Key findings

• Urban canals reduce daytime temperatures by an average of around 0.8掳C within their immediate surroundings, typically 20鈥�50 metres away from the water
• Cooling is strongest during spring and early summer, reaching around 1.2鈥�1.4掳C
• During heatwaves, canals can lower nearby temperatures by 1.5鈥�2.3掳C
• The cooling effect substantially reduced the number of hours when people in the vicinity of canals would experience moderate and high heat stress
• Around 6.2 million people live within one kilometre of Britain's urban canal network, meaning millions could potentially benefit from these cooling effects

Using a new energy balance model, developed by researchers in the Geography, Planning and Engineering departments, the research simulated the thermal behaviour of more than 2,300 canal sections across Great Britain and Ireland over an entire year.

The researchers found that while canals produce a small warming effect overnight because water retains heat longer than surrounding surfaces, this effect is relatively minor compared with the cooling benefits during the day.

Improving health and wellbeing

The researchers also assessed how canals affect thermal comfort during hot weather.

Their modelling showed that incorporating the cooling effect of canals reduced the number of hours classified as posing moderate heat risk by around 58%, while hours of high heat risk fell by around 74%. In many locations, canals eliminated periods of extreme heat risk altogether, although the researchers caution that this is partly counter-balanced by rising humidity, which also influences people's comfort during hot weather.

The findings suggest canals could help reduce heat-related illness, improve wellbeing and encourage people to stay active and walk and cycle during hotter weather, in turn allowing access to nature and reducing carbon emissions through active transport.

"As climate change makes heatwaves more frequent and intense, cities need every available tool to help people stay safe and comfortable,鈥� said lead author Dr Matt Tomkins. 鈥淥ur research shows that canals, which were originally built to power the Industrial Revolution, could now play an important role in helping cities adapt to climate change.鈥�

"The cooling effect is modest on an average day, but during heatwaves it becomes much more significant, reducing nearby temperatures by more than two degrees in some locations. Even relatively small reductions like these can make an important difference to people's health and wellbeing during periods of extreme heat."

Supporting climate-resilient cities

The researchers say that alongside urban heat regulating services, which have been estimated to provide economic benefits of by reducing losses in labour productivity caused by hot days, the studied canals could play a role in reducing carbon emissions, both through enabling active transport during hotter periods and potentially reducing the demand for energy-intensive air-conditioning.

鈥淎ccessible blue and green spaces result in wider health and wellbeing benefits for society鈥� says co-author Dr. Joanne Tippett. 鈥淭he cooling that canals offer could help more people to stay active and access these spaces even during hot days. This highlights the importance of not only protecting our urban canals, but also thinking about how to increase signposting and access, connectivity with other green infrastructure, and wider awareness of these vital networks of urban cooling鈥�.

They emphasise that canals are not a complete solution to rising urban temperatures, but argue they should form part of a wider package of climate adaptation measures alongside parks, trees, sustainable drainage and other forms of green and blue infrastructure.

The study also provides a new modelling approach that could be applied more widely to assess how similar waterways contribute to cooling in other cities around the world, and to complement insights gained from field-based measurements, modelling, and satellite-based observations.

Publication details

The study was published in Nature Communications.

Funding, data, and support for this project was provided by the Canal and River Trust, with the research generously supported thanks to funds raised by Postcode Lottery players.

DOI:

Building on more than a decade of success, brings together five leading northern universities to support healthcare professionals to become the next generation of research leaders.

Director of Forward North Professor from听 the University of 野狼社区,听 said: "I am delighted that we can continue to offer doctoral training fellowships for healthcare professionals over the next five years.

鈥淏y working together across the North, we can help more healthcare staff develop research careers and generate the discoveries and innovations needed to improve patient care and health outcomes."

The renewed programme builds on a strong track record of supporting healthcare professionals to undertake PhDs.

It will also introduce new pre-doctoral opportunities to help more people enter research, provide enhanced support for early career researchers, and strengthen partnerships with organisations including the Nuffield Foundation, STEM Learning and the Francis Crick Institute.

Through expert mentoring, interdisciplinary collaboration, industry engagement and specialist training, Forward North will help develop future research leaders equipped to tackle some of the North's biggest health challenges.

A virtual launch event will take place on 18 August from 11.30am to 1pm, providing information about the next round of fellowship applications and an opportunity to ask questions.

You can join the event

The researchers analysing the records of more than 1.4 million people found that social prescribing 鈥� where patients are referred to support such as community groups, exercise schemes or financial advice 鈥� was linked to an early rise in healthcare use, followed by a small drop in GP appointments.

The study was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and published in eClinical Medicine.

Social prescribing became a key part of NHS plans in 2019, with thousands of link workers recruited across England to connect patients with community support.

It has become a central part of NHS efforts to address the wider social factors that influence health, including loneliness, housing problems, debt and inactivity.

Despite the scheme's rapid expansion, until now there has been little robust evidence showing whether social prescribing affects NHS demand, healthcare use or costs.

The findings come from one of the largest studies of its kind, using anonymised NHS records from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD), covering around a quarter of England鈥檚 population.

The research team compared 168,699 patients referred to social prescribing between July 2019 and April 2022 with more than 1.3 million similar patients who were not referred.

In the first six months after referral, patients receiving social prescribing had an average of 2.25 more contacts with healthcare services than those who were not referred 鈥� a rise of around 24%.

The increase was largely driven by more visits to primary care services and attendance at planned outpatient appointments in hospitals.

This, they say, may reflect patients becoming more proactive about managing their health and seeking help for conditions that might previously have gone untreated.

But by one year after referral, the picture had changed.

The increase in healthcare contacts had fallen substantially and patients referred to social prescribing were attending slightly fewer GP appointments than those who had not been referred.

Despite the higher number of healthcare interactions, the overall cost to the NHS was virtually unchanged.

The study found healthcare costs were less than 0.1% higher among referred patients, a difference researchers described as clinically insignificant.

The small increase in spending was mainly linked to additional secondary care admissions.

Lead author from The University of 野狼社区 said: 鈥淥ur findings suggest that social prescribing may encourage people to engage with healthcare services in the short term, particularly with planned and preventative care.鈥�

鈥淚mportantly, we found that this increase did not translate into meaningful increases in overall healthcare costs, and by one year patients were having slightly fewer GP appointments.鈥�

鈥淭his could indicate that social prescribing helps direct people towards more appropriate forms of support while reducing pressure on general practice.鈥�

She added: 鈥淏etter integration between social prescribing data systems and electronic health records will be needed to understand whether patients who fully engage with these services gain even greater benefits.鈥�

Charlotte Osborn-Forde , CEO of the National Academy for Social Prescribing听 added: "There is now strong evidence that social prescribing leads to improved wellbeing and that it can support people with a range of health conditions.听

"This research provides useful analysis of how referrals to link workers affected healthcare use during the COVID pandemic, potentially leading to a long-term fall in GP appointments.听

"It also shows the need for further exploration of how to account for the unmeasured social needs that lead to a referral for social prescribing, and better data on support received after the referral, to track the impact of social prescribing more robustly."

• The paper "Changes in healthcare use and cost associated with referrals to social prescribing link workers in England: a matched case-control cohort study鈥� is published in eClinical Medicine. DOI

Mitochondria provide the energy that cells need to function. Mutations in their DNA can cause serious, progressive conditions affecting organs and tissues with high energy demands, including the brain, heart and muscles. Around one in 5,000 people is affected by a mitochondrial disease, and there is currently no cure.

The 野狼社区 team, led by Sarah Lovelock, Professor of Biological Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry and the 野狼社区 Institute of Biotechnology, will combine genome mining, computational enzyme design and laboratory evolution to develop next-generation base editing tools capable of selectively targeting the most common disease-causing mutations in mitochondrial DNA.

Led by the University of Cambridge, the centre includes partners at the universities of Birmingham, 野狼社区, Heidelberg and Queensland, the Imagine Institute in Paris, patient charity The Lily Foundation and industry organisations worldwide.

By bringing together academic, clinical, patient and industry perspectives, the centre aims to establish a long-term research platform that can define the causes of mitochondrial disease and accelerate progress towards therapies.

And opening windows during hot weather, they show, almost certainly exacerbates the problem of indoor air pollution caused by the fires.

The University鈥檚 Canalysed real time indoor air-quality records from 23 Greater 野狼社区 homes monitored between 1 and 26 July 2026, during two periods of wildfire activity in the nearby Pennine hills.

Every monitored home in the Cystic Fibrosis Trust funded study exceeded the World Health Organization鈥檚 24-hour guideline for fine particle pollution on 17 July, when outdoor smoke levels peaked.

The preliminary analysis, which has not yet undergone peer review, also showed when households opened widows as temperatures climbed to over 33C , the problem seemed to get worse.

, based at The University of 野狼社区 and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS), led the analysis of PM2.5, particles produced by smoke small enough to travel deep into the lungs, where they can harm health.

During the wildfires, overnight bedroom PM2.5 spiked from an average of 2.7 micrograms per cubic metre to 7.8 with windows closed and 11.8 with windows open. Closing windows reduced exposure, but levels remained 2鈥�4 times higher than normal.

In some homes, concentrations in the bedroom overnight rose to well over 100 micrograms per cubic metre, many times higher than the levels normally recorded in those homes.

Levels of indoor-generated pollution, such as volatile organic compounds and carbon dioxide, actually fell during this period as participants opened windows to cool their homes, allowing the outdoor pollution in.

The researchers say that following the UK Health Security Agency鈥檚 guidance on wildfire smoke by staying indoors and closing windows should help reduce the pollution.

Levels, they say, did not rise as much in homes where windows appear to have remained closed though this did not prevent all outdoor smoke pollution from getting in.

The researchers are also currently working on a Greater 野狼社区 Local Innovation Partnership funded study, the Retrofit Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Innovation Centre to investigate measures that may help further combat indoor pollution, for example during periods of wildfire, and during intensely hot weather.

That could include the use of air purification and integrated ventilation systems, improved sleeping arrangements and other measures.

One of the researchers from The University of 野狼社区, said: 鈥淭hese findings show the difficult challenges that people face during periods of wildfires and high environmental temperatures.

鈥淔ollowing the simple but often repeated instruction of going indoors and shutting the windows will only give you some protection from wildfire smoke, and keeps heat in the home. Both smoke and heat can make breathing worse for those with chronic lung conditions.

鈥淒uring July鈥檚 fires, in every home we monitored we found the effects of smoke was present indoors at potentially harmful concentrations levels, especially during periods when the heat forced people to open windows.

鈥淲e saw this in homes up to 60km away from the wildfires on the moors outside 野狼社区.鈥�

, lead Environmental researcher for the group said: 鈥淭he findings support advice to close windows while smoke levels are high, but show that this cannot completely prevent smoke infiltration and may increase the risk of overheating.

鈥淭he challenge is that this advice can be difficult to follow during very hot weather, particularly in homes that are prone to overheating.

鈥淲e need clearer, evidence-based guidance that helps households reduce exposure to both smoke and heat. I hope this new data can support these decisions.

鈥淲e are now investigating practical measures, including air filtration and approaches to keeping homes cool, so that people - especially those with existing respiratory conditions - have better options during future extreme events such as these.鈥�

Dr Bannan added: 鈥淲ildfire smoke contains tiny particles and gases that can irritate the lungs and make respiratory conditions such as cystic fibrosis, asthma and COPD worse.

鈥淓xposure to wildfire smoke can increase symptoms including coughing, wheezing, breathlessness and chest tightness, and may trigger severe flare-ups that require medical treatment.

鈥淭hat is why people with existing respiratory diseases as well as children, older people and other immunocompromised people are also at greater risk of respiratory infections, hospitalisation and other serious health complications during wildfire events.鈥�

Dr Sharon Weinberg, a clinical research fellow at The University of 野狼社区 added:

said: 鈥淲hile our study examines the impact of PM2.5 on lung health, poor air quality affects far more than the lungs.

鈥淓levated PM2.5 exposure is known to increase the risk of cardiovascular events鈥攊ncluding heart attacks, strokes, and thrombosis.

鈥淚t is also associated with headaches and migraines, highlighting that the health consequences of air pollution extend well beyond people with chronic respiratory disease.鈥�

Laura Beattie, who has cystic fibrosis and is taking part in the study, said: 鈥淚 found it really hard during the heatwave and the wildfires.

鈥淵ou could see and smell the smoke for days, and it made my breathing worse. I was more breathless, and had to restrict myself to staying indoors. I also noticed that my sputum went dark from the smoke - I've never seen it like this before.

鈥淲e can all see wildfires becoming more common, and research like this is so important for people like me with chronic lung conditions.鈥�

• The is still recruiting people with CF across the UK, including in the 野狼社区 and Merseyside regions where the air quality monitoring is included as an optional part of the study. The Pulse-CF Innovation Hub is part of the Translational Innovation Hub Network for CF Lung Health & Infection, funded by Cystic Fibrosis Trust and LifeArc. Though these findings are not yet peer reviewed, the research team felt it was in the public interest to release the figures.

