sparse, a link between vitamin D deficiency and COVID-19 mortality has emerged […]
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With the massive strides in sustainable transportation made by Tesla and the continuing progress of SpaceX in its aspiring journey to colonize Mars, Elon Musk has repeatedly demonstrated remarkable ambition. Neuralink, a neurotechnology firm co-founded by Elon in 2016, hopes to deliver on an even more grandiose pursuit. Alongside global warming and the possibility of […]
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In a locked-down world society has become atomized. For those that can work remotely, the household has become the workplace. Rather than congregate in large and central locations, our working environments are now small clusters of individuals – the “node size” of the workplace has shrunk. At the same time, the workforce has become dispersed. […]
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The curve has been flattened. The peak has been passed. Life might soon, slowly begin to return to normal. There is no doubt that lockdowns imposed by governments across the world and social distancing guidelines followed by millions have strongly reduced the transmission of coronavirus and have prevented hundreds of thousands of deaths. But as […]
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COVID-19 poses a unique challenge to the lives of all people, but the effect on each individual is not the same. Cohorts with existing vulnerabilities are affected by the symptoms of the disease, but perhaps more so by the measures put in place to ‘stop the spread’ and ‘flatten the curve’. Rough sleepers, people in […]
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Image Description: white and blue jellyfish If you take a trip to Koh Rong, the second largest island in Cambodia, and wait until nightfall you will see a natural spectacle that has dazzled and puzzled visitors for many years. If you were to arrive during the day the beach would look like any other beach […]
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Image description: a bathroom sign with a ‘man’ figure and ‘woman’ figure on it. As coronavirus continues to spread across the globe, almost all countries are seeing an interesting risk factor emerging – being male. Many people like to joke that men complain more than women about the same illnesses, but this time the data […]
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On the 12th of April the Minister for Health, Matt Hancock, revealed that an NHS app was in development: “if you become unwell with the symptoms of the coronavirus, you can securely tell this new NHS app and the app will then send an alert anonymously to other app users that you’ve been in significant […]
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In Oxford you might hear PPE and think of the academic course, however this guide is not going to tell you about a route into Parliament. Instead, I am providing a concise guide into scientific PPE which stands for ‘personal protective equipment’, how it is a way to protect ourselves during the pandemic and why […]
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Image description: Microbiologist using an electronic pipetter to extract reconstructed 1918 Pandemic Influenza virus There is a huge amount of disagreement about what the best strategy is to try and tackle coronavirus. However, one thing that both politicians and scientists everyone can agree on is that we need a vaccine, and we need it now. […]
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Good news, air pollution is down due to coronavirus lockdown measures! Climate change avoided for now, surely? In the short-term, we will see a big drop in global emissions but, as we’ve already seen in China, once the outbreak is over and industrial production and transportation ramp back up, so do the emissions. Instead of […]
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Image description: ultrastructural of the coronavirus After being encouraged by my parents to take daily turmeric supplements to “prevent corona”, I thought it would interesting to look into the kind of self-prescribed medicine and debunk the myths that have been infesting WhatsApp groups and social media. It is understandable in this time of global anxiety […]
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On 16th March, Dr. Adhanom, the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that the key to defeating COVID-19 was to “test, test, test.” After all, “you cannot fight a fire blindfolded.” But, “fighting it blindfolded” is exactly what we are doing. Our testing figures are shocking: as of the 3rd of April, only […]
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We were warned this might happen – pandemics are not new, and we should have been ready. Yet, why were we left so unprepared? With the NHS having only 5,000 intensive care beds, one of the lowest rates per heads in Europe and half that of Italy, it will inevitably be overwhelmed soon. The number […]
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When we say ‘think global’ we mean ‘think big’. The coronavirus (COVID-19) has revealed, if we did not know it already, that, in perspective, the world is small. The global map showing distances of 1000s of miles is suddenly seen differently if you reflect on just how easily those distances reduce and everything seems much […]
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Throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, viable nuclear fusion has been seen as the ‘holy grail’ of scientific discovery. It is toted by supporters as nuclear fission, of Chernobyl and Fukushima fame, without any chance of a meltdown. In theory, these marvels of technology could produce enough energy to power the burgeoning human race for […]
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And breathe…the value of the natural world to the health of the planet and us. If you consult your doctor, you would probably not expect them to advise you to take a walk in the park. But the value of immersing yourself in the natural world has been recognised by a recent report from Griffith […]
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For almost the entirety of human history we have been exploiting the properties of metals and, with the development of metallurgy, carrying out extensive mining operations. Our quest for precious metals has taken us as deep underground as 2.5 miles where the rocks around us are a balmy 66oC! However, the minerals and ores in […]
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You may have heard the saying “go West, … go West! There is health in the country…!” and that may well be true provided you are not talking about the typical western diet. This diet, followed inadvertently by millions, features some of the highest levels of processed and refined foods with high sugar, salt and […]
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