Professor Sadiah Qureshi’s exploration of extinction, empire and the natural world is among six works shortlisted for the 2026 Wolfson History Prize.

Now in its 54th year, the prize – which celebrates historical non-fiction that combines outstanding research with compelling and accessible writing for non-specialist readers - is the most valuable history writing prize in the UK. The winner will receive £50,000, while each shortlisted author will receive £5,000. The winner of the 2026 prize will be announced in December.

Vanished, published by Allen Lane, examines the history of extinction and challenges the idea that it is simply a natural phenomenon.

Professor Qureshi’s book argues that extinction is a surprisingly modern idea that has allowed humans to imagine themselves as on the verge of apocalyptic mass extinction and desperate to resurrect lost species. Her research shows that extinction is both an evolutionary process and a human act, leaving us facing chilling political choices in the present.

The Wolfson judges described Vanished as a “dazzling” work, praising its breadth and originality as an account of “the idea and reality of extinction in the natural and human world”.

Exploring the history of extinction

Vanished explores how extinction – now fundamental to modern science and environmentalism – was only recognised as inherent in the natural world in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

The book also explores how new ideas about animal extinction were quickly intertwined with debates about race, prehistory, and conflict, revealing the human choices and political forces that have shaped understandings of extinction.

By uncovering the cultural, political and imperial contexts in which extinction was first understood, Professor Qureshi traces the roots of many contemporary political crises from climate change to rights for all life on earth.

Vanished was previously shortlisted for the 2025 Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize, which celebrates the best popular science writing from around the world.

The Wolfson nomination is the latest major recognition for Professor Qureshi’s work.

In 2025 she was awarded the prestigious Wilkins-Bernal-Medawar Medal and Lecture by the Royal Society – its highest honour for a historian of science – in recognition of her internationally acclaimed research on science, race, empire and the history of extinction.

Historian of science, race and empire

Professor Qureshi is a writer and historian of science, race and empire and is Chair of Modern British History at 51������.

She has made major contributions to the history of race, science, and empire while also engaging audiences beyond academia through her writing, media work, museum collaborations and public discussions.

Her writing has appeared in publications including the London Review of Books, Times Literary Supplement and New Statesman.

The 2026 Wolfson History Prize shortlist spans almost 3,000 years of human history and includes books on ancient Mesopotamia, Europe’s last pagan societies, the German Peasants’ War, Alfred Tennyson and Liverpool’s post-industrial decline.

The winner will be announced on Tuesday 1 December.

Climate change is increasing the likelihood and intensity of extreme rainfall, putting China’s agricultural land at growing risk of flooding, disruption and damage, according to new research led by Dr Haoyu Hu from 51������.

The study mapped extreme precipitation across China between 2000 and 2023, combining detailed rainfall data with information on cropland and transport networks.

Its findings come as China has experienced a series of severe flooding and extreme rainfall events this year. In July alone, more than 16 million people were affected by natural disasters across the country, with flooding and geological disasters among the main causes. Earlier this month, Typhoon Saudel brought torrential rainfall and flooding to several southern and eastern provinces, with more than 400mm of rain recorded in 24 hours in parts of Fujian.

Scientists have also found evidence that human-induced climate change has already intensified extreme precipitation across China, while research published this year found climate-related changes are increasing the risk of extreme rainfall events in northern China.

Farmland increasingly exposed to extreme rainfall

The research shows that exposure to extreme precipitation varies substantially across China, with southwest China remaining particularly vulnerable.

The study also identified significant exposure in the Huang–Huai–Hai Plain and Northeast China Plain, important agricultural regions where changes in rainfall patterns could have major consequences for food production.

Climate change could make disruption worse

The researchers warn that the consequences of heavier rainfall extend beyond damage to crops themselves.

Flooding can cut off roads used to transport agricultural products, machinery and supplies. Areas dependent on a small number of major roads can become particularly vulnerable if flooding, landslides or bridge damage cuts those routes.

While major highways can improve accessibility in normal conditions, local roads and alternative routes can provide vital resilience when extreme weather disrupts the main transport network.

Recent flooding in China has demonstrated how quickly heavy rainfall can overwhelm infrastructure and isolate communities. In July, heavy rainfall triggered floods across multiple river basins, with hundreds of rivers exceeding warning levels.

What the researchers say

According to the researchers, the study highlights the need to prepare agricultural systems for a future in which extreme rainfall poses an increasingly significant threat.

“The floods we have seen across China recently provide a stark reminder of how quickly extreme rainfall can disrupt agricultural and transport systems,” said study co-author Yuxin Pan. “Our research shows that these risks are not evenly distributed, and some farming regions are much more exposed than others.”

“As the climate changes, we need to think beyond the direct impact of heavy rainfall on crops,” added Dr Haoyu Hu. “A flood can also cut off the roads that farmers depend on to move food, supplies and equipment. This combination of climate exposure and poor accessibility can create particularly serious vulnerabilities.”

The researchers say targeted investment in local transport networks, emergency response and agricultural infrastructure could help reduce the risks faced by the most vulnerable regions.

This research was published in:
Land Use Policy

Full title of the paper:
Compound exposure of cropland to extreme precipitation and transportation disadvantage in China

DOI:


URL:

Women with a higher Body Mass Index in early adulthood may have a lower risk of developing breast cancer after the menopause because of lasting changes in the structure of their breast tissue, according to researchers at 51������ and 51������ University NHS Foundation Trust.

An analysis of data from more than 33,000 women found that breast density could partially explain the link between a higher body weight at age 20 and a lower chance of post-menopausal breast cancer.

The findings help explain a long-standing puzzle in breast cancer research: being overweight in middle age is known to increase breast cancer risk, while a higher body weight in childhood, adolescence and early adulthood appears to have the opposite long-term effect.

The study is published in the British Journal of Cancer today (17/09/26) and is supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre (BRC): 51������.

The researchers followed 33,816 women taking part in the UK Predicting Risk of Cancer at Screening () programme for more than a decade and recorded 1,261 cases of post-menopausal breast cancer.

They examined women's self-reported body mass index (BMI) at age 20 and compared it with measurements of breast density taken during routine mammograms.

Breast density refers to the amount of fibrous and glandular tissue in the breast compared to fatty tissue; women with denser breasts are known to face a higher risk of breast cancer.

The team found that the women who had a higher BMI at age 20 generally had lower percentage breast density later in life and were also less likely to develop post-menopausal breast cancer.

For every five-point increase in BMI at age 20, the risk of developing post-menopausal breast cancer fell by around 15 per cent. Further analysis suggested that lower breast density may account for almost 60 per cent of this effect.

The researchers believe the timing of body weight gains may be crucial because women’s breasts are still developing during adolescence and early adulthood, potentially leading to long-term changes in tissue structure.

The study also found that different measures of breast density may reflect different biological pathways linked to breast cancer risk.

One measure, which estimates the percentage of dense tissue within the breast, appeared to capture some of the lasting effects associated with higher body weight in early adulthood. Another measure based on the total volume of glandular tissue appeared to be more strongly influenced by body weight later in life.

First author Dr Benoit Jauniaux, a Surgical Trainee in the North-West Deanery said: "Researchers in previous studies have observed that women with a higher BMI in childhood or their early adulthood appear to have a lower risk of breast cancer after the menopause, but we have not fully understood why.

“This study suggests that downstream changes to breast density may explain a large part of this effect.”

Senior author Professor Andrew Renehan, Professor of Cancer Studies and Surgery at 51������ and Programme Co-Lead in the Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Theme at the NIHR BRC: 51������, added: “These findings do not suggest that gaining weight is protective. What they offer is further insight into how breast tissue and consequent breast cancer risk may be shaped across a woman's lifetime – and we want to understand these mechanisms further.

“Maintaining a healthy weight remains important, because excess weight in later adulthood is linked to a higher risk of breast cancer and many other serious diseases.

“But this study adds to growing evidence that exposures during early life can have lasting effects on health decades later.”

• The paper Early-adulthood body mass index, mammographic density and post-menopausal breast cancer risk: a mediation analysis is published in the British Journal of Cancer and is available here. DOI

The project will combine fieldwork across contrasting geological environments with laboratory experiments and analytical techniques capable of detecting deep-Earth signals more than 100 times more precisely than conventional methods.

It will also measure high-precision neon isotopes in groundwater for the first time, potentially allowing younger groundwater, below two million years old, to be investigated using neon as a dating tracer.

Dr Tyne will draw on 51������ facilities including world-leading noble gas geochemistry expertise, static noble gas mass spectrometers, the Helix MC+ platform and advanced geochemical capabilities.

She will also establish new facilities for analysing noble gases dissolved in groundwater, including a high-precision dynamic noble gas mass spectrometry capability.

Dr Tyne continues: “I hope the work will help improve understanding of where valuable resources such as hydrogen and helium accumulate underground, while also supporting efforts to identify suitable sites for long-term carbon dioxide and nuclear waste storage.”

The project is due to begin in August 2027 and builds on Dr Tyne's recent work, including a study that found evidence of and a Nature paper .

The award continues a strong run of ERC Starting Grants success for 51������, with The 51������ Institute of Biotechnology also welcoming Dr Martin Spinck, who will join after securing a grant to pioneer a new class of programmable biomaterials.

Further information about the 2026 ERC Starting Grants can be .

India's tropical dry woodlands are undergoing simultaneous processes of deforestation and reforestation, but these changes are occurring in different places and under different pressures, according to new research published in��Environmental Research Letters.

The study provides one of the most detailed assessments to date of how tropical dry woodlands are changing across India. These ecosystems support biodiversity, store carbon and provide vital resources for millions of people, particularly in some of the country's poorest regions. Yet despite their importance, relatively little is known about the spatial patterns of woodland loss and recovery.

Using Landsat satellite imagery and spatial analysis techniques, the researchers examined changes across India's tropical dry woodlands, identifying where forests are being cleared and where they are recovering. The findings show that while reforestation is occurring in some areas, pressures on remaining woodlands remain substantial.

The research found that deforestation and reforestation are not simply opposite sides of the same process. Instead, they follow distinct geographic patterns, meaning woodland gains in one location do not necessarily compensate for losses elsewhere. The findings suggest that understanding where and why these changes occur is critical for conservation and restoration efforts.

The researchers note that tropical dry woodlands have historically experienced widespread conversion and degradation. While evidence of woodland recovery is encouraging, the study shows that deforestation pressures continue in many areas and that much of the observed reforestation are being driven by plantations outside government lands with potentially lower ecological benefits.

Dr Dhanapal Govindarajulu, who led the project as a PhD researcher in the Global Development Institute at the University of 51������, highlights:

“Forest cover change across India is being shaped by different land tenure systems, with important implications for what benefits and costs experienced by people and nature. By solely considering changes in forest cover, assessments risk misestimating the true ecological and social gains derived from forest restoration”

By identifying where woodland loss and recovery are taking place, the findings could help inform land management, restoration programmes and conservation policies. The researchers argue that greater attention should be paid to the distinct processes driving deforestation and reforestation, rather than treating overall tree cover change as a single trend.

Using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, researchers, involving scientists from 51������ and The Valongo Observatory, studied Sakurai's Object, a rare ‘born-again’ star that unexpectedly burst back to life in 1996 after reaching the final stages of its evolution.

Their findings, published today in , show that the star has entered a new phase of its evolution, developing the powerful stellar wind characteristic of Wolf-Rayet stars.

The research provides new insight into the final stages of stellar evolution and helps astronomers test theories that would otherwise take thousands or millions of years to verify.

Professor Albert Zijlstra from Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics at 51������, said: "Most stars evolve so slowly that major changes take place over timescales far longer than a human lifetime. As a result, we usually have to piece together snapshots of stellar evolution by comparing different stars at different stages of their lives.

"Sakurai's Object offers something far rarer. It is one of the very few stars known to have changed dramatically within just a few decades, giving us the opportunity to watch stellar evolution unfold in real time.

“With our observations, we can test theories of how stars evolve and gain new insights into one of the shortest and least understood phases in the life of a dying star."

How a dead star burst back to life

The scientists believe the star was similar to our Sun, but had already ended nuclear burning and begun its journey towards becoming a white dwarf - the hot, dense core left behind after an ordinary star dies. It underwent a rare event known as a "very late thermal pulse", when a layer of helium deep inside the dead star suddenly reignites.