The day began with an energetic introduction to chemistry as pupils designed, decorated and built their own Berocca rockets. Using water bottles, water and Berocca tablets, they created rockets powered by the build-up of gas from a simple chemical reaction. After proudly showing off their colourful designs, the pupils launched their creations on the playground, with some soaring to impressive heights of around 10 metres. The excitement and anticipation before each launch made for a fantastic start to the day.

Next, the pupils explored the fascinating behaviour of liquids by creating colourful lava lamps using oil, water, food colouring and salt. As the salt carried coloured water through the oil before sinking to the bottom, the children observed how differences in density produce the characteristic "lava lamp" effect. It was a simple yet captivating experiment that encouraged pupils to think about the science behind everyday phenomena.

In the afternoon, the pupils split into groups, with each group carrying out one of three different experiments. One group built scribble bots using an electric motor, a cork and marker pens. The vibrations from the off-centre cork caused the robots to move unpredictably across the paper, producing unique works of art while introducing the principles of electric motors and engineering design.

Another group investigated the electrical properties of graphite by drawing pictures with pencil and using the graphite lines to complete an electrical circuit. This activity was especially meaningful for us as researchers from the National Graphene Institute, demonstrating how graphite鈥攁nd its remarkable single-layer form, graphene鈥攃an conduct electricity. The pupils also experimented with creating simple fruit batteries, using different fruits to generate enough electrical energy to power the circuit and illustrating how chemical reactions can be converted into electricity.

The final group carried out the ever-popular magic milk experiment. By adding food colouring to whole milk before introducing a drop of washing-up liquid, they watched vibrant colours swirl and dance across the surface. The striking visual effect provided an engaging demonstration of surface tension and molecular interactions.

To finish the day, the pupils took part in a careers fair with a difference. Each group presented the experiment they had completed to their classmates as they visited the different stalls, explaining the science behind their activity and answering questions from their peers. It was wonderful to see the pupils confidently communicate scientific ideas and take pride in what they had learned.

The enthusiasm, curiosity and confidence shown throughout the day were a reminder of the importance of science outreach. We hope the activities inspired the pupils to continue asking questions about the world around them and perhaps even sparked an interest in future careers in science and engineering. It was a privilege to represent the National Graphene Institute and share our passion for scientific discovery with the next generation.

Attendees

• Adam Rosillo (author/CDT student)
• Lucy Kendall (CDT student)
• Helena Amos (CDT student)
• Qian Guo (Postdoctoral Research Associate).

Collecting rainwater from rooftops and using it to spray buildings during hot weather could help cities cut air conditioning use, lower urban temperatures and lessen the impact of heatwaves, according to new research from The University of 野狼社区.

Cities around the world are facing rising temperatures, putting pressure on public health, infrastructure and energy systems. As people rely more on air conditioning to stay cool, energy demand increases and waste heat released from buildings can make urban areas even hotter.

Urban watering technologies are becoming important ways for reducing extreme heat in cities, but their use is often limited by the availability of water.

How does rainwater keep cities cool?

In the study, published in , researchers used process-based numerical simulations and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to test a system that stores rainwater collected from rooftops and automatically sprays it onto buildings during hot weather.

Using Tokyo as their case study, they found that cooling rooftops, the system reduced the amount of energy needed for air conditioning. The cooler roofs transferred less heat into buildings, while lower air conditioning use meant less waste heat was released into the city. Together, these effects helped reduce urban temperatures, cutting the number of heatwave days overall and lessening the intensity of extreme heat events.

What do the reserchers say?

Lead author Dr Zhonghua Zheng, Co-Lead for Environmental Data Science & AI at 野狼社区 Environmental Research Institute (MERI) and Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Data Science and Environmental Analytics at The University of 野狼社区, said: "Cities around the world are facing growing challenges from extreme heat. Air conditioning can help keep people safe and comfortable, but it also consumes large amounts of energy and releases additional heat into the urban environment.

"Our study shows that harvesting rainwater from roofs and using it strategically for cooling could provide a practical way to reduce both energy demand and urban temperatures.

"What is particularly encouraging is that the benefits become even greater during hotter years, suggesting this approach could become increasingly important as the climate continues to warm.鈥�

How would the rainwater sprinklers work?

The study suggests that when the sprinklers switched on - for example, when the roof reached a certain temperature - had a greater impact than either the size of the tank or the amount of water applied. The researchers also found that bigger is not always better. Very large tanks delivered only modest additional reductions in energy use and extreme heat, while applying extra water did not always lead to more cooling because some of it remained on the roof instead of evaporating.

The researchers say the approach could help local authorities and urban planners evaluate how rainwater-based cooling systems might work in their own regions while balancing practical considerations such as cost, water availability and local regulations.

Can rainwater cooling help with other urban challenges?

As cities continue to grapple with rising temperatures, the team believes roof-based rainwater cooling systems could form part of a wider suite of urban climate adaptation measures designed to improve resilience and protect public health.

Junjie Yu, PhD researcher at The University of 野狼社区, added: 鈥淭he rainwater tank also provides an additional co-benefit on reducing the extreme urban runoff. This approach exemplifies a 鈥榥atural solution to natural challenges鈥�, in which rainwater serves as a natural resource to mitigate both thermal stress and hydrological extremes.鈥�

Published in on 5 August, the University of 野狼社区 and University of Connecticut team has revealed how a little-known protein helps keep one of the body's most powerful biological signals under tight control.

Their findings could eventually help researchers develop new ways to tackle conditions linked to fibrosis, a process in which excessive scar tissue forms in organs and prevents them from working properly.

Fibrosis can affect the lungs, liver, kidneys and other organs, and is thought to contribute to millions of deaths worldwide each year.

At the centre of the discovery is a signalling molecule called transforming growth factor beta, or TGF尾.

This molecule plays a vital role in the body, helping cells grow, communicate with each other, respond to injury and repair damaged tissue.

However, when there is too much active TGF尾 it can trigger the build-up of scar tissue, contributing to a range of serious diseases.

Because of its powerful effects, the body normally keeps TGF尾 locked away in an inactive state until it is needed.

They used advanced imaging, called cryo-electron microscopy, engineered human cell lines and 3 dimensional听 computer simulations to reveal how a key protein regulates TGF尾 activity.

The study revealed for the first time how a protein known as latent TGF尾-binding protein 1, or LTBP1, helps build and stabilise this storage complex.

The researchers discovered that LTBP1 does far more than simply hold TGF尾 in place.

Instead, it acts as a key regulator, helping to keep the molecule safely stored while also influencing how it is released.

The team showed how LTBP1 forms a crucial connection with TGF尾 and helps determine how much physical force is needed before the signalling molecule can become active.

This mechanical control system ensures that TGF尾 is only switched on in the right place and at the right time.

The findings provide an important new understanding of how the body regulates one of its most influential signalling pathways.

The scientists believe the work could help guide future efforts to develop treatments that selectively control TGF尾 activity in disease.

Lead author Professor Clair Baldock from The University of 野狼社区 said: 鈥淭GF尾 is one of the body's most important signalling molecules because it influences how cells grow, communicate and repair tissue.

鈥淏ut when its activity is not properly controlled, it can contribute to diseases such as fibrosis, where excessive scar tissue damages healthy organs.

鈥淥ur study has revealed in unprecedented detail how LTBP1 helps store and regulate TGF尾, and how the structure of this protein complex affects the forces needed to activate it.

鈥淏y understanding this process more clearly, we have uncovered a new layer of biological control that could help researchers develop more precise therapies in the future.鈥�

鈥淲e听 hope our discovery will provide a foundation for future studies aimed at preventing harmful scarring while preserving the body's normal repair mechanisms.鈥�

• The Structural basis for the contribution of latent TGF尾 binding protein to TGF尾 latency and activation is published in on 05/08/26 DOI
• Image of microscope created with AI
• The study was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and The Wellcome Trust.

That's the question addressed in the latest position paper from The University of 野狼社区's Dalton Nuclear Policy Group, which sets out practical opportunities for duty holders, regulators and government to build on the recommendations of the 2025 Nuclear Regulatory Task Force.

The paper, A radical reset: actionable opportunities from the UK nuclear regulatory review 2025, responds to a fundamental review of how the UK's nuclear sector is regulated. The review was launched by the UK government in 2025 as part of its plans to both expand nuclear energy generation and retain an effective nuclear deterrent, leading to the establishment of the Nuclear Regulatory Task Force.

The Task Force went on to publish a series of recommendations, aimed primarily at government but with some also directed towards industry. All of these were accepted in full by the government in early 2026 - however, little detail has been proposed to date on exactly how they might be implemented in practice.

The Dalton paper aims to fill that gap, putting forward a suite of practical opportunities which, if taken up, could deliver the more efficient and effective regulatory environment needed to underpin the UK's nuclear sector, without compromising on safety or security.

In developing the paper, the authors drew on input from within the Dalton Nuclear Institute's academic team - which includes individuals with extensive practical experience of policy, operations and regulation across the nuclear sector - as well as from a range of nuclear duty holders across both the civil and defence communities.

鈥楢 once in a lifetime opportunity.鈥�

Co-author Professor Francis Livens said the Task Force's review represented a rare chance to reshape the sector:

The authors hope the paper will be a useful input for those across the sector seeking to drive positive change.听

The paper is authored by:

• Dr William Bodel
• Professor Adrian Bull MBE, Hon FNucI
• Professor Gregg Butler
• Professor Francis Livens
• Dame Fiona Rayment DBE FREng FRSE.

Read the full paper:

Their discovery, published in the world leading journal on 04/08/26, centres on activated dendritic cells, a specialised population of immune cells that orchestrate the body鈥檚 attack on cancer.

To make the discovery, the researchers developed the first mouse models capable of specifically labelling or removing activated dendritic cells.

This allowed them to determine exactly how activated dendritic cells contribute to anti-cancer immunity.

The models are expected to accelerate research into activated dendritic cells across cancer, infections and autoimmune diseases.

Until now, scientists have struggled to understand precisely how activated dendritic cells contribute to anti-cancer immunity because suitable models did not exist.

Using the new models, the team showed that activated dendritic cells are indispensable for effective anti-cancer immune responses.

Without them, cancer-killing T cells could neither be efficiently activated nor maintain their strength once inside tumours.

As a result, both spontaneous immune control of cancer and the efficacy of immunotherapy were impaired.

First author Maria Koufakis said: 鈥淢odern immunotherapies rely on strong and coordinated immune responses, yet many people still do not benefit from these treatments.鈥�

鈥淚f we can find ways to boost activated dendritic cells, we may be able to strengthen the immune system鈥檚 response to cancer and help more patients benefit from immunotherapy, including some whose cancers currently resist treatment.鈥�

Senior author said: 鈥淎ctivated dendritic cells do not just launch the anti-tumour immune responses, they are also essential for sustaining them within the tumour itself.

This changes how we think about their role and opens up new opportunities to improve cancer immunotherapy.鈥�

The work was funded by Cancer Research UK, with additional support from the European Molecular Biology Organization and the Italian Association for Cancer Research UK.

Research Information Manager at Cancer Research UK, Dr Marianne Baker, said: "Immunotherapies that harness our immune system to beat cancer are saving lives, but we don't yet understand why they work for some people and not others.

鈥淭he models developed as part of this study could help scientists unlock ways to boost these revolutionary treatments via dendritic cells, a type of immune cell.

鈥淲e need more research to get there, but this work could help to solve unanswered questions in cancer immunotherapy and beyond."

• Image: 听Ai-rendered 3D听representation of activated dendritic cell with a coral-coloured nucleus, highlighting the use of the new reporter model. The nucleus of the cells of interest has been labelled scarlet.

• CCR7⁺听activated dendritic cells are essential for spontaneous and immunotherapy-driven anti-tumor immunity, published in Immunity is available . DOI DOI:听

The research, and funded by the NIHR Patient Safety Research Collaboration (PSRC): Greater 野狼社区, is the largest review of its kind and analysed evidence from 74 clinical trials conducted over 23 years.

The review found that digital patient safety tools in primary care can be beneficial - particularly when they combine multiple features, such as automated prescribing or missed test reports for doctors alongside digital communication tools for patients.

According to the findings, digital interventions currently being used in clinics:

• improved medication safety by 46% when compared to usual care, reducing high-risk prescribing and dosing errors
• improved non-medication safety processes by 77% when compared to usual care, including faster diagnostic checks and more timely laboratory monitoring
• reduced physical patient harm and adverse events by 17% when compared to usual care, helping to prevent unnecessary hospital admissions, asthma attacks and serious adverse drug reactions

The study highlights several specific digital technologies that were shown to enhance patient safety, improve communication and treatment decisions, and reduce diagnostic delays.

