Lies, damned lies, and statistics
While Andrew’s off recharging his batteries, I thought I’d draw your attention to an article on ‘curbing the media hyperbole when reporting on statistics’ that was in last week’s New Scientist – I know...
View ArticleWhat matters to you? The big debate
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is hosting a debate to gauge national well-being in the UK. The aim is to explore issues beyond how the economy is doing and find out what else is important to...
View ArticleConcerns 'expressed' over breast milk ice cream
With the start of Lent upon us, I’ve found something that I think I’ll have no trouble giving up – breast milk ice cream (although it’s not quite in the spirit of Lent since I’ve never tried it). You...
View ArticleConcerns about recycled food packaging
On BBC Breakfast on Tuesday morning there was a report, featuring our very own Terry Donohoe, Head of Chemical Safety Division, about the safety of using recycled cardboard in food packaging. Terry...
View ArticleAre we enlightening? Or getting blogged down?
There’s been some discussion recently about whether the blogosphere is nothing more than an empty bubble. When blogging took off, many people hoped that it would lead to a stream of ‘bloggate’ exposés,...
View ArticleTime to speak out or a time to remain silent: is it right to communicate...
It’s no secret that I’m a big supporter of engaging the general public in science, so it’s been great to see the huge range of events that have been put on to celebrate National Science and Engineering...
View ArticleA war against pseudoscience
I wanted to add a few words of support for the Government Chief Scientific Adviser John Beddington’s ‘war against bad science’. At an annual conference of scientific civil servants last month,...
View ArticleIs vitamin D a cure for food allergy?
With the reported incidence of allergy rising lots of research is underway to find out the factors that may be involved. The latest piece of research published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical...
View ArticleA ‘Friday’ thought – it comes before Saturday...
I’m probably in danger of sounding like I’m contradicting our longstanding safety advice, but … I’m very much in support of Clare Battershall pilfering her weekly food shopping from the supermarket’s...
View ArticleRise of the scientific superpowers
Is the UK slipping behind as a ‘scientific superpower’? The Royal Society published a report yesterday that shows that a new group of countries including China, Brazil and India are 'emerging as new...
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