The event caused the star to rapidly expand, cool and eject large amounts of material into space, temporarily returning to an earlier stage of its life, leading astronomers to describe it as a "born-again" star.

Only two stars have ever been directly observed undergoing this type of dramatic rebirth: Sakurai's Object and V605 Aquilae.

Following its outburst, Sakurai's Object became hidden behind thick clouds of gas and dust released during the eruption, making it difficult to study directly.

To investigate its current state, the team analysed light collected by the Very Large Telescope and compared it with sophisticated computer models that simulate the atmospheres and powerful winds of Wolf-Rayet stars.

The observations revealed distinctive signatures of carbon and helium, allowing the researchers to find its temperature, chemical composition and the characteristics of its stellar wind.

Their analysis suggests the star's surface temperature is currently between around 27,000 and 36,000 degrees Kelvin, showing that it is reheating following its dramatic eruption nearly three decades ago.

A rare glimpse of stellar evolution in action

Prof Zijlstra added: "One of the key questions is how quickly Sakurai's Object should recover after its dramatic eruption.

"Our measurements show that the star is reheating more gradually than some earlier models predicted. That gives us an important way of testing which theories best describe what happens when a dying star briefly springs back to life.

"As we continue to monitor the star over the coming years, we expect to learn much more about this remarkable phase of stellar evolution."

The findings also suggest that Sakurai's Object is at an earlier stage of its evolution than V605 Aquilae, which experienced a similar event around 80 years ago.

The team will continue observing Sakurai's Object as it continues reheating and resumes its journey towards becoming a white dwarf, learning more about one of the most rapid and unusual phases of stellar evolution ever observed.

51������ has been recognised for the strength and breadth of its subject-level performance in the 2026 ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.

The results reflect the depth of 51������’s impact across a wide range of disciplines. Ten subjects are ranked among the top 50 worldwide, including five in the global top 25 across each of the University’s faculties. Geography remains in the world top 10, while Dentistry and Oral Sciences is ranked 13th, Physics 16th, Metallurgical Engineering 18th and Textile Science and Engineering 25th.

Completing the University’s global top 50 subjects are Biotechnology, ranked 29th, Mechanical Engineering 40th, Sociology 46th, Library and Information Science 48th and Political Sciences 50th.

Professor Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor of 51������, said: “These results are a welcome recognition of the quality and reach of academic work taking place across 51������, with top 25 subjects spanning all three faculties.

“Rankings don’t measure everything we value, but are useful tools for reflecting on where progress is being made and where further work is needed, particularly in an increasingly competitive global higher education environment. The real value lies in using that insight to drive meaningful improvements in research, teaching and innovation, helping us deliver on our ambitious strategy - 51������ 2035”

Several subjects have climbed the table in this year’s rankings. Sociology returned to the global top 50, rising from the 101–150 band to 46th. Textile Science and Engineering moved from 30th to 25th, while Biotechnology rose from 33rd to 29th. Mechanical Engineering improved from 43rd to 40th.

Other areas also recorded progress. Mathematics, Artificial Intelligence and Psychology all saw substantial gains in the rankings, while Civil Engineering and Communication also improved.

The longer-term picture shows sustained momentum in several disciplines. Biotechnology has moved from the 151–200 band in 2023 to 36th in 2024, 33rd in 2025 and 29th this year. Mechanical Engineering has progressed from 76–100 in 2023 to 40th in 2026. Mathematics has improved in each ranking since 2023, moving from 151–200 to 51–75.

The University is now ranked in 49 subject areas, compared with 48 in 2025 and 43 in 2023. The results span disciplines across Natural Sciences, Engineering, Life Sciences, Medical Sciences and Social Sciences, reflecting the breadth of activity taking place across 51������.

ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects assesses universities across 57 subjects using nine objective indicators covering faculty, research output, research quality, impact and international collaboration.

Each year, the ranking includes subjects from approximately 2,000 universities across some 100 countries and regions.

For more information, visit the website.

Published by Routledge as part of the��Routledge Research in Art and Politics��series, the volume moves beyond understanding capitalism simply as an economic system in which artworks are bought and sold. Instead, it considers the wider ways in which capitalist structures shape artistic production, creative labour, technologies, cultural institutions and the conditions within which art is produced and experienced.

Edited by , the collection brings together 24 contributors offering diverse perspectives on the relationship between art and capitalism since the advent of modernity. The book is organised around five key themes:��Art Markets, Money and Myths; Work, Labour and the Artist; Capitalist Technologies; Spaces of Art and Capital: Institutions and Beyond; and Crisis, Contestation and Critique.

Reflecting on the publication of the book, Dr Child said: “Compiling a coherent edited monograph is not an easy task (especially when covering such a vast subject!). It involves drawing on established networks built over many years, discovering new researchers, supporting ECRs, and building working relationships and trust with your authors."

Contributors explore subjects ranging from art markets, artistic labour and the contemporary craft economy to racial capitalism, artificial intelligence and artistic practice, private museums, global cultural institutions, extractivism and colonialism. Questions of race, gender, class and global and geographical inequality run throughout the collection.

By bringing these perspectives into conversation, Art and Capitalism: A Contemporary Perspective demonstrates how the relationship between art and capitalism extends beyond questions of commerce to encompass the social, political, technological and institutional conditions of cultural production. It also considers how artists and cultural practitioners have contested capitalist structures and imagined alternative ways of working and organising.

The book will be of interest to scholars, students and practitioners working across art history, fine art, museum studies, curatorial studies, politics and visual culture.

Art and Capitalism: A Contemporary Perspective, edited by Danielle Child, is published by Routledge:

The study, published in the KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering, focuses on three-sided protected steel beams, a configuration commonly used in offshore and onshore oil and gas processing facilities. In these structures, the upper surface of the beam remains exposed, creating complex temperature patterns that can be difficult to model accurately.

Understanding how heat moves through these beams during a fire is an important part of structural fire engineering. However, temperature distribution is influenced by several interacting factors, including beam depth, insulation thickness and material conductivity, making conventional analytical equations challenging to apply across different scenarios.

To address this challenge, the researchers created an automated workflow that links computer modelling, simulation and data processing. The system combines Python, ABAQUS and MATLAB with machine learning techniques to automatically generate models, run simulations and train predictive algorithms.

The team generated a database containing 414 standard beam models and 63 welded beam models, covering beam depths ranging from 127 mm to 1500 mm and a variety of insulation configurations. These data were then used to train machine learning models capable of predicting beam temperatures during fire exposure.

The researchers found that the best-performing approach, based on gradient boosting, achieved a root mean squared error of just 1.34°C when compared with test data. More than 83% of prediction calculations were completed within 60 seconds, demonstrating the potential for rapid assessment of fire protection requirements.

The study also introduced a model generation agent incorporating a two-dimensional contact detection algorithm, enabling the automatic creation of beam heat transfer models. A dedicated data processing pipeline and batch-generation system were developed to support large-scale training while reducing memory requirements, allowing the work to be carried out using a single graphics processing unit.

According to the researchers, the approach could help engineers evaluate insulation strategies and fire protection requirements more efficiently, particularly in sectors where structural fire performance is a key design consideration. By reducing the need for repeated complex simulations, the framework has the potential to support faster decision-making during engineering design and assessment.

The research was conducted by and Peijun Wang et al. The paper lists the Department of Civil Engineering and Management of 51������ and Shandong University, as the authors' institutional affiliation.

The results demonstrate renewed momentum in the commercialisation of research originating from 51������ (UoM), as the institution puts increasing focus on innovation as part of its ambitious 2035 Strategy.

As the University's dedicated technology transfer office, the Innovation Factory works with researchers to develop early-stage ideas, helping identify commercial potential, protect intellectual property and determine the best route to market. Its support continues through licensing and spinout creation, investment readiness and the longer-term development of companies within its portfolio.

The 11 new spinouts reflect the breadth of research and innovation taking place across the University:

• Grid Stability Ltd, building AI-driven stability assessment tools for modern power systems, reducing cost and carbon while improving stability.
• Lutèo Medical Ltd, developing new clinical eczema solutions based on microbiome science.
• SpinOr Ltd, pioneering a compact and modular superconducting quantum computer design.
• Imprinted Diagnostics Ltd, developing rapid diagnostics, with its first product focused on heart attack triage.
• ColoriQuo Ltd, developing sustainable structural colour technologies inspired by nature.
• FLAG-Me SAFE Ltd, creating digital safeguarding tools to help pharmacies better support people with sight and hearing impairments.
• Pacentrica Ltd, creating digital technologies for pain assessment and long-term pain management.
• Precica Ltd, developing technology to significantly reduce data storage requirements while keeping information searchable and accessible.
• InformiX Pharma Ltd, using advanced three-dimensional imaging to improve the development and manufacture of medicines.
• Zenithym Ltd, commercialising semiconducting polymer nanoparticles for a range of industrial and medical applications.
• C3 Biotechnologies Ltd, converting industrial waste streams into sustainable chemicals and high-value products.

Dr Catherine Headley, CEO of the University of 51������ Innovation Factory, said:

“This has been an incredible year for the Innovation Factory and the results reflect the breadth and quality of innovation emerging from across the University, the strength of our spinout portfolio, and the quality of service that we provide. We are extremely proud of the progress that we have made this year as we build the foundations to play a key role in the University’s innovation plans.”

Investment and the next generation of opportunities

Companies across the Innovation Factory portfolio secured over £56 million in external investment during 2025/26, providing crucial capital needed to develop technologies, attract talent, establish partnerships and move towards commercial scale.

Alongside supporting its established spinout portfolio, the Innovation Factory continues to develop the pipeline of opportunities that could become the University’s future spinouts and licenses.

During 2025/26, the team supported over 300 researchers from across the University’s schools and faculties at the early stages of commercialisation, helping them explore opportunities to create positive impact, develop intellectual property strategies and identify the most appropriate commercial outcomes for their research. This represents the highest level of researcher engagement with the Innovation Factory in five years, reflecting significant growth in the number of individuals accessing commercialisation support.

Professor John Holden, Vice President for Innovation and Civic Engagement said:

“Commercialisation is an important part of translating research into wider economic and societal benefit and positive impact. These results show the value of the rich innovation ecosystem that we are establishing in 51������ and the expertise within the Innovation Factory allows us to support our researchers from the earliest stages.”

A growing innovation ecosystem

The Innovation Factory’s work is increasingly enhanced by a wider innovation ecosystem across the University and Greater 51������.

In addition to the support from the Innovation Factory, staff, students and alumni can benefit from varied UoM specialist services and programmes including Unit M, Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange and the Masood Entrepreneurship Centre, alongside initiatives such as Ideas with Impact, developed by the University’s Division of Development and Alumni Relations.

To find out more about the Innovation Factory, visit

Students will have the chance to take part in exchanges and gain a broader international perspective, while academic colleagues will be able to develop shared research interests and learn from each other’s approaches.

The two universities will collaborate through workshops and conferences, alongside sharing publications, teaching practice and course design.

ASU is consistently ranked as the most innovative university in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, taking the accolade for the 11^th successive year in 2025.

Professor Angelia Wilson, Associate Vice President International at 51������ said: “We are strengthening the ties between these two powerhouses of innovation through this partnership, which will create incredible opportunities for colleagues and students on both sides of the Atlantic. The MoU sets a framework to build on our respective strengths and collaborate effectively over the years to come.”

Professor Fiona Devine, Vice President and Dean for the Faculty of Humanities at 51������ added: “We are delighted to develop further opportunities to collaborate between the two institutions and build on our mutual research interests in innovation and policy across Humanities.”

Shannon Portillo, director of the School of Public Affairs and Coor Presidential Chair at Arizona State University said: “This MoU builds on the strong collaborations between faculty and research centers at 51������’s Faculty of Humanities and ASU’s School of Public Affairs. We look forward to more connections between our faculty and students.” The school is based in the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions at Arizona State University.

51������ is globally recognised for its research, teaching and commitment to social responsibility. It is an international university, with more than 46,000 students, 12,800 colleagues and 585,000 alumni from 190 countries.

Sign up for our e-news to hear first-hand about our international partnerships and activities across the globe.

Dr Zheng, Associate Professor in Data Science and Environmental Analytics at 51������ and Co-Lead for Environmental Data Science & AI at 51������ Environmental Research Institute (MERI), was recognised in the Climate and Energy category for developing AI-enabled approaches that help improve understanding of how cities respond to climate change.