One of the digital tools highlighted is the UK-developed PINCER programme, which uses electronic health records to help GPs and pharmacists identify and prevent incorrect prescribing. The programme showed that digital systems can improve safety at scale while supporting better use of NHS resources.

The success of PINCER has also inspired new digital innovations, such as the , develoved through a partnership between researchers from the NIHR PSRC: Greater 野狼社区, NHS partners and industry. SMASH is a digital medication safety tool that helps clinicians identify and address medication risks more quickly and consistently. Early evaluation in Salford, for example, covering more than 235,000 patients across 43 GP practices, showed a 40% reduction in hazardous prescribing within 12 months.

By embedding evidence-based safety indicators into routine clinical practice, SMASH helps clinicians identify and address medication risks more quickly and consistently. Early evaluation in Salford, for example, covering more than 235,000 patients across 43 GP practices, showed a 40% reduction in hazardous prescribing within 12 months.

The systems that work best

Researchers found that the greatest improvements came from integrated systems that combined multiple features, such as clinical decision support tools, patient communication systems and audit and feedback mechanisms.

For example, where Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS) - which prompt GPs with real-time alerts about drug interactions or missing tests - were paired with Audit and Feedback (A&F) systems, which allow clinics to regularly review their safety data.

In addition, tools that featured patient-facing elements - such as automated text reminders or patient portals - had a positive impact on non-medication safety, making patients nearly 3 times more likely to receive timely investigations and follow-up care.

However, the review found that technology alone is not enough. More than 40% of the studies reported implementation barriers, including alert fatigue - where clinicians are overwhelmed by excessive computer pop-ups - and software that disrupted busy GP consultations. The most successful interventions were those that fitted naturally into existing clinical workflows and were supported by training, relationships and organisational engagement.

Lead researcher, Dr Jung Yin Tsang, from The University of 野狼社区, said:

鈥淥ur research suggests that the future of safer care will not be built on software alone, but on how well digital tools work alongside patients, clinicians, pharmacists and healthcare teams.

"To unlock their full potential across the NHS, we must move away from isolated, complex software. Policymakers and developers must focus on intuitive, joined-up systems that fit naturally into a GP鈥檚 busy workday without adding to their administrative burden."

Professor Mike Lewis, NIHR Scientific Director for Innovation, said:

鈥淭his NIHR-funded evidence demonstrates how well-designed digital technologies can improve patient safety in everyday care. It highlights the importance of investing in robust research into digital technology so the NHS adopts the systems which are safe and proven to improve outcomes for patients and staff.鈥�

Health and Social Care Minister Baroness Merron, said:

鈥淭his research shows the real difference that well-designed digital technology can make to patient safety, helping clinicians reduce medication errors, identify risks earlier and ensure patients receive timely care.

鈥淎s we deliver our 10-Year Health Plan, we are transforming the NHS through better use of technology, so staff have the tools they need to provide safer, more joined-up care closer to home. Research like this helps ensure we invest in digital innovations that deliver better outcomes for patients and support our workforce.

"By backing high-quality research and adopting technologies that are proven to work, we can build a modern NHS that is safer, more efficient and provides the highest quality care for every patient."

--

The paper Digital patient safety interventions in primary care: a systematic review and meta-analysis was published in BMC Medicine and is .

Read the full NIHR news story: .

When it is done well, in other words when your yogurt pots (polypropylene, PP) are sorted from your milk jugs (high density polyethylene), mechanical recycling is the most environmentally positive way to turn plastic waste into new products in a circular plastics economy, turning pots into pots and jugs into jugs.

However, poor sorting can lead to mixing polyolefins together, changing the way that the plastic degrades during the recycling process.

While well understood for polyethylene, the study, published in , focuses on what happens when PP is mixed with HDPE. Researchers found that contaminants act as stress aggregators, and that the phase separation caused by contamination weakens the material. While HDPE can tolerate a few percent contamination, even 1% of HDPE in PP alters the degradation mechanism.

The result of this contamination, even at this small scale, is a recyclate with radically altered physical properties, a change which impacts structure-property relationships and reduces the overall performance of the material, especially important in the context of their industrial reuse.

Researchers argue that while efforts have been made to normalise polymers based on processing history and end-use application, approaches like these only consider a limited number of material grades and do not represent the broad range of polyolefin grades and blends.

They suggest that cross-contamination needs better analytical tools that can serve as quality control in industrial processes, evidencing the need for better sortation in household and industrial recycling.

This paper was published in the journal: ChemCircularity

Full title: Measuring the impact of cross-contamination on quality in polyolefin blends

DOI:

Some of our most eye-catching items included our giant pencil and a graphene enforced crash helmet. One of our most popular activities gave children the opportunity to exfoliate graphite using adhesive tape, recreating the famous technique that led to the isolation of graphene. After viewing their samples under a microscope the children were able to take their graphene home! Visitors enjoyed learning how a material as seemingly ordinary as the graphite found in pencils can be peeled into sheets only a single atom thick.

Over the course of the day, we spoke to hundreds of visitors about the potential applications of graphene and 2D materials, including use in advanced electronics and sustainable technologies. The curiosity and enthusiasm shown by the children and adults alike highlighted the value of public engagement activities in helping researchers share their work beyond academia.听

The Universally 野狼社区 Festival gave us the opportunity to develop our skills in communication and public engagement with a lay audience. Hopefully we inspired the next generation of material scientists!

Thank you to the University for hosting the event and to everyone who came to visit our stand. Seeing so much excitement for science reinforced the importance of outreach within the CDT, and we look forward to engaging with even more communities in the future.

The study was carried out in collaboration with the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) and was made possible through the assistance of Emudu Trekkers and members of the Idu Mishmi community, the traditional custodians of the Dibang Valley. The research was funded by a Walters Kundert Fellowship from the Royal Geographical Society (UK).

This study provides the first dated glacial chronology for the Dri Valley in the remote eastern Himalayas, filling a major gap in understanding glacier evolution in one of the least-studied sectors of the Himalayas and providing an important benchmark for future studies of regional climate change.

Key findings

• The Dri Valley glacier reached almost 100 km in length, making it one of the largest glaciers yet documented in High Mountain Asia.
• It extended from altitudes of around 5,300 metres to as low as 1,300鈥�1,500 metres above sea level, giving it one of the lowest known glacier termini in High Mountain Asia.
• The glacier was 80 km in length around 19,600 years ago.
• By around 12,000 years ago, the glacier had retreated to altitudes above 3,250 m and was less than 20 km long.
• Today, its largest surviving remnant is less than 5 km long.

Reconstructing the past Himalayan landscape

Researchers examined the landscape of the Dri Valley for geomorphic evidence left behind by the ancient glacier, including U-shaped valleys, moraines and distinctive bedrock features created by the movement of ice.

The research combines detailed field observations with satellite mapping and digital elevation models to build a picture of the former ice extent and identify locations where exposed rock could provide evidence of past glacier movements.

These features provide a record of how the glacier shaped the landscape as it advanced and retreated, but establishing when those changes occurred required highly sensitive dating techniques.

鈥淭he Dri Valley preserves an exceptional record of past glaciation, but until now we had no reliable way of placing these landforms into a timeline,鈥� said Dr Shashank Nitundil of The University of 野狼社区, who led the research.

Using rocks as natural clocks

The researchers collected 63 samples from boulders and exposed bedrock surfaces across the Dri Valley. This is the first application of cosmogenic nuclide dating on the southern slopes of the Himalayas east of Mount Everest.

The samples were analysed for cosmogenic radionuclides 鈥� rare isotopes produced in rocks exposed at the Earth's surface by cosmic rays.

The team focused on beryllium-10 (¹⁰Be), which accumulates in quartz-bearing rocks while they are exposed to cosmic radiation. When a glacier covers a rock surface, production of the isotope is effectively halted and eventually reset due to glacial erosion. When the ice retreats and the rock is exposed again, ¹⁰Be begins to accumulate. Measuring its concentration allows researchers to determine when the ice disappeared.

The measurements were carried out using accelerator mass spectrometry at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), allowing the team to detect the extremely small quantities of ¹⁰Be needed to establish the timing of past glacier change.

鈥淭he huge size of the former glacier in the Dri Valley hints at similar extensive ice cover in neighbouring valleys and the presence of one of the largest contiguous ice masses in the Himalayas. Until now little has been known about the extent, timing and palaeoclimatic significance of the former glaciers in this region and the exciting results of this research have been made possible because of a major international collaboration between the University of 野狼社区, ANSTO and local support from members of the Idu Mishmi community鈥� said Professor Philip Hughes of The University of 野狼社区, who co-supervised the research and has had long-term collaborations with Dr David Fink at ANSTO.

Understanding monsoon-driven glacier change

The Dri Valley sits within a region dominated by the Indian Summer Monsoon, which delivers some of the highest precipitation across the Himalayas, making it an important natural laboratory for understanding how monsoon-fed glaciers respond to climate change.

The study shows that abundant monsoon precipitation alone was not enough to sustain this giant glacier. Instead, its growth and retreat were shaped by the interplay between temperature, precipitation and topography.

The findings suggest that once temperatures rise above a critical threshold, increasing precipitation falls as rain rather than snow. This reduces glacier accumulation and, at the same time, can accelerate ice loss through melting meaning heavy precipitation does not necessarily protect these glaciers from warming.

The study adds to growing evidence that the response of Himalayan glaciers to climate change is not uniform. Glaciers in different parts of the mountain range are influenced by contrasting combinations of snowfall, temperature, elevation and seasonal climate patterns.

As well as being climatically significant, the Dri Valley and surrounding region form part of a recognised Himalayan biodiversity hotspot, adding further importance to understanding how its glaciers and the water resources they feed are likely to change.

Understanding how Himalayan glaciers responded to past climate change provides an important long-term benchmark for improving projections of how these glaciers may respond to continued global warming in the future.

Publication details

The paper was published in journal Quaternary Science Reviews. The international research team included Dr Shashank Nitundil, Dr Christopher Darvill, Prof Abi Stone, Dr David Fink, Prof Philip Hughes, Dr Matt Tomkins and Dr Krista Simon.

DOI:

The findings of the study, funded听 by the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) suggest the wraps may not be the best first-line option for patients receiving strong compression therapy.听

Venous leg ulcers affect thousands of people and can take months to heal, causing pain, reduced mobility and a significant burden on healthcare services.听

Strong compression is an important treatment for people with venous leg ulcers, to improve blood flow in the lower leg and support healing.听

It can be provided in different ways, including bandages systems that can have two or four layers, compression stockings that have two layers and adjustable compression wraps that fasten around the leg with Velcro-style straps.听

All these compression approaches aim to deliver the same level of compression but differ in how they are applied, how easy they are to use and how comfortable people find them.听

Wraps have become increasingly popular because they can be adjusted and, in some cases, self-applied by people with leg ulcers or those around them.听 However, there has been limited high-quality evidence comparing compression wraps with other commonly used strong compression treatments.听

The researchers carried out a large randomised controlled trial involving 637 adults receiving care at 33 mainly community sites across the UK.听

Participants were assigned to be offered either compression wraps, two-layer compression bandages, or established evidence-based compression treatments (four-layer bandages or two-layer compression stockings)听

The researchers found that ulcers healed more slowly in patients offered compression wraps than in those offered established evidence-based compression treatments.听

Patients receiving compression wraps also appeared to heal more slowly than those treated with two-layer compression bandages, although this difference was not statistically significant.听

The study found that two-layer compression bandages performed similarly to established evidence-based compression treatments.听

The findings provide some of the strongest evidence to date comparing commonly used compression therapies for venous leg ulcers.听

A separate companion process evaluation found patients liked compression wraps because they were comfortable, easy to adjust, and could be removed for showering,听

However, these same features may also mean that people are more likely to loosen or remove the wraps, potentially reducing the amount of therapeutic compression delivered and helping explain the slower healing observed in the trial.听

Together, the studies suggest compression wraps should not routinely be the first choice for most people with venous leg ulcers.听

However, they may still be appropriate for some patients where comfort, independence or self-management are particularly important, provided patients receive clear advice on maintaining effective compression.听

Jo Dumville, Professor of Applied Health Research from the University of 野狼社区 said: 鈥淰enous leg ulcers can have a major impact people鈥檚 quality of life and place a significant burden on healthcare services, so it is important that health professionals have robust evidence to guide treatment decisions鈥�.听

鈥淥ur study compared three commonly used strong compression approaches in a real-world NHS setting and suggested that听 that compression wraps do not improve healing times when compared with established evidence-based treatments.鈥澨�

Catherine Arundel, Senior Research Fellow at the University of York said: 鈥淲hile some uncertainty remains, these findings suggest that compression wraps are unlikely to offer a healing advantage as a first-line treatment鈥�.听

鈥淭he results will help clinicians, patients and healthcare providers make informed decisions about the most appropriate therapies for managing venous leg ulcers."听

• The paper Compression therapies for venous leg ulcers: The VENous Ulcer Study 6 (VenUS 6), an open, multicentre, randomised clinical trial is published in PLOS Medicine
• The companion process evaluation Compression therapies for the treatment of venous leg ulcers: a mixed method process evaluation in a randomised controlled trial, VenUS6听 is published in Trials

Professor Mahima Swamy鈥檚 lab studies intestinal immunology, diet, infection, and immune-mediated bowel diseases (Coeliac and Crohn鈥檚). The group particularly focuses on intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL), a poorly characterised class of T cells residing within the intestinal epithelium, and their communication with epithelial cells.

