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When certain influencers started making videos about how they no longer ‘trusted’ conventional sunscreen, healthcare professionals didn’t like it, but they weren’t particularly concerned. Only a tiny minority of people could possibly think it wise to swerve the factor 50 and instead baste themselves in coconut oil before heading out in the sun, presumably to be fried like a fillet steak.
But these videos have surfed social media algorithms and are now popping up on feeds the world over. Sunscreen misinformation is thereby becoming a pervasive problem. Digital researcher Rachael Kent has investigated the cycle of confusion, misinformation and, ultimately, cancer risk that has emerged as a result of the way platforms prioritise content peddling untrustworthy health advice.
Butterflies are having a fantastic summer in the UK, thanks for asking. They’re enjoying the hot dry weather and their numbers have bounced back after a difficult season last year, which was wet, grey and generally bad vibes for flying insects. Even the rarely seen purple emperor (Apatura iris) has been spotted out and about by butterfly enthusiasts. An ecologist looks at how we can keep the good times rolling for the nation’s prettiest little guys.
Also spotted out an about this summer and a far less welcome presence – hornets, ticks and jellyfish. I do wish you all the best for the weekend but I’m flagging this article ahead of time just in case it’s useful later. It tells you what to do if you get stung, bitten or bothered in any other way by these pests. And for the record, a credit card or a pair of tweezers will be of more use on a jellyfish sting than urine. I don’t care what Joey Tribbiani says.
Those of you jetting off for a holiday should read this guide to which medications you should and shouldn’t take with you. Laws about prescription meds vary from country to country, so unless you want to end up on the wrong end of a sniffer dog’s snout, you might want to find out if you’re inadvertently breaking any laws.
In the latest episode of our weekly podcast, four experts sit down to compare their visions for the batteries of the future. Will we be able to recycle them? Could we produce them without the rare earth metals? These questions and more will shape the future of our power.
Also this week, archaeologists root around in Troy’s trash, and political finance experts dive into Reform UK’s accounts, while environmental scientists come to terms with the unexplained disappearance of their methane monitoring satellite.
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