His research combines AI with physics-based climate science to create faster, more accurate simulations of urban environments. These tools can help researchers, city planners and policymakers better understand challenges such as extreme heat, energy use and climate resilience in rapidly growing cities.

One of Dr Zheng's key innovations is UCformer, a physics-guided AI framework designed to improve the representation of cities in climate models. His work has also advanced the integration of urban processes into Earth system models and led to the development of open-source, cloud-based tools that make sophisticated urban climate simulations more accessible to researchers and stakeholders worldwide.

The recognition places Dr Zheng among a distinguished group of innovators from around the world. Previous University of 51������ researchers recognised by MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35 programme include Professor Sir Kostya Novoselov, who was named to the list in 2008 and later awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, and Professor Radha Boya, who was recognised in 2017.

Read more about Dr Zhonghua Zheng’s research:

• /about/news/helping-cities-tackle-heatwaves-and-air-pollution-with-ai-innovation/

• /about/news/enhanced-climate-models-to-reveal-how-our-cities-are-driving-and-feeling-the-effects-of-climate-change/

• /about/news/heat-from-traffic-is-contributing-to-rise-in-city-temperatures-new-study-finds/
• /about/news/harvesting-rainwater-from-rooftops-could-help-cities-stay-cool-and-cut-the-number-of-heatwave-days/
• /about/news/new-research-calls-for-global-action-on-micro-and-nanoplastics-in-the-atmosphere/

Analysing the X-ray image sequences manually would have taken the team months, so instead they developed a machine learning system which was trained to recognise and track individual dendrite. The system measured how each dendrite grew, the direction it took, how quickly it expanded and how it interacted with neighbouring dendrite.

Their results show that without the disturbances that are usually caused by gravity on Earth, dendrites grew more stably and rotated far less. Most of the dendrites followed the growth patterns scientists would normally expect. But even in microgravity, where many of the usual disturbances were removed, some crystals still grew in unexpected directions. This shows that crystal growth is more complex than previously thought, and that some of the underlying mechanisms are still not fully understood.

The researchers also used post-flight analysis at Diamond Light Source, one of the UK’s national science facilities, to create three-dimensional images of the solidified sample and map the internal structure of individual crystals.

These findings have practical implications for how metal components are designed and manufactured. Casting, welding and metal 3D printing all depend on controlling how metal solidifies, so better computer models of that process, grounded in reliable data, could help manufacturers improve the quality and consistency of components used in aerospace, medical and energy applications.

, Senior Lecturer in Materials Science at 51������, said: “What makes this work important is not just what we observed, but what it makes possible. Solidification underpins almost every metal manufacturing process, but the models we use to simulate it have always had to account for gravity’s influence. These new results give the field a dataset from conditions where gravity was essentially absent, and that kind of reference point is genuinely valuable for testing whether the models we rely on to design and manufacture are getting the physics right.”

This research was supported by the European Space Agency (ESA) through its PRODEX programme, the UK Space Agency, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Henry Royce Institute. Access to Diamond Light Source was granted under proposal CM31134-1.

The challenge, now in its third year, saw teams of Year 10 and 11 pupils spend four weeks developing metal-detecting robotic systems before returning to the University's Nancy Rothwell Building for a series of live detection challenges.

The competition is inspired by research carried out by the University's electromagnetic sensing team and gives young people hands-on experience of electronics engineering while highlighting the real-world challenge of detecting buried landmines and other hidden objects underground. It also aims to inspire more young people to consider careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Teams started with an introductory workshop in June, where they received their robot kits and took part in practical engineering sessions, careers talks and got the chance to meet and ask questions to professionals from across the electrical engineering sector. They were then paired with University of 51������ undergraduate mentors, who visited their schools to help guide teams through the design and build process.

The competition culminated in a final event on 14 July, with pupils putting their creations to the test in a series of practical arena challenges designed to assess their detection and engineering skills.

Co-op Academy Swinton took first place overall. St Ambrose Barlow RC High School were named runners-up and Chorlton High School South received the award for ‘Best Presentation’, all receiving specially engraved trophies.

Competition led, Dr Michael O’Toole said: “51������ Minesweeper challenge gives pupils the chance to take on a genuine engineering challenge and build something that works in the real world.

“Over the course of four weeks, they learn about electronics, problem-solving, teamwork and design, while working alongside current engineering students who help them develop their ideas and gain confidence that university and a career in STEM could be within their reach."

InstMC Vice-President Dave Green said: “It's incredibly rewarding to see the creativity, determination and technical skills that the teams develop, and we hope the experience encourages some of them to consider studying engineering or another STEM subject in the future.”

The initiative was originally established with support from a Royal Academy of Engineering Ingenious award. For the first time this year, it was supported by leading local engineering businesses through the sponsorship of the Institute of Measurement Control (Central Northwest), Endress+Hauser, Technical Partners, and Tetra Tech Consulting, whose representatives joined the final event and helped judge the competition.

, Chair in Control Engineering, and , Lecturer in Control Systems, both from the Control Systems and Robotics group in the , received the Automatica Paper Prize Award, together with their collaborator Professor Sei Zhen Khong, from , for their paper in the 2023–2026 IFAC triennium entitled ��

Published in in February 2025, this paper (DOI: ) develops a new fundamental control theoretical framework to analyse feedback stability of nonlinear dynamical systems via a new energy dissipation notion that permits dynamic supply rates. This framework advances classical dissipativity theory and has important implications in practical applications particularly for nonlinear electrical and mechanical dynamical systems.��

Automatica is one of the two foremost international journals in systems and control. The Automatica Paper Prize is awarded every three years to three papers for outstanding contributions in the theory and practice of control engineering and control science.

The award represents significant international recognition for research undertaken in the University’s , reflecting 51������’s strength in fundamental control theory and in the mathematical scientific foundations that underpin modern engineering technology and innovation.

Congratulations to the winners of the Automatica Paper Prize. For further information, .

will receive £95 million for research into advanced materials to help deliver the National Materials Strategy, launched in February 2026.

The Royce will continue its world-leading work to keep the UK at the forefront of advanced materials research and turn scientific discoveries into commercial products. The institute's work helps to create solutions to some of the key issues facing our society, including developing lighter, more efficient battery technology or using AI to design a new alloy that could replace scarce rare-earth materials used in electrical equipment. It works closely with businesses to commercialise new tech quickly and fuel growth in the UK.

The Rosalind Franklin Institute, a research centre dedicated to developing new technologies to address health challenges, will also receive a £67.7 million investment to build on its pioneering work in next-generation imaging, engineering, biology and diagnostics.

Science Minister Chris McDonald said: “We have world leading science research in the UK that pushes the boundaries of knowledge. It is the foundation of our mission to reindustrialise the country, creating good, well paid jobs by developing new technologies and growing British companies.

“The Rosalind Franklin Institute and the Henry Royce Institute are world leading in their fields. Combining biological knowledge, advanced physics and materials development to understand how the cells in our bodies function, and can be repaired and treated with precision medicines.

"The research gives our country a competitive edge, so long as we commercialise it in industry. Developing new medical technologies and treatments and bringing them to market is good for jobs and good for health, making a real impact on people's lives."

Turning research into reality

Executive Director for the Strategy Directorate at the Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (UKRI), Dr Kedar Pandya, said: “The Rosalind Franklin Institute and Henry Royce Institute have a proven track record of turning public investment into research that advances knowledge, improves lives and drives growth.

“This continued funding from UKRI builds on that success. It will give researchers the tools and resources to answer some of the biggest questions in the health and advanced materials industries, keeping the UK at the forefront of global science and engineering.”

These two institutes are turning brilliant science into real-world impact, and contributing to the UK’s leadership in two vital sectors – life sciences and the advanced materials industry, both of which are among the eight high growth sectors targeted for support in the government’s Industrial Strategy.

Their world-leading facilities, anchored at Harwell in Didcot for the Franklin and 51������ for the Royce, will provide new equipment and infrastructure for scientists, industry partners and as well as working closely with businesses across the country.

Already, Royce’s battery development facility has supported Molyon, a University of Cambridge spin-out, in creating a new generation of lithium-sulphur batteries that are lighter, more sustainable and can store twice as much energy as current models. The breakthrough has helped Molyon raise $4.6 million in seed funding to bring the technology to market.

This is just one example of how these institutes support connections between cutting edge research and British businesses, helping to make sure that the UK’s scientific excellence translates into jobs, new investment and economic growth in every part of the country, as set out in the government's 10-year Industrial Strategy. This funding is delivered through UK Research and Innovation, with the intention to deliver the greatest possible impact.

Professor Paul Monks, Chair, Henry Royce Institute said: “The achievements of the Henry Royce Institute demonstrate what can be accomplished when the UK brings together outstanding people, facilities and institutions around a shared national purpose, but ultimately the measure of our success is in the outcomes that this enables.

“This renewed investment is both a recognition of what the Royce Partnership has achieved and a huge vote of confidence in its future. Advanced materials underpin almost every technology that will shape a more sustainable and prosperous economy, and our next phase will be increasingly focused on translating our national capability into tangible outcomes for the economy, society and the environment.

“By deepening our national and international impact and forging stronger connections between research and industry, we want to ensure that great materials science leads to real-world innovation, while keeping the UK at the forefront of advanced materials.”

Professor Sarah Sharples, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering and Member of the Royce Governing Board, said: "We are living through a period of profound technological and societal change, and meeting the challenges and opportunities that brings depends on strong partnerships between universities, industry and government.

"Royce demonstrates the power of that approach. By bringing together outstanding expertise, facilities and industrial partners from across the UK, it has built a world-leading advanced materials innovation ecosystem that translates extraordinary research into the technologies and businesses that will shape our future.

"As the lead partner and home of the Henry Royce Institute, 51������ is proud to play a convening role at the heart of this national partnership and all it has achieved. This renewed investment will strengthen the UK's position as a global leader in advanced materials and help ensure that discoveries made in our laboratories continue to deliver benefits for the economy, society and the environment."

As Director, leads the strategic direction and development of the University’s interdisciplinary research platform, bringing together academics, cultural partners and communities to advance creative research, practice and innovation.����

Michelle brings considerable research and creative industry engagement experience to the role. Her research practice explores audience response to live and recorded music, neurological response to music listening, music and time, perception of contemporary music, entrepreneurship, and music and Parkinson’s disease.��

To find out more about Michelle and her research, we sent her some questions and learned about her career to date, what culture has inspired her recently, and her love of bubble tea:

What attracted you to the role of Director of Creative 51������ and what excites you most about joining Creative 51������ at this point in its journey?��

I’m really excited about this role, and have been warmly welcomed by you all at Creative 51������! I know that I have big shoes to fill after John’s term, and I hope I can do the job that the marvellous Platform, the fantastic team, and the University deserve.��

Creative 51������ is a shining beacon of everything that gets me up in the morning - innovation, interdisciplinarity, partnerships and collaboration, and place-based research that is relevant and impactful. I’ve loved being part of some Platform events including a panel of creativity and AI, and on ‘The science and politics of togetherness in music’ as part of the ‘Neither Factory Records nor Madchester’ event at Jodrell Bank last summer, and attending multiple others. We often fall into working in disciplinary silos, but I find that putting knowledge into boxes - for example, the arbitrary arts and sciences divide - is often unhelpful, and can prevent us from developing really exciting and truly groundbreaking ways of doing and seeing things. Expertise comes from all corners, and the Platform’s work across the University, city and beyond, embraces that.��

The Creative 51������ Platform is in such a brilliant place, having thrived thanks to John, Anne-Marie, and the whole team. What excites me about joining at this time is the chance to build on this, and find opportunities ahead to experiment, explore, bring different people together in new ways, and think about how to do meaningful work that can feed into future research, practice and policy.��

For colleagues and partners who may not know you yet, could you tell us a little about your background and what has shaped your career?��

I grew up in Doncaster, Yorkshire where I was lucky enough to benefit from the kind of free music education that is sadly rare these days. I found my home and tribe in music and musical theatre. I studied music and German at the University of Nottingham, and (after a stint training as a chartered accountant with KPMG) then a PhD in music, maths, and time perception in the Centre for Music and Science at the University of Cambridge.��

I was at the Royal Northern College of Music between now and then, for 16 wonderful years, where I was involved in running the undergraduate programmes, and leading the entrepreneurship training for students. I chaired the national subject association for music (MusicHE, formerly NAMHE) and ran a multi-million pound project across performing arts universities to explore how we can best prepare arts graduates for freelance careers.��

My research is in the area of music psychology, and in particular, what makes a live music experience special (using behavioural, neurological and physiological methods), and how music can help people living with Parkinson’s. as part of their ‘101 jobs that change the world' video series a few years ago.��

I have longstanding and treasured collaborators in psychology, neuroscience and chemistry at the University of 51������, and look forward to meeting lots of other researchers with similar interests.��

My favourite kind of research is with interdisciplinary teams and industry partners, and is designed from the starting point of what people need. I’ve soaked up any opportunity to work with people across Greater 51������, whether that has involved co-designing the Science and Industry’s exhibition ‘Turn It Up: The Power of Music’, or running a project which matched up composers and people living with Parkinson’s to write new pieces of music together. I was very proud to win the I Love 51������ Alan Turing Award last year, which ‘honours the boldest problem-solvers in Greater 51������, individuals and organisations using fresh ideas and forward thinking’, and to be nominated for a ‘Northern Power Women’ and a ‘Women of the Year’ Award this year.��

I live in Salford with my husband and our two boys aged 12 and 10, who keep us busy with board games, video games and Dungeons and Dragons. I also spend time playing tenor and baritone saxophone with my good friends in the Equinox saxophone ensemble, and enjoy serving as one of two Editors-in-Chief of the journal ‘Psychology of Music’.��

As you begin your tenure, what are some of the priorities you hope to focus on during your first year?��

I find the University’s ‘From 51������ for the World 2035’ strategy very inspiring, and the motivation to ‘build things that matter’. It champions everything that I believe a university should, with its focus on innovation, impact, collaboration, questions of what knowledge and skills our age demands and what changes lie ahead, and the aim of turning ideas into action locally and globally. I love the idea of building and nurturing solid foundations, whilst also leaping into new spaces.��

It’s fantastic to see the Platforms woven throughout the strategy, and my priorities, along with being shaped by John’s advice and legacy, and the wisdom of the Creative 51������ team, are in line with that: bridging gaps between people and teams within and external to the University and making new links to create exciting future partnerships and projects. My focus is also on furthering and creating new links between Creative 51������, teaching and supporting new partner-enabled learning initiatives, and mobilising people and resources to create new ways of thinking and doing to turn discovery to impact, and ultimately make the world a better place.��

What role do you think creativity can play in addressing some of society's big challenges?��

Universities have a job to do, and it’s an urgent one. There are huge challenges and problems in the world. As powerhouses of knowledge and skills, universities need to have an impact, and to make the world a better place for everyone. I think we’re failing if we don’t seek to do that every day.��

Creativity is about finding new ways of doing things. We are organisations full of passion and motivation, of new knowledge and perspectives from all backgrounds and from all around the world. We’re a microcosm of brilliant collaborators who can put our heads together, with our friends in industry and in our cities and regions, to tackle the problems that people are facing. Working together as teams of people with different backgrounds, cultures, languages, perspectives and ways of seeing and being in the world, we can do so much more than alone as individuals. Just thinking about this makes me excited - we can make such a difference finding innovative ways to do and think about things, together.��

Are there any books, exhibitions or cultural experiences you've enjoyed recently that have inspired you?��

I’m an avid reader, and recently have loved George Saunders’ ‘Vigil’, Douglas Stuart’s ‘John of John’ and Lee Yuri’s ‘Broccoli Punch’ (translated from the Korean by Amber Hj Kim). Recent musical highlights have been Mika live at the AO Arena, and RNCM Artist of the Year pianist Liana Storey playing Rachmaninov’s ‘Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini’ at the Bridgewater Hall.��

An experience that will stick with me for a long time was a visit to the ‘Birds’ exhibition at the Mauritshuis in The Hague earlier this year. I was blown away! I’d mainly wanted to see ‘The Goldfinch’ (especially given how much I love Donna Tartt’s wonderful novel of the same name), but the exhibition was so much more than that moment. Taking up only one room, the exhibition includes not only Leonardo da Vinci’s sketches of flying machines, and works by Rembrandt, Picasso and Emin, but also pieces which invite visitors to question their relationship with birds and the natural world; a video of a Greenpeace campaign which depicts a ballet dancer covered in oil whilst performing the ‘dying swan’, and documentary footage showing how chicks are farmed in factories. For me it was everything an exhibition should be – beautiful, stimulating, and provocative. ����

Creativity means different things to different people. What does creativity mean to you?��

I see creativity very broadly. Everyone is creative. For me, creativity is about making new ideas that have value for others. That value can take many forms - cultural, social, community, economic, environmental or value in terms of representation or health and wellbeing. I think we risk limiting what impact we can have and what new knowledge we can make if we see some people as creative and not others, or if we see value from one point of view only, e.g., if we see financial value as the main or only motivator for an idea.��

Quick fire:��

1. Coffee or tea?��
   Either! Can I add bubble tea to the list and choose that?��
   ��

2. A cultural event you're looking forward to this year?��
   Two cultural events I’ve waited for took place over summer - the release of Nintendo’s ‘Splatoon Raiders’ (I’m a big video gamer) and the announcement of the Booker Prize long list (something I look forward to every year!). I’m now really looking forward to the 51������ Literature Festival event with Russell T Davies and Bernardine Evaristo on 11th Oct - two cultural heroes of mine.��
   ��
3. What's on your playlist right now?
   My ‘favourites’ streaming playlist has 218 tracks on it and I’m always looking for new things to listen to. My latest playlist additions are ‘You got me singing’ by Leonard Cohen, ‘Ko’u I Noa’ for solo viola by Lanzilotti, and ‘Django (live)’ by The Oscar Peterson Trio (from an album of live recordings never previously heard until their release earlier this year).��
   ��

4. One word that describes your vision for Creative 51������?��
   Innovative. ��
   ��

A new Wellcome Trust clinical Doctoral Training Programme partnership between 51������, City St George’s, The University of Exeter and Imperial College London, is enabling students to carry out cutting-edge research into fungal infections and address underrepresented populations and diseases. The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation established in 1936 with an aim of working towards a healthier future for everyone. Through a £155 million investment into 14 new doctoral training programmes across the UK, Wellcome is supporting the next generation of healthcare professional researchers.

Tackling the global threat of fungal disease

The Mycology Doctoral Training Programme (Myco-DTP) will develop the next generation of clinical academic leaders tackling fungal diseases, one of the world's most significant but often overlooked infectious disease challenges.

Fungi such as Candida, Aspergillus and Cryptococcus cause more than six million invasive infections and over three million deaths globally each year, particularly affecting people with weakened immune systems. Treatment options remain limited and antifungal resistance is an increasing concern.

Although the UK is internationally recognised for excellence in medical mycology research, there is a shortage of clinically trained researchers able to translate laboratory discoveries into improvements in patient care. Myco-DTP has been designed to address this gap by supporting doctors, pharmacists and healthcare scientists to become future leaders in fungal disease research. Led by Professor Tihana Bicanic at City St George's, alongside Professor Adilia Warris at the University of Exeter, Professor Mike Bromley at the University of 51������ and Professor Darius Armstrong-James at Imperial College London, the programme will train 15 healthcare professionals through a multidisciplinary curriculum spanning five translational research themes of mechanisms of disease, diagnosis, immunology, therapeutics and antifungal resistance. PhD fellows will benefit from training, mentoring

and networking opportunities within an internationally recognised UK medical mycology community.

The programme brings together leading experts in fungal disease research and is linked to international networks focused on clinical trials, policy and advocacy, helping ensure discoveries made through the programme can deliver impact for patients in the UK and around the world.

Professor Bromley said: "Fungal infections are a growing global health threat, but clinical research capacity has simply not kept pace. The MYCO-DTP will be transformational, training a new generation of clinical researchers capable of translating world-leading fungal science into benefits for patients. Building on Wellcome’s sustained investment in medical mycology, and the combined expertise at the University of 51������ and National Aspergillosis Centre, this programme will help create the clinical research leaders our field urgently needs.”

The 51������ China Institute (MCI) at 51������ successfully hosted the 51������ International Arbitration Training Programme (MIATP) from 1 to 7 September 2026, bringing together more than 40 participants from leading universities and legal institutions across China and Ireland for a week of learning, discussion and professional exchange in international arbitration.

Participants included representatives from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Zhejiang University, Sun Yat-sen University, Tongji University, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Hunan Normal University and Trinity College Dublin, alongside members of the Hong Kong Bar and senior lawyers from the Shanghai Lawyers Association and Guangzhou Lawyers Association.

The programme was formally opened by Professor Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor of 51������, who welcomed participants to the University. Professor Lei Chen, Director of the 51������ China Institute, introduced the programme and highlighted the importance of international collaboration, knowledge exchange and supporting the next generation of arbitration professionals.

Over the course of the week, participants engaged in lectures, interactive workshops, practical exercises and networking opportunities delivered by an internationally distinguished faculty of judges, King's Counsel, barristers, arbitrators, legal practitioners and academics. Faculty members included Sir Bernard Rix, Sir Christopher Vajda KC and Sir Bernard Eder, among many other leading experts in the field.

Hosted by the 51������ China Institute, the programme drew upon 51������'s academic strengths while providing a platform for international exchange and professional development. Through discussions on arbitration agreements, arbitral procedures, investment arbitration, enforcement of awards and practical advocacy skills, participants gained valuable insights into the evolving landscape of global dispute resolution.

Beyond the classroom, the programme offered opportunities for participants to build professional networks with peers and experts from different jurisdictions. Social activities, including the programme gala dinner at 51������ Museum and organised visits to 51������ City's Etihad Stadium, encouraged meaningful dialogue and fostered new professional connections among those with a shared interest in international arbitration and dispute resolution.

At the conclusion of the programme, participants received certificates of attendance and joined a growing international network of professionals, academics and students committed to advancing arbitration and dispute resolution worldwide.

Fatty liver disease, they find, has been overlooked in current approaches to assessing cardiometabolic health, despite growing evidence that it can play a central role in facilitating damage across different organs.

The condition which affects up to one in three adults worldwide and known technically as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), is already one of the world's fastest-growing health problems and is expected to affect more than half of adults globally by 2040.

Many scientists argue that the liver should be recognised alongside the heart, kidneys and metabolic system in a new framework they call cardiovascular-renal-hepatic-metabolic (CRHM) syndrome.

The review, published in Current opinion in nephrology and hypertension, highlights evidence showing that people with fatty liver disease face increased risks of cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease and early death, particularly when liver scarring, known as fibrosis, develops.

The studies they assessed, which involved millions of patients, found that fatty liver disease can predict heart and kidney complications independently of traditional risk factors such as diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity.

And having both liver and kidney disease appears to create a particularly dangerous combination.

A fatty liver releases substances into the bloodstream that promote inflammation, damage blood vessels, interfere with how the body uses energy.

That can influence the health of other organs through harmful fat deposits, chronic inflammation, hormonal signalling and changes in the gut microbiome amongst other things.

The review also points to a wave of new treatments that could transform care for patients affected by the interconnected conditions.

Drugs originally developed for obesity and type 2 diabetes are now showing benefits across the liver, heart and kidneys simultaneously.

Semaglutide, best known as a weight-loss treatment, has become the first medicine to demonstrate benefits, while newer drugs including tirzepatide and retatrutide are producing promising results in clinical trials.

The researchers say routine liver screening should become part of kidney and cardiovascular assessments, particularly in patients with obesity, diabetes or other metabolic risk factors.

They also call for major clinical trials and healthcare services to move beyond treating diseases organ by organ and instead adopt integrated approaches reflecting how these conditions interact in the real world.

Dr Will Marshall clinical research fellow at 51������ and senior author of the study, said: "For many years we have viewed heart disease, kidney disease and liver disease as separate conditions managed by different specialists.

“The evidence now shows that these organs are deeply interconnected through shared biological pathways driven by obesity, insulin resistance and chronic inflammation.”

Dr Marshall, who is also based at Salford Royal added: “Fatty liver disease is not simply a consequence of metabolic ill health, it is an active contributor to it.

“Recognising the liver as a core component of cardiometabolic disease could help clinicians identify high-risk patients earlier, improve treatment decisions and ultimately prevent thousands of serious complications and premature deaths."

· This paper is a peer reviewed narrative review which cites 55 references in its bibliography, covering epidemiological studies, clinical trials, meta-analyses, guidelines, reviews, and expert commentaries.