Mahima joins the Becker from The University of Dundee, where she is a Programme Leader in the MRC Protein Phosphorylation and Ubiquitylation Unit (MRC PPU). In 2016, Mahima established her own research group in the MRC PPU, supported from 2017 by a Wellcome Trust Sir Henry Dale Fellowship, and became an EMBO Young Investigator in 2022.

Originally from Bangalore, India, Mahima studied Biological Sciences and Biotechnology at BITS Pilani before completing her PhD at the Max-Planck Institute of Immunobiology in Freiburg, Germany, studying T-cell receptor biochemistry with Wolfgang Schamel. She then held postdoctoral positions with Adrian Hayday at CRUK's London Research Institute, researching intestinal immune surveillance, and with Doreen Cantrell at Dundee, uncovering roles for O-GlcNAc modification in T cell lymphomagenesis and development.

Mahima said: 鈥淚 am very excited to be joining The University of 野狼社区 and the Lydia Becker Institute. I have always appreciated the amazing immunology research that happens at the Becker and loved the collegiate and friendly atmosphere whenever I have visited. With the recent award of the MRC Centre of Research Excellence in Exposome Immunology to the University, I think this is a great time to be joining and to be able to contribute to the great mucosal barrier research going on here.鈥�

Commenting on the appointment, Professor Tracy Hussell, Director of the Lydia Becker Institute said: 鈥淚 am thrilled that Mahima will be joining the Lydia Becker Institute at 野狼社区. Her fantastic research on intestinal immunity is a natural fit with our focus on barrier tissues and their interaction with environmental stressors.鈥�

Sixty years after the 1966 World Cup final, the most famous football in England's history has been examined as never before. NXCT at The University of 野狼社区 and the National Football Museum have produced the first 3D X-ray scans of the Slazenger Challenge 4 Star used at Wembley on July 30, 1966 鈥� rendering, in extraordinary detail, both its 25-panel hand-stitched leather exterior, and the degraded latex bladder sealed inside it since the day England won the World Cup.

It is a portrait of a vanished craft. Each Challenge 4 Star took two-and-a-half hours to stitch by hand at the Slazenger works in Horbury, near Wakefield, and had to meet strict specifications. 14 to 16 ounces in weight, 27 to 28 inches in circumference. The ball earned its place in the final by winning a blind test of more than 100 footballs at The FA's headquarters. The now iconic orange was not a stylistic flourish, but a practical stand-out effect for the monochrome television sets of 1966.

Set against the ball used in this month's 2026 World Cup final, the scans make sixty years of progress impossible to miss. The Trionda is built from four thermally bonded panels of polyurethan, polyester, viscose and synthetic rubber, and carries an inertial measurement unit sensor that tracks every contact and position change. In 1966, the technology was a needle and thread.

The ball's journey to its casing at the National Football Museum is just as fascinating as the final it was used in. After England's 4-2 win in front of some 97,000 spectators, Helmut Haller 鈥� who had scored the opening goal 鈥� carried it back to Germany, claiming tradition entitled the first scorer to keep it. It stayed there for 30 years, until a consortium of the Mirror Group, Virgin, and Eurostar bought it for 拢80,000 and repatriated it ahead of Euro '96. The initials on its surface belong to Uri Geller, who signed it for luck as a pre-tournament publicity stunt.

Today, the ball sits on permanent display in the 'England on the World Stage' section of the National Football Museum, alongside Hurst's hat-trick shirt and other objects from the final. The museum marks the anniversary on Thursday 30 July with a programme of talks from its Visitor Experience team on the 1966 tournament and the final itself.

Dr Matthew Lawson, who performed the scans in the NXCT, said: "X-rays are a fantastic tool to non-destructively see inside objects, this technique has been used a lot in cultural heritage previously but never to look inside such a nationally significant football!

"Although a football is mostly air on the inside, we were able to see the makeup of the leather panels, the stitching and the perished air bladder in amazing detail thanks to X-ray computed tomography. Everyone at the NXCT in the University of 野狼社区 would like to thank the National Football Museum for this exciting opportunity to scan such an artefact and to hold it in our own hands!"

Tim Desmond, CEO of the National Football Museum, said: "This is the most famous football in the country and, until now, nobody had ever properly looked inside it. What the scans give us is a window into how the game was made in 1966, the materials, the methods, the craft of a ball stitched by hand in a Yorkshire factory. It's also a measure of just how far the technology has travelled to reach the Trionda of 2026.

"We're a museum committed to educating ourselves and others, and to translating objects behind glass into stories people can get inside. As such, my thanks go to the University of 野狼社区 for their expertise and curiosity that have created such a brilliant insight for our visitors and beyond. If you haven't seen it already, come and witness a slice of history for yourself."

The studies, published in on 29 July, were performed using mouse models of this largely incurable disease by a team from the Centre for Nanotechnology in Medicine and the Geoffrey Jefferson Brain Research Centre at The University of 野狼社区.

Glioblastoma is the most common and most aggressive brain cancer in adults and currently has no cure. Neurosurgeons will typically first remove the tumour, before treating the patient with chemoradiotherapy 4 to 6 weeks later. Because glioblastoma cells infiltrate deep into healthy brain tissue, some will always remain after surgery, fuelling the near鈥慽nevitable return of disease, most times regrowing at the rim of the surgical resection.

The research, spearheaded by postdoctoral associate at The University of 野狼社区 Dr Lorena Fernandes, showed experimentally that the blood鈥慴rain barrier is disrupted after surgery, opening two short鈥憀ived therapeutic windows at the resection margin 鈥� immediately after the operation and again 48鈥�72 hours later. Using different mouse models and performing precise neurosurgery to remove the growing glioblastoma tumours from their brains, the team tracked fluorescently labelled, liposomal nanoparticles injected into the blood stream during the time-windows identified. The particles homed in on the resection margin with remarkable precision while other brain regions with an intact barrier showed almost no uptake.

Lipid nanoparticle medicines are based on tiny lipid-based nanoscale carriers that can ferry different cancer drugs (such as chemotherapies, radiotherapies, mRNA therapies) directly to tumours so the medicine targets the cancer cells alone. They are used to treat different types of cancer, but until now they have not been shown to be effective against this difficult to treat disease.

Chemotherapies have also largely failed in this disease due to poor crossing of the blood-brain barrier, and minimal amounts can reach the few cancer cells left over from surgery. By loading these liposome nanoparticles with the chemotherapy drug doxorubicin, the team was able to exploit these newly identified post-operative windows to achieve precise delivery in the brain, exactly where needed. Across different mouse models, a single injection of this liposomal drug was able to suppress recurrence and control the disease with little toxicity.the first half of your story here.

Principal Investigator , CRUK Career Development Fellow at The University of 野狼社区 said: 鈥淔or the first time, we鈥檝e shown that glioblastoma surgery briefly exposes a vulnerability we can exploit. If treatment is timed during specific windows we identified, it is able to halt the disease significantly before it regrows.

鈥淲e suggest that the hours and days immediately after surgery may hold the key to stopping glioblastoma from returning.

鈥淚t also raises the possibility that other established medicines could be redeployed in smarter, more strategic ways.鈥�

Co-Principal Investigator of the studies, from The University of 野狼社区 and the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology in Barcelona said: 鈥淭he study has the potential to open a new frontier in postoperative cancer care.

鈥淲e propose the re-framing of post-operative treatment that uses the latest nanoparticle-based medicines, including lipid nanoparticle drugs, immunotherapies, or genetic therapies, to target the rim of the surgical resection, which is the area of the brain where the tumour generally recurs, compromising survival.

鈥淲e hope and actively fund-raise for the next stage in the development of this technology to move on from preclinical mouse models and trial this potentially redefining therapeutic approach in patients.鈥�

• The study was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Rosetrees Trust both in the UK, and the Severo Ochoa Centres of Excellence programme in Spain.
• The paper Targeting therapeutic nanoparticles to the glioblastoma resection margin by 6 harnessing post-operative blood-brain barrier disruption is published on on 29 July. DOI

The research, published today in , describes a new family of antifungal agents, which - when tested in mice - are more potent and less toxic than existing treatments.

A growing threat

Fungal diseases are an escalating global health threat, becoming harder to treat as resistance to existing drugs grows and the development of new antifungal medicines lags behind. The urgency for new treatments was emphasised by a recent by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

While existing antifungal medicines can be highly effective, many can cause serious side effects because fungal cells share similarities with human cells, making it difficult to target infections without harming healthy tissue.

Discovering new antifungal compounds

In the new study, researchers from the Micklefield Lab focused on polyenes 鈥� a class of powerful antifungal agents. Using an approach called genome mining, they identified bacterial species capable of producing new, undiscovered antifungals.

Dr Saadia Nasr Mirza who worked on the project said: 鈥淭he most effective antifungal agent currently available is a polyene molecule called amphotericin produced by soil bacteria. Although amphotericin is very potent, it is highly toxic, so we set out to discover if bacteria can produce different types of polyenes that are safer than amphotericin. We developed a bioinformatics pipeline, which surprisingly showed that many bacterial species have the capability to produce novel polyenes.鈥�

More potent, less toxic treatments

Using a technique called nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), the team determined the structures of the newly discovered polyenes, showing that each one had a unique structure that differed from any existing antifungal compounds. The researchers also characterised the enzymes responsible for producing them and generated a library of polyene derivatives for testing.

Several of the new compounds showed increased antifungal activity, reduced toxicity and improved solubility compared with the parent drugs. The findings demonstrate that enzymes can be used to redesign these important medicines in a cleaner, more efficient way, producing new compounds that retain strong antifungal activity while reducing toxicity and harmful side effects.

One compound, known as Nys34, showed particularly promising results. In a mouse model of invasive aspergillosis, a serious fungal infection caused by Aspergillus fumigatus, the compound reduced fungal burden without substantive signs of toxicity.

Professor Jason Micklefield who led the project said 鈥淲e were pleased to find that several of the new polyene derivatives were more potent and less toxic than amphotericin and nystatin, which is another important polyene that is also used in the clinic.

鈥淪urprisingly, we found that one of the most effective new polyene derivatives, Nys34, has a different mode-of-action to the widely used amphotericin. Because Nys34 kills fungal cells in a different way, it could prove very useful to combat emerging pathogens that have evolved resistance to amphotericin.鈥�

A cleaner way to develop new medicines

Polyene antifungal drugs are highly complex molecules. Previous efforts to improve them have typically relied on lengthy chemical synthesis processes that are expensive, inefficient and can require environmentally harmful reagents.

The Micklefield lab, based at Imperial鈥檚 Molecular Sciences Research Hub, developed an enzyme-based approach that can produce improved polyenes by cleaner and more efficient biological processes, generating promising new drug candidates without the need for complex multi-step chemical manufacturing.

Because the process is potentially scalable and cost-effective, it could help make improved antifungal treatments more widely available, particularly in lower-income regions where fungal diseases are highest place a substantial burden on public health.

The researchers hope that further development of Nys34 could ultimately lead to clinical testing in people. Beyond Nys34, their enzyme platform provides a powerful new way of generating and refining polyene antifungal compounds that could be used to create additional treatments for a range of fungal diseases, helping to expand the limited pipeline of new antifungal medicines.

This year's graduating scholars reflect that diversity, with two students from Ukraine joined by scholars from Myanmar and Sudan.

One of these graduates, Yefym, is graduating with a 2:1 in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. Yefym joined us in 野狼社区 from Kharkiv, a town 30km from the frontline of the war with Russia, where his family鈥檚 home was recently destroyed during a Russian drone attack. Yefym has secured a University studentship to continue his studies to PhD level, and will be staying with us come September.

Yefym commented, 鈥淐oming to 野狼社区 changed my life completely.

When I left Ukraine, I had no idea what would happen next or whether I would be able to return home. There was a great deal of uncertainty, and I suddenly had to begin building a new life in a different country.

野狼社区 gradually became my true second home. It gave me stability, opportunities, and a sense of direction at a time when I needed them most. I have met wonderful people here, developed both personally and academically, and discovered the area in which I would like to build my future.鈥�

For听Serhii, the youngest of our Humanitarian scholars, graduation marks the achievement of an ambition that might once have seemed out of reach after war forced him and his family to flee Mariupol, a city devastated by Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine. Having grown up with a passion for mathematics, physics and computer science, Serhii came to 野狼社区 to study听Computer Science with an Integrated Foundation Year:

鈥淲hen the war began, my family and I had to leave Mariupol and start again elsewhere. Coming to 野狼社区 with the support of the scholarship opened up opportunities that might never have been possible otherwise. I鈥檝e gained new knowledge, skills, friendships and experiences, and it has genuinely been a life-changing experience.鈥�

Another graduate, Mugtaba, fled Sudan following the outbreak of war, which has since become the world's largest humanitarian and displacement crisis. He recalls that 鈥淪chools and businesses closed, families were torn apart, and millions of people were displaced. We had to flee the capital to our hometown, leaving behind our home, belongings, friends, and the life we had built. Conditions became increasingly difficult, with frequent shortages of electricity, water, and essential goods. As my father was no longer able to work, my brother and I took on jobs to help support our family."

Mugtaba says of the scholarship, 鈥淩eceiving this scholarship has been truly life changing. It eased a significant financial burden at a time when my family had lost almost everything because of the war. It allowed me to focus on my studies instead of worrying about how I would fund my education, and it gave me opportunities that otherwise might not have been possible.

Beyond the financial support, the scholarship gave me confidence. It reminded me that people believed in my potential despite everything that had happened. As I begin my career in electrical engineering, I hope to contribute to projects that improve infrastructure and enhance people鈥檚 lives, while giving back to the communities that have supported me. I also hope my journey shows that, even in the face of conflict and displacement, education can create opportunities and transform lives.鈥�

Alongside these three, a fourth Humanitarian scholar from Myanmar is graduating with a听BSc Cognitive Neuroscience & Psychology, joining a diverse cohort whose journeys to 野狼社区 span three countries and multiple conflicts.

Published in , the research, led by demonstrates that this electronic 鈥渞eheating鈥� alone can cause metals to switch between different crystal structures in a fraction of a picosecond.

A different way to drive phase changes

In most phase transitions 鈥� such as melting or structural rearrangement 鈥� heat flows through the lattice of atoms. But in this work, the team shows that another mechanism can dominate: electronic entropy, a measure of how electron populations spread across energy states at high temperatures.

By modelling 17 different elemental metals, the researchers found that almost all undergo one or more solid-to-solid phase transitions driven purely by this electronic effect.

This means materials can change structure before the atomic framework has time to respond, creating a short-lived but physically meaningful state governed entirely by electronic properties.

Predicting how metals respond under extreme conditions

The team used advanced simulations to calculate how the free energy of different crystal structures changes as electronic temperature rises. These calculations revealed consistent patterns across groups of metals, including transitions between common structures such as hexagonal (hcp), face-centred cubic (fcc), and body-centred cubic (bcc).

A key finding is that increasing electronic temperature tends to favour structures with lower density, driven by an effect known as electronic thermal pressure.

However, the behaviour is not universal. In some elements, subtle differences in electronic structure (especially the distribution of electrons near the Fermi level) lead to more complex or unexpected phase changes.

Understanding materials on ultrafast timescales

These results help explain how metals behave under extreme, nonequilibrium conditions, such as those created in laser experiments or high-energy environments.

Because the transitions occur on femtosecond to picosecond timescales, they could be observed using ultrafast experimental techniques, including time-resolved X-ray or electron diffraction.

The findings suggest that researchers may be able to use ultrafast laser pulses to temporarily switch materials into new structural states, opening possibilities for controlling material properties in ways not accessible under equilibrium conditions.

Toward new approaches in materials design

By showing that electronic entropy alone can drive structural changes, the study provides a new framework for understanding and designing materials under extreme conditions.

The research could inform future developments in areas such as ultrafast electronics, high-energy physics, and advanced manufacturing technologies, where materials are routinely pushed far from equilibrium.

They had been working on the 野狼社区 Mark I, an experimental computer which proved, for the first time, that a machine could store and run a program. But testing in a university laboratory and making in the real world were different things at the time.

Robinson soon redesigned the machine's multiplier (the component that handles calculations), so that instead of working through each step one at a time, like traffic queuing in a single lane, his version could tackle several steps, or switch between several lanes, at once. This updated machine ran at five times its original speed, and the result, delivered to the University in 1951, was the world's first commercially available general-purpose computer.

By uniting the two worlds of industry and academia, the researchers had helped to produce something neither party could have achieved alone. Seventy-five years on, universities and industry are now working in a far more direct and collaborative way, to produce equally valuable technologies.

From the lab to the field

One of the most striking examples at 野狼社区 is , the Centre for Robotic Autonomy in Demanding and Long-lasting Environments. Funded jointly by engineering and technology company Amentum and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's Prosperity Partnerships programme, the purpose of CRADLE is to design advanced robotics and autonomous systems for environments that can push them to their limits.

CRADLE鈥檚 robots have operated more than 1km underground at the Boulby Laboratory in Yorkshire, in conditions designed to mimic the surface of Mars, and competed in the European Space Agency鈥檚 challenge to develop excavation systems for the Moon. They鈥檝e also been deployed by National Highways to inspect motorway infrastructure in otherwise dangerous situations for human engineers.

Another successful project was (Robotics and Artificial Intelligence in Nuclear), a five-year programme funded by UK Research and Innovation, which saw 野狼社区's Centre for Robotics and AI lead other research institutions in working directly with nuclear sector organisations, including Sellafield Ltd, EDF Energy and the UK Atomic Energy Authority.

They developed autonomous systems that could inspect, handle and maintain equipment remotely when in environments too hazardous for people, something that makes a huge difference to the safety, cost and speed of clean-up in industry phases like nuclear decommissioning.

A different kind of partnership

Not all collaboration looks the same, often these are long-term partnerships built on trust and a shared purpose, rather than short projects with a single deliverable.

野狼社区's work with BAE Systems, for example, spans several decades and multiple projects, like the FLAVIIR programme which led to the world's first flapless flight. This new aircraft design could be steered by carefully controlling the flow of air across a wing, rather than using moveable flaps and surfaces that conventional planes depend on.

MAGMA further developed this into a method for flying an unmanned aircraft with no moving control surfaces at all, by using air blown at supersonic speed and a technique called fluidic thrust vectoring (redirecting the force of a plane engine鈥檚 thrust by shaping airflow rather than by physically angling its exhaust).

Tootill and Robinson crossed the boundary between academia and industry in 1949 because their work demanded it. Today鈥檚 researchers pushing those boundaries again, working in underground laboratories, nuclear facilities, flight test centres and road networks to navigate difficult problems, building partnerships that produce real-world impacts.

Key findings

• Many older residents want to "age in place" in the communities where they have built their lives, but many feel excluded from discussions about the future of their neighbourhoods.
• Residents expressed concerns that regeneration could lead to gentrification, exclusion and division, and questioned whether new homes and amenities would benefit existing communities.
• Community spaces, local shops and faith settings provide vital social infrastructure, helping older people maintain social connections and access informal support.
• Everyday encounters between people from different ethnic, cultural and generational backgrounds help create belonging, familiarity and continuity as neighbourhoods change.
• The researchers warn that regeneration should protect and strengthen existing communities, with investment directed towards community organisations as well as new buildings and infrastructure.

North 野狼社区 is undergoing one of the largest programmes of urban regeneration in the country. The 拢6 billion North 野狼社区 Strategy includes the redevelopment of North 野狼社区 General Hospital, a new mental health facility and the Victoria North housing development, while other major schemes are planned across the area.

Victoria North alone is expected to deliver up to 15,000 new homes over 15 to 20 years, and has been selected as one of the Government's New Towns Initiative sites.

What the researchers say

The researchers say the scale of investment presents a major opportunity to improve health and wellbeing, but warn that the benefits must be shared with the communities already living in the area.

"Regeneration could potentially bring enormous benefits to communities, but it is vital that we don't lose sight of the people who already live in these places,鈥� said Dr Camilla Lewis from The University of 野狼社区's 野狼社区 Urban Ageing Research Group. "Older people have deep connections to their neighbourhoods and have built up knowledge, relationships and networks over many years. These are valuable assets for regeneration, not obstacles to it.鈥�

The research found that community organisations and volunteers play a significant role in supporting older people, particularly from ethnically minoritised backgrounds, helping to reduce the effects of social isolation, poor health, financial pressures or language barriers

Community spaces also provide opportunities for interaction between people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, helping to maintain a sense of connection as neighbourhoods change.

The researchers warn that these forms of 鈥榮ocial infrastructure鈥� can be overlooked when regeneration focuses primarily on physical development.

They are calling for investment to be directed towards existing community organisations alongside new housing and infrastructure, and for regeneration to be designed collaboratively with older people.

"Regeneration needs to start by understanding what is already valuable about a place - its people, its relationships, its cultural diversity and the spaces where communities come together,鈥� said Dr Niamh Kavanagh from The University of 野狼社区. "Our research shows that these everyday connections matter enormously to older people. They can provide a sense of belonging and continuity at a time when neighbourhoods are undergoing profound change.鈥�

"The challenge is to make sure that regeneration strengthens these connections rather than unintentionally disrupting them.鈥�

The report recommends that future regeneration should be equitable, embedded within existing communities, designed collaboratively with older people, culturally sensitive and supported by sustained investment in social infrastructure.

The researchers say the lessons from North 野狼社区 are relevant to the wider UK as cities and towns respond simultaneously to an ageing population, housing pressures and major programmes of urban development.

The study was carried out over 12 months and involved 41 interviews with older residents, community organisations and regeneration stakeholders, two focus groups and four creative co-production projects involving more than 50 older people. The research focused primarily on Cheetham Hill and Crumpsall, while also considering the wider North 野狼社区 area.

Publication details

Read the full Ageing, inequality and urban regeneration: Collaborative research with older people living in North 野狼社区 report .

Tackling the public鈥檚 energy concerns

Amidst growing climate change concerns and exposure to fossil fuel price shocks, local energy schemes are beneficial for engaging the public directly in an energy transition, encouraging community cohesion, bringing direct financial benefits to participants, and providing energy for more remote locations.

However, PPERC鈥檚 response, Putting Power in its Place, states that the government鈥檚 plan also provides a major opportunity to address issues of energy poverty.

鈥淲hat we argue for is genuinely community owned, democratic energy projects which provide both direct returns to those facing energy poverty and debt but also opportunities to develop skills and greater community cohesion,鈥� said Dr Gareth Fearn, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow and editor of the paper.

Key recommendations听

Their听paper听outlines five practical recommendations听to听ensure听the听LPP听delivers on its full potential.听

• Bring听power to the people听by proactively听identifying听communities most in need, building mechanisms for democratic ownership, creating bespoke regulation, and ringfencing funding for engagement and participatory听energy听planning.
• Address energy poverty by embedding it as a key funding criterion,听targeting local schemes in areas with high energy debt, creating听a single UK听registry of community听energy organisations, and engaging with existing community groups.
• Develop skills through community power听and support job creation听by听creating a more inclusive,听better-targeted skills strategy听and integrating small and听medium-sized enterprises and voluntary, community and social enterprises.
• Connect the LPP to other plans,听such as听aligning the Warm Homes Agency with Great British Energy (GBE)听Local, and听guiding听local authority planners on how to include community energy in local policy.
• Invest in the 鈥榦ne stop shop鈥� by ensuring energy and retrofit advice services have secure, long-term funding for delivery partners, creating a nationally听visible advice helpline, and听developing a comprehensive听business- and community-focused energy advice service.听

Creating local job opportunities听

PPERC鈥檚 research听suggests听that proactively working with communities leads to better energy planning.听Whilst community projects听can give more people a stake in the future of energy,听their听paper听suggests that the听full听benefits will only be听realised听if the LPP听ensures听clear, inclusive pathways into jobs听and听skills听for locals.听This includes addressing听any听structural barriers to pursuing training faced by marginalised groups.听

鈥淲e see the LPP, and the expanding role of Great British Energy at a local level, as a means of bringing a range of different people into the energy transition in both materially and socially beneficial ways,鈥� said听Dr听Fearn.听

Looking to the future

Since the Local Power Plan was announced in February, the political context and global energy pressures have continued to shift, further emphasising the need to strengthen energy security and ensure the plan delivers lasting benefits for the communities most affected.

By establishing protected mechanisms for public and democratic ownership over the projects, PPERC argues, the LPP will be able to maximise the potential of community energy to deliver much-needed impact.

Publication details

The full response and recommendations, Putting Power in its Place: A PPERC response to the Local Power Plan, can be read .