• The study Integrating the liver into the cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome: pathophysiology and therapeutic implications is published in journal DOI 10.1097/MNH.0000000000001225

A “peculiar” new species of Jurassic squid-like animal has been unearthed in Wyoming, USA, following the discovery of two exceptionally rare fossils dating back around 160 million years.

The newly named species, Wyoteuthis linsterorum, has been identified as a type of ancient cephalopod, called a belemnite, cousins of modern squid and octopus. They say unusually thick, barrel-shaped skeleton makes it the "chunkiest” or “fattest" belemnite ever discovered.

An international team of researchers from the USA, UK and New Zealand, including Dr Dean Lomax, Honorary Research Fellow at 51������, describe the discovery in the journal today.

Belemnites are among the most common fossils found worldwide and are recognised by their bullet-shaped remains, known as a rostrum or guard. Millions have been discovered in Wyoming's Sundance Formation, an ancient inland sea that once covered the western USA.

Co-author and Wyoming palaeontologist, Jessica Lippincott, said in Wyoming, they are nicknamed “squid butts”.

The chunkiest belemnite ever discovered

Most Wyoming belemnites are bullet-shaped measuring around 5 to 10 centimetres long and only 1 to 2 centimetres wide. By contrast, the newly discovered species had an unusually broad, barrel-shaped rostrum around 10 centimetres long but up to six centimetres wide, making it the thickest belemnite ever recorded.

Researchers estimate the living animal would have reached around 60 centimetres in total length including its arms.

The work was instigated by Wyoming palaeontologist and co-author Bill Wahl, who has spent much of his career searching for fossils in Wyoming and said this belemnite “stuck out like a sore thumb”. He brought together an international team of researchers to investigate the remarkable specimens, including belemnite expert Alexey Ippolitov, now at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

Using computed tomography (CT) scanning, the team were able to examine the fossils without damaging them, revealing internal features that confirmed the animal belonged to an ancient family of belemnites previously thought to have disappeared millions of years earlier.

PhD student, Ippolitov said he was "deeply surprised" to discover a fossil from such a well-studied group that differed so radically from anything previously known. After more than 200 years of palaeontological research on belemnites, he said, discoveries like this are exceptionally rare.

Ippolitov explains: “A possible explanation is that their relatively large size gave them an advantage when hunting co-occurring smaller belemnites of the genus Pachyteuthis. Modern squid, after all, are hardly picky when it comes to prey: they readily hunt not only other species of cephalopods, but sometimes even their own kind.”

30 years in the making

The discovery was almost 30 years in the making. The first specimen was unearthed in the late 1990s by Dr Burkhard Pohl, founder of the Wyoming Dinosaur Center, after he spotted a belemnite much bigger than any he had seen before. The fossil sat unstudied in the museum's collection draw for many years until a second specimen was discovered by fossil collector Cliff Linster near Ten Sleep, Wyoming, and donated to the Wyoming Dinosaur Center in 2019. Together, the two fossils provided the evidence needed to identify and formally describe the new species.

Honouring a fossil collector's legacy

The name Wyoteuthis translates to “a squid from Wyoming”, while the species name, linsterorum, honours Cliff Linster and his family. Cliff discovered one of only two known specimens of the new species and donated it for scientific study.

Co-author and Wyoming palaeontologist, Jessica Lippincott, said: “After spending years fossil hunting in Wyoming and collecting countless fossils of the common Pachyteuthis belemnites here in Wyoming, this one is unlike anything I have ever seen! It goes to show that we are still finding new species of fossils all the time, and people who rockhound or collect invertebrate fossils can also contribute to science.”

Cliff Linster passed away in June this year. He knew researchers were studying his remarkable discovery and was excited to see it formally described. The Linster family are no strangers to finding amazing fossils, perhaps most famously the dinosaur Bambiraptor.

Co-author and British palaeontologist, Dr Dean Lomax, an Honorary Research Fellow at 51������ and an 1851 Research Fellow at the University of Bristol, in the UK, dug up dinosaurs with Cliff and his wife, Sandy, when he was a teenager. He said: “I met Cliff and Sandy in 2009, when I spent a week digging up a dinosaur bonebed on their property in northern Montana. I have fond memories of that dig, listening to Cliff share his passion for fossils, including this belemnite. I’m honoured to help name this fossil after Cliff. It’s bittersweet that he didn’t get to see it published, but it’s wonderful that we can immortalise him and his family name in the history of palaeontology. The find is incredibly rare, which might be due to some ecological adaptations to the environment at the time. Perhaps its rarity is a result of narrow specialization.”

Dr Lomax is also the author of the recently published book, “The Secret Lives of Dinosaurs”, which highlights Wyoming fossils, and he has spent time collecting fossils and excavating plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs in Wyoming’s Sundance Formation.

Both specimens are on display at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center in Thermopolis, Wyoming USA.

Publication details

The new study has been published in the international journal, Papers in Palaeontology.

DOI:

At a time when governments and organisations are introducing new AI rules and standards, including under the EU AI Act, the study suggests that many current efforts to govern AI focus on producing documents, policies and reports that demonstrate ethical commitment.

However, the findings indicate that unless organisations also change how AI is developed in practice, these measures may amount to little more than a box-ticking exercise.

Professor Caroline Jay, who supervised the research, said: "This is not a story about bad companies or bad engineers. It is a story about the difference between the appearance of ethical practice and the substance of it. The infrastructure of AI ethics has grown faster than the technology it was designed to govern. What this research shows is that the infrastructure is largely aimed at the wrong level."

The study argues that meaningful change must address the way AI projects operate day to day, including how ethical concerns are raised, who is responsible for addressing them and whether careful testing and safety work are recognised and rewarded.

It also calls on regulators to look beyond whether organisations have produced the correct documentation and examine whether ethical safeguards are being followed in practice.

The research forms part of a wider doctoral project examining the relationship between AI engineers’ intentions, public perceptions of AI and the outcomes produced by AI systems.

The researchers now plan to test these findings through a larger-scale survey involving a broader engineering population. They hope the work will help inform future AI governance approaches by focusing greater attention on the organisational conditions that shape how AI systems are developed and deployed.

Biological ion channels, which have angstrom-scale constrictions, can respond to multiple signals from their surroundings and regulate the movement of ions across cell membranes. Inspired by this principle, researchers investigated whether naturally occurring angstrom-scale channels in vermiculite could also exhibit responsive ion transport when exposed to different external stimuli, e.g., mechanical, electrical and chemical signals.

Depending on the conditions applied, the channels altered both the amount and direction of ion flow, showing behaviours similar to the ion gating behaviour in biological channels.

The clay channels naturally favour positively charged ions. The team found that by changing the acidity of the surrounding solution, they were able to influence this selectivity. Pressure and electrical voltage also altered how ions travelled through the channels, revealing a complex interplay between the different stimuli.

Dr Raj Kumar Gogoi, first author of the study added, “We observed that applying pressure and voltage together could change the behaviour of the flowing ions in ways not seen when either stimulus was applied alone. Under certain conditions, the direction of the pressure-driven current could even reverse, highlighting the sensitivity of the system to multiple environmental inputs.”

To understand these observations, the researchers combined laboratory experiments with computational modelling. Prof Narayana R Aluru, from University of Texas-Austin, said "The experimental observations could not be fully explained using conventional models. We introduce a modified surface-charge regulation model, where pressure, voltage and ion concentration influence the distribution of ions inside the channels and modify the charge at the channel surface, which in turn affects ion transport.”

Unlike conventional models, which typically consider surface charge as a function of ion concentration alone, the new approach incorporates the combined effects of voltage, pressure and concentration, to describe how these coupled factors influence ion transport in highly confined channels The findings suggest that naturally layered materials could offer a versatile platform for studying and controlling ionic transport at extremely small scales. The authors say future applications could include adaptive nanofluidic systems, energy conversion devices and bioelectronic platforms, though these applications were not explored in the present study.

The research was conducted by scientists from the Department of Physics and Astronomy, National Graphene Institute and Photon Science Institute at 51������; the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering and Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; and the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin.

Funded by (EPSRC), and in partnership with researchers from Imperial College London and the University of Leeds, the programme will use atomic-scale materials engineering to unlock new capabilities in future secure communications systems, ultra-sensitive quantum sensors and scalable quantum computing – all areas recognised as strategically important to the UK's future economic prosperity, security and technological resilience.��

The five-year EPSRC Programme Grant will bring together researchers to address one of the most significant challenges facing modern technology: how to engineer materials with such precision that their properties can be controlled at the level of individual atoms to realise new devices and capability.��

Materials underpin every advanced electronic and optical device. However, translating breakthroughs made at the atomic scale into technologies that can be manufactured reliably and at scale remains a major challenge.��

MEAD will exploit deterministic single-atom doping and isotopic engineering to create materials with entirely new functionalities, crucially demonstrating they can be manufactured and deployed in devices for future technologies.

Turning atomic-scale research into future technologies

The programme will draw on an extensive network of national research facilities and expertise across the three partner institutions, underpinned by more than £150 million of existing infrastructure investments in advanced materials characterisation, semiconductor fabrication and quantum technologies. Together, these facilities provide a unique environment for translating fundamental scientific discoveries into technologies with real-world impact.

Professor Neil Alford of Imperial College London said: "Many of the technologies that society will depend on in the coming decades will require levels of precision and performance that cannot be achieved using today's materials alone. MEAD is about creating the materials, devices and measurement capabilities needed to unlock the next generation of communications, quantum technologies and sensing systems."

Professor Edmund Linfield of the University of Leeds added: "The UK is already globally renowned in areas such as quantum technologies, semiconductor engineering and advanced materials. MEAD brings these strengths together with a shared ambition to create technologies that will support future economic growth, scientific discovery and national capability."

Developing next generation devices

The programme's scope includes:

• Design and fabrication of quantum devices based on precisely engineered semiconductor materials, including advanced "qudits", which can carry more information than conventional quantum bits. Using the fabrication capabilities of the Bragg Centre for Materials Research at the University of Leeds, and selective deterministic ion implantation at 51������, MEAD will create devices with previously unachievable levels of atomic control, providing a pathway towards more scalable and efficient quantum computing systems.
• Development of highly sensitive "masers", the microwave equivalent of lasers, in work led by Imperial College London. These devices are capable of amplifying extremely weak signals with exceptionally low noise, making them attractive for both advanced communications and quantum technologies. They are likely to play a vital role in future terrestrial communications systems that are less reliant on satellites, offering greater resilience in an increasingly connected world.
• Investigation of new approaches to measuring motion, gravity and environmental changes by harnessing the properties of quantum systems. The programme will aim to generate sensing performance improvements of up to five orders of magnitude beyond current state-of-the-art technologies.
• Development of new AI-powered imaging and characterisation techniques capable of helping scientists identify and analyse materials at the scale of individual atoms. This will provide insight into how atomic-scale changes influence device performance, accelerating the development of future technologies.

Leading UK materials expertise

Today’s announcement builds on 51������, Imperial and Leeds’ long-standing leadership in advanced materials engineering and quantum technologies, with recent research highlights including:

• Highly 28Si enriched silicon by localised focused ion beam implantation, Nature Communications,
• A High-Resolution Versatile Focused Ion Implantation Platform for Nanoscale Engineering, Advanced Engineering Materials,
• “Maser-in-a-shoebox”: A portable plug-and-play maser device at room temperature and zero magnetic field, Applied Physics Letters,
• Exploring the spin dynamics of a room-temperature diamond maser using an extended rate equation model, Journal of Applied Physics,
• Analysis of plasmon modes in Bi2Se3/graphene heterostructures via electron energy loss spectroscopy, Scientific Reports, 10.1038/s41598-024-81488-7
• Optimizing Hot Electron Harvesting at Planar Metal–Semiconductor Interfaces with Titanium Oxynitride Thin Films, Applied Materials and Interfaces,

The exact timeline of the recent Nepal flooding disaster is becoming clearer. At 8:37am, instruments recorded what was initially interpreted as an earthquake near ����貹��’s border with China. Seven minutes later, CCTV recorded the Gyirong Port border post being destroyed by a massive debris flow and flood.

flood authorities learned about the incident at about 9:00am and sent out an emergency SMS alert at about 9:15am. But by that time, Nepal was already deep into a major disaster.

The 38 minute gap between the tremor being detected and the emergency alert is striking. But it would be wrong to assume ����貹��’s authorities could simply have acted on the initial signal: at the time, it appeared to be a small earthquake, rather than a much rarer mountain collapse. The flood also arrived too swiftly for water-level sensors: they went almost immediately from recording normal levels to being destroyed.

The more interesting question is what a better-integrated warning system might have made possible. Could seismic readings, satellite images and other observations have been combined quickly enough to recognise what was happening and alert people further downstream?

Existing early-warning systems have often been designed around particular hazards such as regular rain-caused floods or . But this disaster was neither a Glof nor a regular flood. Instead it appears to have involved a rare, large-scale collapse of rock and ice, which turned into a devastating debris flow and flood.

As a of a strikingly similar flood in India last year argued, this type of hazard is largely absent from existing warning frameworks. As , such events are likely to happen more often.

Cascading mountain hazards that cross borders

In July 2025, a glacial lake in Tibet burst and swept down into Nepal, killing at least nine people and leaving around 20 missing in Nepal. Eleven people were also officially reported missing on the Chinese side.

After the flood, Nepal and China agreed in principle to share real-time information about floods, landslides and glacial lakes. However, despite ����貹��’s foreign minister during a visit to China in May 2026, no formal agreement has been signed.

Across the Himalayas and Hindu Kush mountain ranges, rivers, weather systems and infrastructure frequently span national boundaries. Our shows a hazard that begins in one place can have lethal consequences – and create new warning requirements – far downstream.

A warming climate is by thinning glaciers, thawing permafrost and destabilising slopes, even if climate change isn’t the sole explanation for every disaster. Meanwhile roads and hydropower projects are putting more people and infrastructure in threatened valleys.

Cooperation has to come before the disaster

Some cross-border early-warning arrangements already exist between Nepal and its neighbours, particularly for recurring floods. But sudden, cascading events such as the recent disaster pose a different challenge. A warning has value only if it travels the whole distance – from a sensor in the mountains, through scientific agencies, national and local authorities, to households in the valleys and plains below, in the minutes that matter.

Community-based flood warning already works in parts of ����貹��’s Koshi basin, where upstream gauges and trained local volunteers buy downstream villages precious time. A regional early warning system would have to link these community-level systems with national and cross-border monitoring, so that information can move from the source of a hazard to the people at risk. That means agreeing in advance what should be shared, how warnings should be passed between countries and agencies, and what action they should trigger.

That requires institutional changes and political commitment, as much as new technology. The region’s existing water treaties were written to divide flows and manage dams and barrages, not to govern cascading hazards in the high mountains. Governments could establish permanent bodies responsible for Himalayan rivers and their associated hazards. Featuring both scientists and policymakers, and linked to counterparts in neighbouring countries, these public bodies would be mandated to share data, jointly monitor glaciers, lakes and slopes, and coordinate warnings across borders.

The aim would be to make cooperation routine and sustained between disasters, rather than improvised in a crisis when events may unfold too quickly for international debate. None of this requires neighbours to resolve their wider disputes; it asks only that disaster warning be ring-fenced as shared humanitarian infrastructure that keeps working unabated.

The technologies for predicting and monitoring high-mountain hazards are improving fast. We now need more international scientific and policy cooperation, and warning systems capable of turning these observations into rapid action.

By , Senior Research Fellow and Lecturer in Environmental Management, ; , Lecturer in Disasters and Global Health, Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute, ; , Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, , and , Associate Professor, Department of Geomatics Engineering,

This article is republished from under a Creative Commons license. Read the .

In the new study, published in , researchers developed a graphene device that allowed them to test this question directly. The device consisted of two twisted graphene bilayers separated by less than a nanometre but kept electronically separate. This design enabled the team to weaken interactions between electrons in the magic-angle graphene layer and observe how superconductivity responded. The international collaboration involved researchers from the , the Henry Royce Institute, Washington University in St Louis, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Antwerp, Japan’s National Institute for Materials Science and the National University of Singapore.

Magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene, created by stacking two sheets of graphene with a rotational offset of approximately 1.1 degrees, has become one of the most intensely studied quantum materials over the past decade. However, researchers have continued to debate what causes its superconductivity. While some theories propose that electrons themselves drive the pairing responsible for superconductivity, others suggest a more conventional mechanism involving vibrations of the atomic lattice.

Dr Julien Barrier, the lead author of the study, explained: “To make a difference, we had to solve two issues. First, to build a device in which the screening layer sits extremely close, a fraction of a nanometre, to the superconducting graphene while remaining electronically separate. Second, we had to make that screening layer tuneable. To this effect, we used a twisted graphene bilayer in atomic contact to the magic-angle graphene”.

Professor Alexey Berdyugin from the National University of Singapore, the corresponding author of this study, added: “When we switched on the screening, we were surprised to find that superconductivity was completely suppressed. This provides clear experimental evidence that superconductivity in this system originates from strong electron-electron interactions. This behaviour offers a new opportunity to better understand the mechanisms underlying superconductivity in other materials with strong electronic interactions, including high-temperature superconductors.”

Professor Sir Andre Geim, the corresponding author of this work, said: "Personally, I am interested only in high-temperature superconductivity – preferably at room temperature or above. This study was done at temperatures so low that even helium turns liquid. But unless we understand what makes superconductivity work, we are unlikely ever to reach room-temperature superconductivity, let alone make this remarkable phenomenon commercially useful. Our study takes only a tiny step - but still a step - in that direction, helping to nail down the mechanism of exotic superconductivity in graphene. Rome was not built in a day.”

The team found that increasing the carrier density in the neighbouring graphene bilayer progressively weakened superconductivity in the adjacent magic-angle graphene. At sufficiently high carrier densities, superconductivity was completely suppressed.

The researchers also observed that correlated insulating states, another characteristic feature of magic-angle graphene, disappeared under the same conditions. Measurements showed that the superconducting critical temperature could be reduced by more than an order of magnitude through screening.

The effect was substantially stronger than reported in earlier screening experiments. According to the researchers, the enhanced response resulted from the exceptionally small separation between the superconducting layer and the screening layer, allowing Coulomb interactions to be modified much more effectively.

To understand the observations, the team compared the experimental results with theoretical modelling. Conventional phonon-mediated superconductivity would be expected to remain largely unchanged or increase slightly when Coulomb interactions are screened. Instead, the researchers observed the opposite behaviour, indicating that conventional phonon pairing does not explain the superconductivity in this class of materials.

While the authors emphasise that the work does not identify a single definitive pairing mechanism, several unconventional theories remain consistent with the results, including mechanisms based on collective electronic interactions. However, the findings place much tighter constraints on future theories seeking to explain superconductivity in magic-angle graphene.

Professor Berdyugin concludes: “In this study, we introduced a method for screening electron-electron interactions over scales as short as 0.3 nm, which turned out to be crucial for controlling superconductivity in magic-angle graphene. We anticipate that this unprecedented level of short-range screening could also help clarify many other debated phenomena.”

The international team, led by at 51������ and Professor Nicholas Chilton at the Australian National University, combined cyclopentadienyl ligands, which help create rigid molecular structures, with amide ligands, which form particularly short dysprosium-nitrogen bonds. The resulting molecules adopted near-linear structures with ligand angles approaching 172°, a geometry believed to contribute in part to their exceptional magnetic behaviour.

Alongside magnetic hysteresis temperatures of up to 92 K, the new materials were able to store magnetic information for a hundred seconds up to a temperature of 40 K, indicating significantly improved retention of magnetic memory compared with earlier dysprosium-amide systems.

Professor David Mills continued: “Controlling the geometries of lanthanide compounds is notoriously difficult as the chemical bonding is non-directional. Therefore, although near-linear dysprosium compounds have long been predicted to give the best SMMs, we are only now able to use carefully selected combinations of ligands to consistently deliver these target molecules.”

The ability to create SMMs with magnetic memory effects at higher temperatures widens the opportunity for these molecules to be used for high-density data storage devices, which is important for the ever-increasing amount of data storage required in for our technological age.

References to selected previous papers from these research groups can be found below:
Soft magnetic hysteresis in a dysprosium amide-alkene complex up to 100 Kelvin, Nature.
Molecular magnetic hysteresis at 60 K in dysprosocenium, Nature.
Magnetic hysteresis up to 73 K in a dysprosium cyclopentadienyl-amide single-molecule magnet, J. Am. Chem. Soc.

University of 51������ scientists have uncovered a hidden role for immune cells in the womb, opening the door to new treatments for infertility, miscarriage and other reproductive conditions that affect millions of women worldwide.

The findings are a breakthrough in our understanding of women's reproductive biology, one of the most under-researched areas of medicine, despite infertility and pregnancy complications affecting millions of families.

The researchers hope their findings will accelerate efforts to develop targeted therapies for a range of conditions in urgent need of advancement, including recurrent miscarriage, IVF implantation failure, uterine fibrosis (scarring) and non-cancerous growths in the womb called fibroids.

Using mouse models and samples from women, specialised white blood cells called monocytes, they found, play a vital role in keeping the uterus healthy throughout the menstrual cycle.

Their findings, published in Nature Immunology today, reveal that these cells manage inflammation, repair tissue and maintain the womb lining, challenging long-held assumptions about how the uterus regulates itself.

They showed that during a healthy menstrual cycle, large numbers of monocytes move from the bloodstream into the uterus at specific times each month.

Once there, they are able to promote inflammation when needed or help repair and rebuild tissue.

Monocytes, they add, are essential for normal tissue turnover in the womb, though when missing, the uterus developed abnormal tissue structures and scarring causing problems with reproduction, with the mice having fewer pups per litter.

Using mouse models to track how immune cells in the womb develop over time, they determined that once recruited to the womb, monocytes turn into two different types of specialised immune cells (macrophages), one causing inflammation and one promoting tissue repair .

The findings were particularly striking in women with Asherman Syndrome, an often undetected condition in which scar tissue forms inside the uterus and can cause infertility, recurrent miscarriage and pregnancy complications.

The team discovered unusually high numbers of inflammatory monocytes in women affected by Asherman’s syndrome. Rather than rising and falling naturally throughout the menstrual cycle, the cells remained persistently elevated and clustered around specialised glands in the lining of the womb.

The study suggests this abnormal immune activity in mice may contribute to the development of fibrosis and scarring inside the uterus.

The work could help identify new treatment strategies, such as blocking inflammatory pathways or targeting molecules that control the movement and behaviour of monocytes, which aim to restore a healthy immune balance in the womb.

Dr , senior author of the study from 51������, said: "For many years we have known surprisingly little about the immune cells that live and work within the uterus.

“Our study shows that one type of immune cell - monocytes - are not simply bystanders but essential for maintaining a healthy womb.

“When their behaviour becomes disrupted, normal tissue repair processes can go wrong and scarring may develop.

She added: “We hope these findings will pave the way for new treatments that improve fertility and reproductive health for women affected by inflammatory womb conditions."

“The lack of knowledge in this area reflects the historic underfunding and low prioritisation of women’s health.

“One critical consequence of this is the dramatic decline in global fertility rates, set to transform global population patterns.”

• The DOI for the paper is 10.1038/s41590-026-02651-y and is available

Developed in response to a growing concern for the wellbeing of young people in the UK, the #BeeWell programme listens to young people about their wellbeing, and drives action in response to what they say. Since launching in 2021, #BeeWell has listened to the voices of nearly 200,000 young people across Greater 51������, and Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton, working with over 320 secondary schools, and hundreds of partners across these regions to act on the data and improve young people’s wellbeing.

Leadership for the next phase

Laura and Marie bring a track record from central government and the voluntary sector. They are joining #BeeWell following work as a senior civil service jobshare team at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport where they were co deputy directors for grants, risk, assurance and counter fraud

Laura Clayton brings social research, organisational transition experience, expertise in grant-making and risk management. She led research into wellbeing and engagement at Historic England, supporting its shift to a self-sustaining charity model. She also served as lead trustee for Otakar Kraus Music Trust, helping expand music therapy services for young people with additional needs.

Marie-Elise Howells brings policy and delivery experience across central government, education, and community organisations. At the Department for Education, she led work on special educational needs, school infrastructure, and early years education. At DCMS she led work on community resilience, volunteering, and youth connection, before job sharing with Laura. She has spent two decades as a trustee and governor across local and national education and youth charities.

Laura and Marie��said, "We’re beyond thrilled to join #BeeWell at a crucial moment for young people across the country. We've been inspired by the rigour, commitment, passion and collaboration shown by the team and by partners. We can't wait to work alongside staff, partners, and young people - from the Isle of Wight to Rochdale and beyond - to make sure every child gets what they need to thrive in their local area."

They succeed��James Robertson, who served as National Director since autumn 2023 and is moving to Japan for family reasons.

James said,"It has been a pleasure and privilege to be #BeeWell’s first National Director and to spearhead its development over the last three years. Thanks to the hard work of all the team and the generous support of The National Lottery Community Fund, #BeeWell is in great shape to expand its reach and its impact in the period ahead under Laura and Marie’s leadership."

David Gregson, #BeeWell Patron said: “Laura and Marie will be outstanding leaders of #BeeWell, building on the tremendous base that James has built. Their experience of both operational delivery and policy making at the highest levels, makes them ideally placed to take #BeeWell’s work to a new level to grow. We are thrilled that they have chosen to join #BeeWell as it enters this next phase.”

To find out more about #BeeWell’s work with schools and partners, please visit:����and��

Contact #BeeWell comms team on��Beewellprogramme@manchester.ac.uk.

Researchers at 51������ and 51������ Metropolitan University have developed a laboratory method that transforms sheep bone into a realistic model of osteoporosis, providing a potential alternative for early-stage testing of orthopaedic implants and treatments.

The study, published in JBMR Plus, describes how researchers used a controlled demineralisation process to alter the structure and mechanical properties of sheep bone, creating samples that closely resemble osteoporotic human bone.

Osteoporosis affects an estimated 500 million people worldwide and contributes to around 2.7 million hip fractures each year. The development of new implants and treatments requires extensive testing, often involving human cadaveric bone or animal studies, both of which can be costly, time-consuming and subject to regulatory constraints.

To address this challenge, the research team investigated whether sheep femurs sourced from the food chain could be converted into a representative model of osteoporotic bone. Sheep bone shares similarities in size with human bone and is more readily available for laboratory research.

The researchers treated sheep femurs with hydrochloric acid for different periods, removing minerals from the bone and causing progressive changes to its internal structure and strength. They then measured how the process affected bone density, architecture and mechanical performance.

The team found that longer demineralisation times resulted in weaker, more porous bones, closely mirroring the deterioration seen in osteoporosis. Young's modulus, a measure of stiffness, fell from 110.7 MPa in untreated samples to 57.7 MPa after 96 hours of demineralisation. Volumetric bone mineral density decreased by around 33%, while porosity increased by approximately 30% compared with untreated bone.

Microscopic analysis also revealed significant changes in the trabecular structure, the network of bone tissue that helps provide strength and support. As demineralisation increased, trabecular thickness decreased while trabecular separation increased, both hallmarks of osteoporotic bone.

According to the researchers, the resulting bone properties fall within ranges reported for human osteoporotic trabecular bone. This suggests the model could provide a useful and cost-effective tool for investigating osteoporosis and evaluating orthopaedic technologies before progressing to more complex testing.

The researchers note that the approach aligns with the principles of Replacement, Reduction and Refinement, often known as the 3Rs, which aim to minimise the use of animals in research where suitable alternatives are available.

The study was conducted by researchers from 51������ Metropolitan University and 51������. Lead author, Fahad Alabdah returned to Saudi Arabia as a lecturer at the University of Hail.

Titled '', the review compares six fuel cycle pathways of varying complexity, from the simplest once-through cycle where all spent fuel is treated as waste, to more advanced options incorporating multiple stages of recycling.

To make the comparison accessible, the authors present the six options as a ‘Tube map’, modelled on the London Underground - a first for the field.

Today’s nuclear reactors already compare well with renewable technologies when it comes to many sustainability metrics. However, this review finds that closing the fuel cycle could improve sustainability further still, delivering benefits for natural resource use, environmental footprint, management of high-level radioactive waste, and energy security.��

Co-author Professor Robin Taylor, of the Dalton Nuclear Institute and the UK National Nuclear Laboratory, said: “Closing the fuel cycle does come with real challenges, including those around safety, security, and cost. However, by drawing on the UK’s own experience as a case study, our review finds that these challenges can be addressed and do not necessarily rule out the benefits of reusing nuclear fuel”.

Co-author Dr William Bodel, of the Dalton Nuclear Institute, added: “Our review shows that while nuclear energy is already a sustainable source of low-carbon energy, successfully closing the fuel cycle could enhance this further. Visualising various fuel cycle options together is hard given the amount of information which needs to be presented simultaneously. Harry Beck’s 1930s London Underground map does an excellent job at communicating complicated information, so applying its design here seemed a good solution to aid visual understanding.”

Read the full review:

The review was authored by:

• Dr William Bodel
• Professor Anthony Banford
• Professor Gregg Butler
• Professor Francis Livens
• Professor Robin Taylor

With an award of £127.5k available per project, our devolved funding calls are for bold, interdisciplinary projects that tackle urgent resilience challenges across society, tech, defence, and more.

What we're looking for:

• A human-centred systems approach
• Projects that are theoretically motivated or based on empirical evidence, and which align with one or more of
• Total project duration of 9 months
• Be led by an organisation that is eligible for UKRI funding

Important dates:

• Expressions of interest close: 02 October 2026
• Shortlisting decisions announced: End of October 2026
• Full application stage opens: End of October 2026

We look forward to receiving your submissions!

Dr David Buil-Gil, Senior Lecturer in Quantitative Criminology in the Department of Criminology, was recognised for his article, The Structure of Unstructured Time and Crime: A Spare Time Model, published in The British Journal of Criminology in 2025.

The award will be presented at the ESC Conference in Warsaw, Poland, in September 2026.

Research on spare time and crime

The award-winning article examines the relationship between unstructured spare time and crime and considers the implications for crime prevention.

In its citation, the judging panel highlighted the article's combination of theoretical development and statistical analysis, noting that the research offers a new perspective on how spare time may influence criminal behaviour and crime trends.

The panel also pointed to the study's relevance for policies and interventions that encourage structured activities and positive social engagement among groups at higher risk of offending.

Award for innovative criminology research

The judging committee said: "Dr Buil-Gil's article offers an original contribution to criminological research and demonstrates a high standard of scholarship.

"The committee was impressed by both the conceptual development of the work and its careful empirical analysis. It makes an important contribution to current debates about crime prevention and criminological theory."

About the award

The ESC Young Criminologist Award recognises an outstanding article by a European criminologist who was 35 years old or younger when the article was published. The nominee must be the sole author of an article on a criminological topic published in a peer-reviewed journal in a European language within the three calendar years preceding the year of the proposed award.

The jury consists of two current or past at-large members of the Executive Board of the ESC and the Past-President. Each year, one member of the jury will be replaced by a new member. The ESC Executive Board is responsible for constituting the jury.

The article was nominated by Thiago R. Oliveira (51������), Iain Brennan (University of Hull) and Fernando Miró-Llinares (Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche).

About Dr David Buil-Gil

Dr David Buil-Gil is Senior Lecturer in Quantitative Criminology and Research Director in the Department of Criminology at 51������. His research focuses on crime measurement, quantitative methods, cybercrime, crime prevention and comparative criminology. He works with policymakers, statistical agencies and criminal justice organisations in the UK and internationally to improve understanding of crime and its causes.

Further information about David's research is available on his University research profile:

Publication details:

DOI:

Through a series of interactive workshops and hands-on challenges, pupils gained first-hand experience of the technologies shaping our future. Activities ranged from an Energy Grid Game exploring the complexities of modern energy systems to designing, building and testing remote-controlled robots, demonstrating how robotics can support work in challenging environments.

The programme was conceived and coordinated by CDT PhD students Frankie Hough and Ahmad Al-Fatly, with support from a dedicated team of volunteers from across the University and partner institutions. Their enthusiasm, expertise and commitment helped create an engaging and inspiring experience for everyone involved.

The Summer School demonstrated the important role that early career researchers play in inspiring future generations and sharing the real-world impact of research.��

Frankie Hough, STEM Ambassador, is particularly passionate about encouraging young people to engage with science and engineering: “Creating and delivering a project from scratch and watching a group of students grow not only in their knowledge of fusion and its career paths, but also in confidence and enthusiasm, has been an amazing experience.��

"It has been great connecting the two Fusion CDTs at 51������ and working together to deliver something that has had a measurable impact on how students perceive the field of fusion.”

Aneeqa Khan, Fusion CDT lead, said that: “The Fusion Academy Summer School was a great success! It was really inspiring to see all the hard work that our PhD students from the Fusion Power and Fusion Engineering CDTs put in pay off.��

"From applying for funding, to designing novel activities showcasing the latest in fusion research, they did an absolutely brilliant job in inspiring the next generation!”

View in photos.

Read more about .

51������ and the Fear and Belonging in Minority Buddhist Communities Research Project Team invite you to a launch event for ‘grasp, grasp’ by Sian Fan, with an artist Q&A led by Chris Wright, former Executive Director of FutureEverything.

The event takes place on Wednesday 30 September, 6.30-8.15pm, at . Tickets are free (limited capacity, advance booking required).

‘grasp, grasp’ is a digital artwork which draws on the anonymised life stories of members of two different Buddhist communities, collected by University of 51������ academics Erica Baffelli and Jane Caple.

The work is a web-based experience filled with emotive photography and soundscapes, which traverses multiple pathways. It changes shape, operating in different sequences and moving in different directions, inviting viewers to reflect on the ephemerality of emotions.

Without attempting to pin it down, the work hopes to assert the complicated beauty of human experience. It seeks to form a blurry vision of lives lived, that, with your gaze soft and your grip gentle, you can find yourself enveloped within.

Doors at the venue will open at 6.30pm, with the live stream beginning online at 7pm. The artist presentation will be followed by a drinks reception for guests attending in person.

Sian Fan is an award-winning interdisciplinary artist. Her work combines movement, the body and technology to explore embodiment, identity, and human experience in the digital age. She is particularly interested in popularised depictions of Asiatic bodies in movies, anime and video games; in folkloric stories both modern and traditional; and in the thresholds of human identity where one exists as both and neither at the same time. Read more at .

For more information and to book tickets, visit .

The pupils most at risk

• Pupils receiving SEN support were more than twice as likely to be suspended as pupils without SEN, while those with an EHCP also had more than twice the odds of suspension.
• Pupils eligible for free school meals were nearly two and a half times more likely to be suspended than those who were not eligible.
• Pupils reporting higher levels of peer pressure and experiences of bullying victimisation were more likely to be suspended.
• Pupils who reported they had used any substance in the past 30 days were nearly three times more likely to be suspended than those reporting no recent substance use, in part because substance use is itself direct grounds for suspension under DfE guidance.

What could help prevent suspensions?

• School belonging, satisfaction with academic attainment and positive relationships with school staff were all associated with lower odds of suspension.
• Stronger emotion regulation was also associated with lower suspension risk.
• Suspensions are associated with multiple overlapping individual and school-level factors, highlighting the need for preventative approaches that address underlying needs rather than relying solely on disciplinary measures.

The research used data from the #BeeWell programme, a youth wellbeing measurement programme led by 51������ in collaboration with Anna Freud, a children’s mental health charity, and the Gregson Family Foundation.

The #BeeWell survey captures young people's wellbeing alongside factors that can influence it, including school experiences, health behaviours, peer and family relationships and neighbourhood characteristics. Survey responses can be linked with administrative data held by participating local authorities, allowing researchers to examine young people's experiences alongside information about suspension and exclusion.

The researchers analysed data from 19,064 pupils in Years 8 and 10 across 69 mainstream secondary schools in Hampshire and Southampton during the 2023/24 academic year. Around six per cent of pupils in the study had been suspended at least once during the academic year.

Looking beyond suspension and moving towards engagement

“Our findings show that suspension is not simply about what happens in an individual classroom or about a young person's behaviour in isolation,” said lead author Dr Stephanie Cahill. “Pupils' experiences of disadvantage, their relationships with peers and staff, their sense of belonging and their additional educational needs all form part of a much more complex picture.

The researchers say the findings highlight the importance of early intervention and preventative support, particularly for pupils experiencing disadvantage or additional educational needs.

Supportive relationships between pupils and school staff, as well as a strong sense of belonging, may play an important role in helping young people remain engaged with education.

The study also highlights the importance of understanding the different pathways that can lead to suspension– a one-size-fits-all approach is unlikely to work for all pupils.

The researchers caution that the study identifies associations rather than causal relationships. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying these patterns and how schools can most effectively intervene to prevent suspensions.

“We recognise that the current climate within education has meant that many teachers are working under very challenging conditions and that often ‘blanket’ approaches are taken due to limited capacity,” said Professor Neil Humphrey. “In order to ensure more work can be done to understand individual pathways and prevent suspensions, there needs to be increased support for schools from the government.”

You can find helpful resources from #BeeWell on school belonging

Publication details

The study was published in the British Educational Research Journal.

DOI:

Reinforcement learning (RL) is a powerful paradigm for policy optimisation in sequential decision making, it is used to train an intelligent agent (policy) to make optimal decisions by maximising some long-term reward. While online RL learns a policy by actively interacting with an environment and collecting new data through exploration and exploitation, offline RL learns a policy from a fixed, pre-collected dataset without further interaction with the environment. A typical challenge in offline RL is distributional shift, where the learned policy may encounter scenarios not covered by the offline data. This paper tackles distributional shift and integration of labelled (with rewards) data and unlabelled (without rewards) data in offline RL.

The proposed method, called semi-pessimistic pseudo labelling (SPL), makes it possible to take advantage of the unlabelled data to find a better policy than would be possible only using the labelled data. This improves the reliability of decision-making by improving estimation and accounting for uncertainty while remaining computationally efficient. The authors provide theoretical guarantees for the method and demonstrate its effectiveness through simulations, standard reinforcement learning benchmarks, and an application to adaptive deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease. By making better use of available data, the approach has the potential to improve AI systems in healthcare and other high-stakes domains.

You can find the full ‘Semi-pessimistic Reinforcement Learning’ paper here.

Jin Zhu^1,2, Xin Zhou³, Jiaang Yao⁴, Gholamali Aminian⁵, Omar Rivasplata⁶, Simon Little⁴, Lexin Li³∗, Chengchun Shi¹∗
¹London School of Economics and Political Science, ²University of Birmingham, ³University of California at Berkeley, ⁴University of California at San Francesco, ⁵The Alan Turing Institute, ⁶University of 51������. *Corresponding authors.

A by University of 51������ scientists says sophisticated lab-grown tumours could help fast-track the search for new cancer treatments while reducing reliance on animal testing.

Publishing in the British Journal of Cancer, the researchers assessed biomaterial-based cancer models using advanced materials known as hydrogels.

The models recreate key features of tumours in the lab, offering a potentially quicker way to study how cancers grow and spread.

The technology could also help scientists identify promising drugs more quickly by providing a realistic testing environment before treatments reach clinical trials.

However, the researchers stress that animal studies will remain an important part of cancer research for the foreseeable future, often providing valuable evidence about disease and drug safety.

And unlike animal research, the new technology cannot yet replicate the whole-body complexity needed to assess all aspects of drug efficacy and safety.

Hydrogels, which are derived from synthetic, plant, human or animal cells, act like a scaffold and closely mimic the environment surrounding cancer cells inside the human body.

The technology allows scientists to add cancer cells and other cell types to three-dimensional structures, creating miniature tumour ecosystems that reflect what happens in patients better than conventional two-dimensional models.

The three-dimensional tumour models are designed to mimic real cancers more closely, recreating key features such as cell interactions and drug resistance.

Two-dimensional cell cultures often fail to replicate the complexity of tumours, leading to promising drugs appearing effective in the laboratory only to disappoint in later testing.

Eve Tipple, a PhD researcher from 51������ and lead author of the review, said: “Though animal research will remain for the foreseeable future, continued advances in biomaterials could pave the way for a new generation of cancer models that are relevant to human disease.

“This technology might help researchers make better decisions earlier in the drug development process and accelerate the arrival of life-saving treatments for cancer patients worldwide.

“The technology could cut the number of animals used in research, save millions of pounds, and speed up the search for life-saving treatments.”

Cancer remains one of the world's biggest killers despite huge advances in treatment, and one major reason is that most new drugs never make it to patients.

For decades, researchers have relied on simple 2D cell cultures grown on flat plastic surfaces.

But these models fail to capture the complexity of real tumours, which contain intricate networks of cells, tissues and chemical signals.

As a result, drugs can appear highly effective in the lab only to disappoint in later testing.

She added: “Cancer is far more than a collection of diseased cells because the environment surrounding a tumour strongly influences how it grows, spreads and responds to treatment.

“Biomaterial-based models allow us to recreate many of these complex conditions in the laboratory with a level of control that was previously impossible.

“This gives researchers a powerful platform to study cancer biology, improve drug testing and ultimately help bring effective treatments closer to patients.”

• The paper Using biomaterial-based 3D in vitro cancer models to solve current clinical problems DOI .
• Image shows a 3D model

The ERC Starting Grant is one of Europe's most competitive and prestigious funding schemes, supporting outstanding early-career researchers pursuing ambitious, high-risk, high-gain research.

Custom-made materials that behave like biological molecules

Metal-peptide frameworks are microscopic structures formed when short peptides connect to metal ions and assemble into an ordered network. By changing the peptide building blocks or the metals used, researchers could create materials with tailored properties, from speeding up chemical reactions to conducting electricity.

While metal-peptide frameworks have shown promise as highly versatile materials, discovering new frameworks currently relies on slow and laborious chemical synthesis.

To address this, the project will harness a specially engineered bacterial strain with an expanded genetic code that allows the incorporation of non-canonical amino acids, molecular building blocks not found naturally in living organisms. By programming cells to produce diverse libraries of metal-binding peptides, the team aims to accelerate the discovery of entirely new materials that can self-assemble and be optimised through directed evolution.

The research could open up new possibilities for designing biological materials that combine the sophisticated functions of proteins with the scalability and accessibility of synthetic materials. In the longer term, these materials could be engineered to act as sustainable biocatalysts, conductive biological components or multifunctional biomaterials with applications across biotechnology and green manufacturing.

The project builds upon Martin’s previous work in synthetic genomics and genetic code expansion, an area of synthetic biology that enables researchers to introduce new chemical building blocks into living organisms. His previous research has helped expand the range of molecules that can be genetically encoded.

By combining these capabilities with materials science, the ERC-funded research aims to establish metal-peptide frameworks as an entirely new class of evolvable biomaterials. Researchers hope that understanding how these structures form and function could eventually enable the development of materials capable of coupling renewable energy sources with biological processes, contributing to future sustainable technologies and a circular bioeconomy.

The award continues a strong run of ERC Starting Grants success for 51������, with Dr Rebecca Tyne receiving £2.1 million to investigate how gases move through the Earth's crust.

Further information about the 2026 ERC Starting Grants can be found on the

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There is no credible scenario in which expansion at Heathrow can go ahead without blowing a hole in the UK’s legally binding climate targets, new modelling published by the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at 51������ reveals today.

The report, commissioned by the environmental justice organisation Friends of the Earth, provides the first detailed analysis of whether Heathrow expansion is compatible with the UK’s legal carbon budgets.

Recent approvals of airport expansion at Gatwick, Stansted Luton and many other locations mean that UK aviation is already projected to exceed its share of the Seventh Carbon Budget (2038-42) by between 21 and 50%, depending on how much sustainable aviation fuel materialises. That is before any Heathrow expansion takes place.

The analysis concludes that the two technologies relied upon to enable passenger growth or airport expansion to fit within carbon budgets – Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) and Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR) – are not even close to being on track for sufficiently capacity within the required timeframe.

The report concludes that Heathrow expansion cannot credibly meet the UK’s climate targets thanks to three key findings:

• Aviation emissions: The UK’s aviation sector will already exceed its share of the Seventh Carbon Budget by around 40%, even before Heathrow expansion is considered. The research highlights how even the government’s own modelling reaches a similar conclusion.

• Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF): Based on existing evidence SAF would be unable to close the emissions gap. Even optimistic deployment of this technology would leave aviation above its carbon budget share. Previous studies have shown that current SAF production methods face major structural constraints or compete with agriculture for land and water, just as farmers have experienced what could be the worst harvest on record and are already warning about the impact of the climate crisis on food production.

• Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGRs): GGR describes methods that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and stores it long-term, such as bioenergy with carbon capture and storage. The report highlights how global GGR deployment is significantly off track and that no engineered removal plants are operating yet in the UK. Despite this, aviation emissions modelling heavily relies upon future potential GGR to offset additional emissions. Even before any airport expansion is taken into account aviation is the biggest projected user of GGR capacity. On top of this, these scenarios all depend on SAF pulling its weight; if SAF fails to deliver, even more GGR will have to be deployed. The report concludes that the building capacity for more aviation demand before large scale GGR facilities are operational is inconsistent with taking climate targets seriously.

• Non-CO₂ impacts are not accounted for: Aviation's full warming effects are not captured within carbon budgets. Non-CO₂e impacts including from nitrogen oxides and contrails, account for around two-thirds of aviation's climate warming and should be incorporated into future climate targets.

What do the researchers say?

The lead researchers, , and recommend decisionmakers reject any proposed expansion at Heathrow Airport.

Dr Lois Pennington, Research Fellow at the Tyndall Centre said:

“Every aviation scenario the UK Government has published overshoots the carbon budget Parliament has legislated, before a third runway at Heathrow is even taken into account.

“Our analysis shows that aviation cannot continue to grow if the sector is to make a proportionate contribution to meeting the UK’s carbon budgets. Sustainable aviation fuels and carbon removals can contribute to limiting aviation emissions, but there is currently no evidence that these technologies can support the scale of aviation expansion envisaged by the government.

“Further aviation expansion carries a significant risk of exacerbating climate impacts by relying on the growth of technologies that are unlikely to materialise in the timescale needed.

“The UK is experiencing another exceptionally hot summer, while record-breaking severe wildfires have burnt across Western Europe. The Government must reassess the case for expansion. Climate policy must be grounded in what we can demonstrate and evidence, rather than what we hope may become possible.”

Mike Childs, head of policy, science and research at Friends of the Earth, said:��

"After this summer of record-breaking heat and nearly 3,000 excess deaths, this third runway is the equivalent of pouring petrol on a raging wildfire.

"The evidence is clear: there is no route where expansion at Heathrow can be in line with our legally binding climate targets. Suggesting that sustainable aviation fuel and greenhouse gas removals can enable airport expansion is simply trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes.

"The government has a choice: commit to taking action on the climate seriously, reject Heathrow expansion and constrain excessive flying, or abandon the UK's climate targets and future generations by giving the third runway the go ahead.

"With a weak economic case to support expansion set against a huge impact on the climate and communities, this is the opportunity for the new Prime Minister to truly set a precedent by turning his back to corporate lobbying and say no to a third runway at Heathrow."

The public consultation on the government's Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement (HENPS) closed earlier this week on Tuesday 1 September, the same day that members of parliament returned from recess to scrutinise the proposal.

Friends of the Earth and the researchers are calling on the UK Government to reject Heathrow expansion and ensure future aviation policy remains consistent with legally binding carbon budgets under the Climate Change Act.

Read the full report here:

Professor Konstantinos Stathopoulos is a leading corporate governance scholar whose research examines how companies are governed and how corporate decision-making affects different stakeholders. His work has a particular focus on executive compensation and the ways in which poor governance practices can affect stakeholder wealth. More recently, his research has examined the interests and influence of stakeholders, including employees, in corporate decision-making and governance.��

He is Vice President of the International Corporate Governance Society, Chair of the Corporate Governance Special Interest Group of the British Accounting and Finance Association and an Otto Mønsted Visiting Professor at Copenhagen Business School. He was Editor-in-Chief of Corporate Governance: An International Review from 2019 to 2024.

Professor Andreja Zevnik is an interdisciplinary scholar whose research explores political resistance, protest, race, identity and marginalisation.

Her work draws on psychoanalysis, continental philosophy, and postcolonial theory to examine how political identities and forms of resistance are produced. Her recent research has focused particularly on the racialisation and political mobilisation of Roma communities in Europe, Black Lives Matter and other forms of anti-racist political mobilisation. Her research with colleagues has also helped to raise awareness of antigypsyism and strengthen political representation and advocacy among Roma communities in Slovenia.

“Our newest Fellows represent some of the most influential voices in social science today,” said Will Hutton, President of the Academy of Social Sciences. “Their work is expanding knowledge, challenging assumptions and generating insights that are informing and even redefining decision making across government, business, education and civil society.”

“I am delighted to welcome these leading experts to the Academy, and look forward to working with them to raise the profile and impact of the social sciences across the UK and beyond.”