This well-deserved promotion recognises Clara's outstanding contributions to research, education and academic leadership, particularly her work advancing digital approaches to improve occupational safety, health and wellbeing. Through her research, she has brought together expertise from engineering, data science, organisational psychology, regulators and industry to address some of the most pressing challenges facing high-risk sectors.听

Commenting on her promotion, Clara said:听
鈥淚 am deeply grateful for this recognition and for the many colleagues, collaborators, students and mentors who have shaped my journey. The Thomas Ashton Institute has played an important role in enabling interdisciplinary collaboration between researchers, regulators and industry. I look forward to continuing this work and advancing human-centred digital innovation that delivers meaningful improvements in workplace safety, health and wellbeing.鈥�

As Digital Safety and Health Lead at the Thomas Ashton Institute, Clara has helped strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration across the University and beyond, supporting research that explores how digital technologies can improve workplace safety, health and wellbeing while ensuring innovation remains centred on people.

Reflecting on her promotion, Clara has often said that "no one becomes a professor alone," recognising the collective support of colleagues, collaborators, mentors, students, friends and family throughout her career.听

Professor Cheung's promotion marks an important milestone for both the University and the Thomas Ashton Institute. We are proud to celebrate this achievement and look forward to continuing to work with Clara as she develops new partnerships, advances interdisciplinary research and helps shape the future of digital safety and health.听

Congratulations, Professor Cheung, on this outstanding achievement.听

• 
  听

Key findings

Bullet point list of the study's key findings

What the researchers say

Put some of the researcher's quotes here, but highlight one or two key sentences in the separate module (accessed on the left of this page)

Relevant subheading

Detail about what the findings mean - changes to previous knowledge, challenge to orthodoxy etc. Make this part human interest if possible - try to ground the study in real world implications so ordinary readers will be interested. Insert another quote in this section if needed/provided - particularly if the academic provides a call to action.

Publication details

The study was published in xxx journal.

DOI: http://xxx.

Representatives from the Institute, and exhibited throughout the day, engaging with delegates from academia, policy and practice. The event provided a valuable opportunity to showcase the Institute's work in risk and regulatory research, occupational health and safety, and interdisciplinary approaches to addressing complex societal challenges.

As well as sharing information about the Institute's activities, the team met with researchers and practitioners from a wide range of organisations, exploring opportunities for future collaboration and knowledge exchange.

The Festival's 2026 programme focused on a number of important themes, including Global Public Health, Commercial Determinants of Health, Research Inclusion, AI and Public Health, and Women's Health.

We would like to thank the organisers and everyone who visited our stand during the event. We look forward to building on the connections made and continuing to support evidence-informed approaches to improving health, safety and wellbeing.

It was fantastic to host scientists from all over the country, from the Universities of 野狼社区, Oxford, Birmingham, Keele, Leeds, Loughborough, 野狼社区 Metropolitan, Southampton, Sussex, UCL and Imperial, from Belgium, France and Sweden, as well as many of our Harwell colleagues and collaborators from Diamond Light Source, STFC, UKHSA and the Rosalind Franklin Institute.

Speakers

Huge thanks to our excellent speakers who presented a variety of complementary imaging techniques.

• , The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility
• and , Detector Development Group, Science & Technology Facilities Council
• , University of Birmingham
• , University of Ghent
• , MAX IV Laboratory, Lund University
• , 野狼社区 Metropolitan University
• , Laboratois Mat茅IS
• , University of Southampton.

Workshop topics of conversation

Imaging techniques discussed were ultra-fast synchrotron radiography and tomography imaging, micro-CT combined with SWAXS, 3D X-ray Histology, ultra-high resolution tomography, diceCT, tomography imaging of porous media and molten flows, advances in X-ray imaging detectors that were applied in various applications (battery safety studies, laser welding of metals, fuel injectors, shockwave imaging, crystal growth in molten flows, pore-scale imaging of multiphase fluid flow, bone hierarchical structure, tumour margin determination, foetal post-mortem autopsy, laser-based additive manufacturing, muscle whiskers in pinniped species, elemental chemistry in alloys and uranium quantification).

The workshop maintained high engagement all day with fascinating 3D visualisation such as the complex bone canalicular network and impressive 4D animations such as battery failure and hydrogen-brine dynamics. The bottlenecks of analysing such large datasets with different modalities and the importance of taking this into consideration when designing an experiment, was also addressed.

The ability to measure intricate fluid dynamics in porous media using 4D velocimetry was a key advancement. These empirical datasets can significantly improve the accuracy of CFD models and can be extended to study mechanical processes in other domains, such as bone mechanobiology and tissue engineering (bioreactors, scaffolds).

The use of AI and deep-learning techniques to boost data interpretation and identify novel biomarkers in clinical applications look very promising, and it was important to highlight some of the limits such as model hallucination. Because imaging techniques and data analytics are advancing so rapidly, dedicated training programs are increasingly essential to prepare the next generation of scientists.

Posters and poster prizes

• First prize awarded to , University of Oxford, 鈥楾owards Hydrogen Imaging and Mapping in Embrittlement-Susceptible Steels via XAS and Machine Learning鈥�.
• Second prize awarded to , University of Oxford, 鈥業nvestigating interdendritic flow during aluminium alloys solidification using Artificial Intelligence and synchrotron X-ray imaging鈥�.
• Third prize awarded to , University of Birmingham, 鈥楢dditive Manufacturing and Advance Materials Testing of 316L & Tungstan LPBF Lattices for Fusion Application.

Thank you to everyone who presented a poster and congratulations to our three winners!

Thank you鈥�

We would like to say a huge thank you to all our speakers, chairs, sponsors and delegates who helped make the conference a success.

Published in , the study led by researchers from The University of 野狼社区, the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis and the University of M眉nster describe a family of tellurium-based catalysts that use chalcogen bonding to control reaction outcomes through non-covalent interactions.

Chalcogen bonding, which arises from electron-deficient regions known as 蟽-holes, has attracted growing attention as a tool for catalysis. However, translating these comparatively weak interactions into effective asymmetric catalysis has proved difficult, particularly when using neutral catalyst systems. Most successful examples reported to date have relied on charged catalysts to strengthen substrate binding.

To address this limitation, the researchers used computational modelling to design a series of chiral tellurium-triazole catalysts capable of forming a confined binding environment around reacting molecules. They identified a catalyst incorporating a 1,3-diaminocyclohexane backbone that could adopt a bidentate binding arrangement, allowing two tellurium centres to interact cooperatively with a substrate.

When tested experimentally, the catalyst was able to induce asymmetry in benchmark Reissert-type reactions of quinolines and isoquinolines. The best-performing examples reached enantiomeric ratios of up to 89:11, providing evidence that neutral chalcogen-bond donors can transfer chiral information during catalysis.

Dr Olga Garc铆a Manche帽o, corresponding author and Professor of Catalysis in Organic Chemistry at the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis, who led the experimental catalysis work, adds: "Chalcogen bonding has enormous potential as a tool for catalysis, but translating these relatively weak interactions into reliable asymmetric control has proved challenging. This was only possible by bringing together computational design, synthesis and experimental catalysis. The study shows that carefully designed neutral chalcogen-bond donors can overcome an important limitation in the field and opens the door to more selective systems in the future."

The team combined computational design, synthesis and mechanistic studies to understand why some catalyst architectures performed better than others. Spectroscopic and computational analyses showed that the most effective catalyst forms two cooperative chalcogen-bond interactions with a bound chloride ion, supported by additional hydrogen-bonding contacts that help stabilise the catalytic complex.

Alternative catalyst designs either failed to bind effectively or produced little or no enantioselectivity, highlighting the importance of catalyst geometry in controlling stereochemical outcomes.

"The computational analysis allowed us to understand why certain catalyst structures were successful while others were not", says James O'Brien, who carried out the computational studies at The University of 野狼社区. "It revealed how subtle changes in catalyst geometry influence binding and selectivity, helping us identify the features needed for effective chalcogen-bonding catalysis."

Lary Massold, who conducted the experimental studies says: 鈥淔rom the two most promising synthesised chalcogen donors, the catalyst with a weaker binding but more directive bidentate interactions with the substrate showed higher selectivity and stereocontrol. With this study we proved that fine-tuning of weak interactions plays a crucial role in this area of supramolecular catalysis.鈥�

Although the levels of stereocontrol remain below those routinely achieved with more established classes of asymmetric catalyst, the work provides a proof of principle for neutral chalcogen-bonding catalysis and offers a framework for designing more selective systems.

The authors say the design principles identified in the study could help guide future efforts to harness weak non-covalent interactions for increasingly complex catalytic transformations.

The Ferranti Mark I, the world's first commercially available general-purpose computer, came with 4,000 valves, 100,000 soldered joints and six miles of wires. The 27 kilowatts of power it needed to operate is the equivalent of running roughly 600 mid-range laptops today, yet at the time, it must have felt miraculous.

Seventy-five years on, and 野狼社区 is still working at the frontier of computing. The machinery might be different 鈥� something far smaller than 2.5-metre-tall towers 鈥� but the research teams are asking the same question: can you turn a theory into a device that changes the world?

The answer in 2026, involves silicon, single atoms and the strange laws of quantum physics.

What is a quantum computer?

All previous computers, from the Ferranti Mark I to the laptop on your desk, have processed information as bits 鈥� ones and zeros. But now, quantum computing is changing the game, they use qubits instead. Qubits, can exist as both a 1 and a 0 at the same time; multiplied across many qubits working together, quantum machines can explore numerous solutions at once, rather than working through them one by one.

The implications of this are potentially huge. Problems that would take today鈥檚 most powerful supercomputers centuries to solve 鈥� from modelling new medicines to testing the security of future communication systems 鈥� could one day be tackled in hours, or even minutes.

What鈥檚 getting in the way?

The main barrier to progress is that qubits are incredibly fragile. Even tiny changes in their environment, like a shift in temperature or a disturbance in their surroundings, can introduce errors. Building a quantum computer that works reliably at scale means solving this problem.

Silicon, the material which underpins every modern computer chip, offers a potential route forward, because scientists already know how to produce very precise silicon devices. However, natural silicon contains an isotope, silicon-29, which causes a 鈥榥uclear flip flopping鈥� effect that makes qubits lose their data.

For a long time, no practical solution to this has existed.

野狼社区's answer

In 2024, researchers from 野狼社区 announced they had found one. By developing a way of engineering silicon to remove silicon-29, they produced the world's purest form of the material. This purified silicon can provide a stable platform for high-performance qubit devices and creates the opportunity for making quantum computers at scale. Scientists think it opens a path towards devices containing one million qubits, potentially fabricated to the size of a pinhead.

With this material achieved, the team turned to scaling up the purification process and using samples to develop prototype quantum devices.

Then, in March 2026, 野狼社区 and IBM researchers used a quantum computer to verify the properties of a molecule that had never previously existed. It was a concrete demonstration of the technology鈥檚 potential.

What this means for the future

The UK鈥檚 recent National Quantum Strategy earmarked an investment of 拢2.5 billion for creating a thriving quantum sector, with many projecting that quantum technologies will create a global market worth tens of billions within the next decade.

野狼社区's sits at the heart of that ambition, training a new generation of scientists and engineers while building the industry partnerships needed to move discoveries out of the lab and into the real world.

The ability to process complex challenges at a scale no classical computer can match, could soon transform sectors as diverse as energy, manufacturing, data security, drug discovery and vaccine design.

Seventy-five years ago, the Ferranti Mark I proved that extraordinary ideas could be made real. Today鈥檚 researchers might be working at a different scale 鈥� swapping whole rooms for single atoms 鈥� but their achievements could be just as revolutionary.

However, the advantage depends on the emotional context, and a key ingredient for effective support 鈥� offering specific, actionable guidance 鈥� can boost the quality of support from both humans and AI alike.

鈥� published in the journal 鈥� compared messages of emotional support generated by large language models (LLMs) and humans in everyday, non-clinical contexts.

The research comprised five studies involving a total of 1,233 participants. Across the studies, the team compared emotional support messages generated by three leading LLMs 鈥� ChatGPT 4o, Claude 3.5 Sonnet, and Gemini 1.5 Pro 鈥� with messages written by human participants responding to everyday emotionally charged scenarios, such as being passed over for a promotion or coming home to find their shared house untidy.

Participants were not told if the messages they received came from a human or an AI. Although many were able to correctly identify the source, those in studies where LLM messages were rated as more supportive did not show reduced benefit 鈥� suggesting that awareness of an AI source does not necessarily undermine its effectiveness.

Key findings:

• LLM-generated responses largely mirrored strategies used by humans to manage others鈥� emotions, particularly for ChatGPT, which showed the highest similarity with human patterns.

• In situations involving anger and fear, LLM responses were seen as more emotionally supportive than those written by people. In addition, LLM messages helped people feel more positive (such as feeling calm or happy). For sadness situations, LLM and human responses worked equally well.

• Simply acknowledging someone鈥檚 feelings (e.g., 鈥淚 totally understand why you feel sad鈥�) did not fully explain why LLM responses were sometimes more effective. Adding or removing this emotional validation did not make a difference to how helpful the messages were.

• What mattered most was 鈥淎ctionable support鈥� 鈥� clear practical suggestions that people could use (such as breathing techniques, step-by-step reframing, or practical next steps). These specific suggestions improved emotional outcomes regardless of whether the message came from a human or an AI.

Co-author , Lecturer in Psychology at The University of 野狼社区, said: 鈥淥ur findings suggest that what makes emotional support effective is less about who provides it, and more about how it is delivered. Providing people with specific, actionable steps, rather than general reassurance, is a key ingredient for effective support, whether that comes from a person or a chatbot.

She added: 鈥淲hile a human might typically suggest going for a walk or making a cup of tea, an AI chatbot tends to go further, for example acknowledging the person鈥檚 feelings and offering step-by-step strategies such as breathing techniques or specific ways to reframe a thought. Training human supporters 鈥� whether professionals or members of the public 鈥� to provide this kind of structured, actionable guidance could meaningfully improve the quality of everyday emotional support.鈥�

Co-author , a PhD researcher at The University of 野狼社区, said: 鈥淲e found that AI can emulate the supportive strategies that humans use, and at times even outperform human supporters in improving a person鈥檚 emotional state 鈥� though this is not universal. The effect depends on the type of emotion and what outcome you are looking at.鈥�

She added: 鈥淲e are not saying that humans should or can be replaced by AI. But our findings do show that when people choose to use AI for emotional support, it can be genuinely helpful, and understanding why it works can help us improve how both humans and AI provide that support.鈥�

The research comes amid growing public interest in AI as an emotional resource. Recent surveys suggest that 66% of 25- to 34-year-olds in the UK have turned to AI chatbots instead of loved ones to discuss emotional problems, and in the US, 20% of young adults aged 18鈥�21 have used ChatGPT to manage their emotions, with 92.7% of those users finding the advice helpful.

Dr Sarah Walker, co-author of the study from Durham University's School of Education, said: "What's key here is that we're not suggesting AI should replace human support. But when people do turn to it, it can help, and understanding why tells us something useful. Concrete, actionable steps work better than general reassurance, and that is something all of us can get better at offering. However, we also need to think about the human cost of actionable support as well.

鈥淲hen AI suggests a walk or a breathing exercise, the suggestion is where its involvement ends. When a person offers the same thing, it usually comes with their presence as well. We don't just suggest the walk, we go on it. That kind of support takes real time and effort, and the people closest to us are often stretched thin. So to me, this work is less about AI replacing us and more of a reminder that what we want from each other in hard moments is often more than the people we love can give."

• 鈥� DOI 10.1037/emo0001712

Alcohol-related harm continues to place a significant burden on health services. The study highlights that these harms are most common late at night, particularly at weekends, when higher levels of intoxication can contribute to injuries, violence and emergency healthcare demand. The researchers note that Scotland recorded more than 31,000 alcohol-specific hospital admissions between 2022 and 2023.

The team says the findings provide important evidence for policymakers considering future licensing decisions. They argue that both the scale of licensing extensions and the types of venues receiving them should be carefully considered when assessing potential impacts on public health and community safety.

The authors also note that previous international research has linked reductions in late-night trading hours with decreases in alcohol-related harm. As the first UK study to examine the relationship between extended opening hours and alcohol-related ambulance call-outs, they believe the results can contribute to future national and local licensing policy discussions.

Professor Niamh Fitzgerald of the University of Stirling, and Principal Investigator of the wider study, said: 鈥淥ur study shows that local authorities need greater powers to control the number and type of venues that are allowed to open later at night because large-scale extensions will result in increased health harms and crimes. Whilst this part of the research didn鈥檛 find measurable impacts in Glasgow, local stakeholders reported in interviews that the 4am extension in just 10 nightclubs had put frontline services under severe strain.鈥�

The study was a collaboration between The University of 野狼社区, the University of Glasgow, Glasgow Caledonian University, the University of Sheffield, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and the Scottish Ambulance Service, and forms part of a wider project led by the University of Stirling.

role on this work and the wider NIHR funded ELEPHANT project focused on advising the statistical design and methodologies proposed for the analyses, including analyses of changes in the geographical distributions of harms.

• Fathers who undertook solo caregiving became more confident and capable parents.

• Early childcare experiences helped fathers better understand the emotional, practical and mental load of caring for children.

• Mothers were often able to return to work earlier or pursue career progression because they had confidence in their partner's caregiving abilities.

• Couples were more likely to view childcare as a shared responsibility rather than primarily the mother's role.

• Many fathers continued to organise work around family responsibilities years after their leave ended.

• Some fathers became more open about caregiving responsibilities at work and more willing to prioritise family life over career progression.

Rethinking careers and parenting

"Our research shows that fathers' solo caregiving can have long-lasting effects on how couples organise work and family life years later,鈥� said Professor Emma Banister from the Work and Equalities Institute at Alliance 野狼社区 Business School. "The fathers we spoke to developed confidence and skills through caring for their child alone, and those experiences continued to shape their decisions about work and parenting long after their leave had ended."

Challenge to traditional gender roles regarding paid and unpaid work

The study also found evidence that fathers who had taken sole responsibility for childcare were more likely to challenge traditional expectations about parenting and work.

Several participants reported openly discussing childcare commitments with colleagues and managers, rejecting the idea that caregiving should be hidden or secondary to paid work.

The researchers argue that organisations and policymakers should do more to support fathers who want to take an active role in childcare.

Implications for parental leave policy

The researchers say the findings strengthen the case for expanding dedicated leave for fathers.

While Shared Parental Leave was introduced in the UK in 2015 to encourage more equal parenting, uptake remains relatively low because of affordability, eligibility restrictions and the way the system is structured.

The study suggests that creating more opportunities for fathers to undertake solo caregiving could help promote greater gender equality both at home and in the workplace.

"The benefits we observed weren't simply about fathers spending more time with their children - it was the experience of taking responsibility for childcare independently that appeared to make the difference,鈥� said Professor Ben Kerrane of 野狼社区 Metropolitan University. 鈥淭hat experience helped reshape how couples thought about parenting, careers and family responsibilities, with effects that were still visible five years later.鈥�

Publication details

The study was published in journal Human Relations.

DOI:

Graeme studied Biomedical Sciences with 野狼社区, and it was while here that he took up rowing. That turned out to be a turning point in his life, and a few years later, his intense training and selection pathway for the 2012 London Olympics meant that he missed out on celebrating the completion of his degree.

Fourteen years and a spectacular sporting career later, which saw Graeme selected for Rio 2016, and competing in Tokyo and Paris, The University thought it only right that he had the opportunity to finish his degree properly 鈥� he is, after all, a recent inductee into our Sporting Hall of Fame.

Watched on by his parents, his son, and his soon-to-be Wife, Lucy, Graeme commented,

Following his ceremony, Graeme was invited to a reception with a few of the members of the current 野狼社区 Rowing Club.

This new Long Baseline Multistatic Radar (LBMR) capability for real-time space object characterization transforms existing radio-frequency infrastructure, including radio telescopes and satellite communications antennas, into a powerful dual-use system for Space Domain Awareness.

As the number of satellites being launched every year grows towards the tens of thousands, space is becoming increasingly congested. At the same time our reliance on services provided from space is becoming increasingly clear. For these reasons it is essential to boost our capabilities of monitoring, tracking and characterising objects in orbit.

Radar is a powerful tool for monitoring objects in orbit, but observing distant regions such as geostationary orbit (36,000 km) requires high power transmitters and the most sensitive receivers. Radio telescopes like the Lovell Telescope and e-MERLIN are designed to detect the faint natural radio emissions from stars and galaxies, while large deep-space communications antennas routinely receive extremely weak signals from distant spacecraft. By using these assets as geographically distributed radar receivers, the sensitivity of existing radar systems can be increased by more than tenfold ,enabling the detection of smaller objects at much greater distances.

To make this capability useful for space operations, the radar echoes received at the radio telescopes need to be collected, processed and analysed in real time. This has now been demonstrated in a new project funded by the UK Space Agency at a live event recently held at the European Space Agency at Harwell, in the UK.

Key stakeholders from the government, defence and industry in the UK and Australia were able to see the radar detections and measurements live on screen. This is a world first for this type of radar technique and a major milestone in moving LBMR from research towards operational capability, reflecting the shared leadership and complementary expertise of partners across the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia.

The University of 野狼社区 is a key member of this project, and the use of the 76-m Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank is central to obtaining the sensitivity improvement which this approach offers. Using additional e-MERLIN antennas (supported by STFC) adds flexibility, resilience and the future potential for real-time orbit determination.

This project was funded by the UK Space Agency through its International Bilateral Fund and led by the University of Birmingham. Originating from within two NATO- Research Task Groups (STO SET-293 and SET-340), which have involved the University of 野狼社区 from the outset in 2020, the project has brought together partners from the three nations to overcome key challenges in synchronisation, distributed sensing and real-time processing. Beyond proving a new capability for monitoring space objects, LBMR provides a platform for continued innovation, international collaboration and the development of the specialist skills needed to help protect critical space infrastructure and ensure the safe, secure and sustainable use of space.

Dr Chris Blount at the UK Space Agency said: 鈥淭he Long Baseline Multistatic Radar (LMBR) project has been a fantastic example of innovation and collaboration by incredible UK and international talent, and an exemplar case of the capability multiplication through collaboration the International Bilateral Fund (IBF) seeks to achieve. The LBMR team have taken the thorny challenge of real time on-demand monitoring of space objects on geostationary orbit, and through proactive partnering and an innovative application of existing world class UK assets, have been able to demonstrate a state of the art, dual use by design, capability. This has been achieved without the extensive investment, time, and effort a dedicated facility would have otherwise needed, and even surpasses the capability such a facility would yield. This is exactly the innovation and engineering excellence UKSA and the IBF seeks to promote, and is a key step towards a capability to make the UK and our international partners safer and better able to respond to the challenges of a congested and contested space.鈥�

Professor Simon Garrington, a radio astronomer at the Jodrell Bank Observatory, University of 野狼社区, UK, said: 鈥淭he 76-m Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank makes a superb radar receiver for this type of work. We are very keen to realise its full potential in contributing to monitoring objects in orbit, protecting UK assets in space, and making space safer. Our e-MERLIN array is also being used in this work and is a unique UK capability for high precision measurements of objects in orbit鈥�.

Professor Gaven Smith, CB FREng 鈥� University of 野狼社区 and former CTO, GCHQ, UK said: 鈥淭his is a compelling example of how research facilities and skills can be applied to the challenge of protecting important UK assets in space against a range of natural (eg space debris) and potentially hostile threats. The need for these capabilities is becoming increasing urgent, and this application of radio telescopes shows how powerful capabilities can be developed rapidly and cost-effectively within the UK, by leveraging our research base.鈥�

Prof Marco Martorella, LBMR project leader, Chair in RF and Space Sensing at the University of Birmingham, UK, said: "The successful demonstration of the Long Baseline Multistatic Radar marks an important step towards an operational Space Domain Awareness capability. Beyond its immediate operational potential, LBMR provides a unique platform to advance radar technologies, validate new sensing concepts, and train the next generation of RF and radar engineers. Building and retaining this expertise is essential to developing the capabilities needed to detect, track and identify space objects, helping to protect critical space infrastructure and ensure the safe and sustainable use of space for the future.鈥�

Chris Saunders, a senior mission concepts engineer at UK-headquartered space company, Goonhilly, said: 鈥淭his project has been a fantastic demonstration of multi-national collaboration across academia and industry, demonstrating the value of leveraging existing satellite communications infrastructure to protect our critical assets in space. Goonhilly looks forward to building upon the successful LBMR concept, as it continues to develop day/night, all-weather, RF-based Space Domain Awareness capabilities.鈥�

Mr. Gregory Hogan, Chair of NATO SET 鈥楲BMR for Space Domain Awareness鈥� Research Group, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, US, said: 鈥淭his multi-nation live demonstration highlights the advanced capability that can be achieved through Allied partnership. By augmenting US radars with partner nation radiotelescopes significant increases were achieved in sensitivity for detecting and characterizing satellites at Geosynchronous distances, greatly enhancing the SDA mission.

Ken Smart, Space Domain Awareness Lead at CSIRO, Australia, said: 鈥淭he success of the Long Baseline Multistatic Radar demonstration relied on bringing together complementary capabilities from across the United Kingdom, United States and Australia. CSIRO's contribution of the Mopra radio telescope and expertise in radio astronomy and signal processing extended the geographic reach of the network and provided an independent receiving capability from the Southern Hemisphere. Together, the partners demonstrated how existing scientific and communications infrastructure can be combined to deliver a powerful new approach to Space Domain Awareness, while strengthening international collaboration on the technologies needed to help ensure the safe, secure and sustainable use of space.鈥�

Phoebe Ryder, PhD Student at University of 野狼社区, UK: 鈥淔or me as a young scientist, it has been really valuable to join an international team which brings together experts in space radar, satellite communications and radio astronomy. This project has been a great opportunity to combine curiosity-driven research with real world needs to produce a demonstration of a useful and novel capability. Working with the UK Space Agency, and other stakeholders, has given me invaluable insight into the applications of this research, and hopefully some opportunities for a future career in this really interesting and important area.鈥�

Dr. Jason Guicheteau, Chair of NATO Sensing Technology (SET) Scientific Technical Committee, US, said: 鈥淭he successful live demonstration of the LBMR is a testament to the power of allied collaboration, showcasing the transition of foundational science into a tangible, operational capability originating out of NATO Science and Technology Organization (STO) research task groups."

• Multiple agencies share responsibility for tackling economic crime, in some cases creating uncertainty over leadership and accountability

• Competing priorities and budget pressures can limit organisations' ability to devote resources to economic crime investigations

• The broad and evolving nature of "economic crime" makes it difficult to define priorities and measure success

• Outdated technology and poor data-sharing arrangements continue to hamper investigations and intelligence gathering

• The UK's response relies heavily on cooperation between organisations with different responsibilities, cultures and objectives

Economic crime has become one of the UK's biggest crime threats

The researchers say economic crime encompasses a vast range of offences, from online fraud and investment scams to money laundering, bribery and sanctions evasion.

However, a key issue identified by the study was ambiguity surrounding the term 鈥榚conomic crime鈥� - which lacks clear boundaries and scope - and how different threats should be prioritised.

The research found that political priorities and major world events can rapidly reshape which forms of economic crime receive attention and resources. As a result, agencies can find themselves responding to an ever-expanding range of threats, stretching already limited resources.

The authors argue that while the broad label of economic crime helps attract political attention and funding, it can also obscure important differences between offences that require very different responses.

Outdated systems slowing investigations

Participants in the study also highlighted concerns about the technological tools available to investigators. Some reported that basic collaboration and data-analysis capabilities lag behind those available in the private sector, with information-gathering processes that should take days sometimes taking months.

The researchers found that these limitations can make it more difficult to identify emerging threats, share intelligence and coordinate action across agencies.

What is needed

The researchers say the enabling conditions needed to tackle the problem are:

• A shared definition of economic crime, clear enough to guide prioritisation yet flexible enough to serve both political and operational purposes

• Data-sharing arrangements and intelligence infrastructure that allow partners to act and build understanding simultaneously

• Clear incentives and dedicated resourcing that allow partners to commit meaningfully beyond their core organisational mandates

• Clear delineation of roles and responsibilities across agencies, with recognised leadership

• Formalised but flexible accountability arrangements that create soft mechanisms for ensuring participation without undermining partner autonomy

Why this matters

Fraud is now one of the most common crimes affecting people in the UK, while money laundering enables a wide range of serious criminal activity, from organised crime to corruption.

The findings also have wider relevance for governments around the world that are increasingly relying on multi-agency partnerships to tackle complex forms of crime that cross organisational and national boundaries.

What the researchers say

"The National Economic Crime Centre was created to bring together the many organisations involved in tackling economic crime, recognising the need for a collective response鈥� said Professor Nicholas Lord. 鈥淗owever, coordinating agencies with different responsibilities, priorities and resources is not straightforward, and certainly needs more than goodwill.鈥�

"What emerges from this study is a picture of a system that depends heavily on cooperation between organisations,鈥� added Professor Elisa Bellotti. 鈥淭he challenge is not simply understanding economic crime itself, but creating the conditions that allow different institutions to work together effectively in responding to it.鈥�

Publication details

The study was published in the Journal of Economic Criminology.

DOI:

The scroll was formally presented to the University during a visit by two of Rutherford鈥檚 great grand-daughters. The historic Rutherford gift has also inspired new named physics chair at 野狼社区

The gift strengthens the University's connection with one of the most influential scientists in history and the continuing leadership in the fields he helped create.

To mark the gift, the University has established the Ernest Rutherford Chair in Physics, a new named professorship within the Department of Physics and Astronomy. The chair will recognise leading researchers working in fields closely associated with Rutherford's scientific achievements, including nuclear, particle and accelerator physics. The new chair joins a distinguished group of named professorships in Physics at 野狼社区, including the Langworthy Chair, one of the oldest physics chairs in the world, the Regius chair in Physics established by royal patronage, and the Lovell Chair in Astrophysics.

Rutherford is widely regarded as the 鈥渇ather of nuclear physics鈥�. During his time at 野狼社区 between 1907 and 1919, he transformed the University's Physics Laboratory into one of the world's leading centres of scientific discovery.

Among the breakthroughs achieved in 野狼社区 were the discovery of the atomic nucleus, the identification of the proton and the first artificial nuclear reaction, which is often referred to as 鈥渟plitting the atom鈥�. These achievements laid the foundations of our modern world, gave rise to the fields of nuclear and particle physics and led to innumerable technological, industrial and societal impacts

Professor Chris Parkes, Head of The University of 野狼社区 Physics and Astronomy Department, said: "Rutherford's years in 野狼社区 changed our understanding of the physical world forever, shaping our understanding of atoms. The discoveries made here have shaped our world today and continue to influence scientific research more than a century later.

"We are delighted that Lord Rutherford's descendants have chosen 野狼社区 as the home for this important historical document. It is a powerful recognition of the University's role in preserving and celebrating Rutherford's remarkable legacy and our continuing world leadership in research in the fields of nuclear and particle physics"

Jenny Joy and Caroline Roberts descendants of Rutherford, added: 鈥淲e wanted this scroll to be seen and used as part of his legacy as it has hardly ever seen the light of day, and it is a valuable stunning historical document in its own right鈥�

During their visit, members of Rutherford's family took a tour of the Physics department, including seeing his original desk and visiting modern facilities that continue the 野狼社区 tradition of cutting-edge research in his areas of interest.

It was in the University's former Physics Laboratory 鈥� now known as the Rutherford Building 鈥� that Rutherford led a team of pioneering scientists whose work revolutionised our understanding of the atom.

His influence extended far beyond his own discoveries. Rutherford鈥檚 work established 野狼社区 as an international centre of scientific excellence, allowing the University to attract many renowned scientists to continue his legacy. He is also well known for mentoring many of the leading physicists of the twentieth century. The historic scroll will be preserved within the University's collections, ensuring that future generations can continue to learn about the scientist whose discoveries in 野狼社区 changed the world.

She added: "While I welcome the child-focused courts that the government has introduced, the family justice system has an opportunity to move from seeing children as passive recipients of adult decisions to recognising them as active participants. If children's voices are consistently heard, respected and acted upon, family courts will be better protect their safety, wellbeing and long-term health."

Recommendations

The researchers are calling for major reforms to private family law proceedings, including:

• Ensuring children's voices are routinely and meaningfully heard throughout family court proceedings.

• Embedding the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child more fully into domestic law.

• Reforming family court practice so children's views genuinely influence decisions affecting them.

• Providing specialist training for judges, legal professionals and safeguarding practitioners on children's rights, trauma, coercive control and child sexual abuse.

• Introducing stronger safeguards against technology-facilitated abuse, including the misuse of children's medical information.

• Expanding access to child-centred, trauma-informed interventions such as play therapy and specialist counselling.

The authors conclude that meaningful reform will require not only legislative change but also a cultural shift across the family justice system towards recognising children as equal rights holders whose lived experiences should guide judicial decision-making.

Publication details

The paper was published in the Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law.

This study was supported by a grant from the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Participatory Research Fund to Dr Elizabeth Dalgarno, Principal Investigator. The findings remain the responsibility of the research team.

DOI:

Today, instead of thinking about how we communicate with machines, scientists are trying to improve how machines communicate with us. How they might read our intentions, notice when there鈥檚 a change in our demeanour and earn our trust.

This isn鈥檛 just a question about technology, it鈥檚 also about psychology, ethics and what we need from the intelligent systems that increasingly share our workplaces, hospitals and homes.

The problem of trust

People build trust instinctively, often without noticing; it could be the way someone listens, remembers what matters to us, responds at the right moment, or handles a mistake. Now, researchers at 野狼社区's are studying how these same dynamics might play out with machines.

They鈥檝e found that our trust in robots often depends on two things: whether a robot can do what it claims, and whether it responds to situations 鈥� especially failures 鈥� in ways that feel recognisably human. A robot that completes a job but ignores typical social cues may be accurate, but it鈥檚 often not trusted as much as a robot that fails a task but acknowledges its mistakes in a human-like way.

also found that the voice a robot uses is important. During this exercise, people showed greater confidence in working with a machine when it spoke in an AI-generated voice designed to sound more human, even though when asked afterwards they claimed to have preferred a standard robotic version instead. It suggests that what people believe they want from robots and how they actually behave around them, are not always the same.

When the robot is watching you

However, trust doesn鈥檛 only run one way, and that鈥檚 why 野狼社区 researchers have been developing 鈥楥omputational Trust鈥� 鈥� mathematical models which help robots assess the trustworthiness of the humans they work with.

, knowing how much a human partner鈥檚 contributions can be relied upon helps a robot to anticipate what its human partner is likely to do next, or where they might go wrong.²

This ties in with the 鈥楾heory of Mind鈥� concept, which describes a human ability to understand that other people have their own knowledge, intentions and goals that may differ from your own. Developing an artificial version of this 鈥� a robot that can genuinely read the room 鈥� is one of the most ambitious targets in the field.

Understanding another mind

To address this, 野狼社区 researchers are now exploring what happens when machines begin to develop a basic version of 鈥楾heory of Mind鈥�. In , a research team gave pairs of autonomous robots different personalities and priorities. Some were designed to be more socially focused, while others were more playful. Each robot had its own needs and goals, but those needs were invisible to its partner. The challenge was learning to work together anyway.

To do this, the robots used their own experiences as a starting point for understanding each other. If a robot observed behaviour that looked familiar, it could begin to infer what its partner might be trying to achieve. Over time, those estimates were refined through interaction. The result was a machine capable of making decisions not solely for itself, but with another agent in mind.

The researchers found that cooperation emerged most successfully when at least one robot was willing to prioritise the needs of another. Simply giving the robot the ability to reason about another's mental state was not enough, what mattered was how it used that knowledge when deciding what to do next.

In human terms, it is the difference between understanding that somebody needs help and choosing to offer it.

Feeling heard

Progress in this field relies on developing a machine that can respond empathetically, not just correctly.

When , they chose to train it on facial expressions as well as text, giving it the ability to recognise emotional states and respond in ways that were more empathetic. When tested against responses from a leading commercial language model, Emma's replies were judged to be more humanlike and appropriate.

As AI becomes increasingly conversational and robots a more familiar presence in our lives, how well these kinds of interactions work for us matters in two ways: for the quality of the experience itself and for whether we can rely on these systems. Trust will be built through transparency, honesty and by machines that understand us well enough to know what we need.

In 1951, the human had to adapt to the machine but in 2026, we are building machines that might, at last, begin to adapt to us.

Words: Ben Harwood and Enna Bartlett

Meet the researcher

Let铆cia Berto is a Research Associate in the Cognitive Robotics Lab at The University of 野狼社区. Her work is inspired by how children learn and develop, and focuses on building robots that can think, learn, and adapt on their own. She aims to design autonomous intelligent systems that are curious, capable of making decisions, understanding others, and acting in trustworthy and ethical ways 鈥� ultimately enabling meaningful and effective collaboration between humans and robots in the real world.

If you would like to find out more about the research referenced in this article, you can find the full papers at the links below:

1. The Effect of Voice and Repair Strategy on Trust Formation and Repair in Human-Robot Interaction - DOI:

2. Computational Trust in Robotics: Preliminary Investigations and Evidence -

3. A Theory of Mind Motivational Framework for Social Interaction with Autonomous Cognitive Robots - DOI:

4. Multimodal Dialogue for Empathetic Human-Robot Interaction - DOI:

听Justice, Arts, Memory, Migration听(JAMM): Creating Solidarities across Borders听will bring together听academics,听artists听and听cultural practitioners听to share experience and best practice across universities, cultural听institutions听and听community organisations.听

Dr Warren is a member of JAMM's management committee and is working group co-leader of the 'Urban Space, Creative Sectors & Social Cohesion working group. She is involved alongside听other 野狼社区 participants:听postgraduate听researchers听Clare Courtney听and听Haoyue Gul听(University of 野狼社区)听and听Mahboobeh Rajabi,听Founder听and听CEO听of 听an innovative, artist-led platform and cultural caf茅.听

Dr Warren commented:

JAMM brings together 70 researchers from 27 countries and has been awarded 鈧�170,000 in the first year with an estimated 鈧�680,000 over four years (depending on the number of participating COST member countries). It was one of only 80 projects out of 1,090 applications selected for funding by COST.

Applications to join JAMM Working Groups are now open and academics, students and cultural practitioners are being encouraged to take part: