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How do microplastics make their way into our food?
Nature & Environment

How do microplastics make their way into our food?

...Open University's Environment qualifications. Microplastics are small - less than 5 millimetres in size - plastic particles that come from various sources. They can either be intentionally manufactured, known as primary microplastics, or the result of the degradation of larger plastic items, called secondary microplastics. Primary microplastics include microbeads in...
Charles Dickens and the dinosaurs
History & The Arts

Charles Dickens and the dinosaurs

...opening of Bleak House (1852-53), Dickens packed the term ‘Megalosaurus’ within a metaphor of how unpleasant weather made the streets of London more suitable for prehistoric beasts than Victorians. Similarly, in a travelogue from All the Year Round, Dickens wondered how subsequent generations might trace child poverty and neglect in the fossils of Victorian London....
Sherry is not just for Christmas
Science, Maths & Technology

Sherry is not just for Christmas

...open to make the most of the delicate flavours the fermentation and maturation process has created. So sherry is special, it is like no other wine and has its own flavours created by the quite unique process of wine making developed in the region. Many Spanish would argue that if you buy real sherry from Jerez, made through this process, there is no such thing as a bad...
Economic incentives for countries to decarbonise
Money & Business

Economic incentives for countries to decarbonise

...Open University academics, suggests that this climate policy ‘game’ is beginning to look outdated. OK, so what’s changed? We identified three factors: Our understanding of the economic impacts of climate policy is developing. The traditional modelling approach, still widely used, assumes an ‘optimised equilibrium’. Think of perfect markets, where supply always...
What happens to our brain as we age and how can we stop the decline?
Health, Sports & Psychology

What happens to our brain as we age and how can we stop the decline?

...Open University while walking outdoors (more can be also found here, improving sleep and decreasing use of alcohol, and quitting smoking. This in turn decreases the vascular risk factors that make developing a vascular dementia (caused by reduced blood flow to the brain) more likely. Research shows that some parts of the brain are larger in people who exercise more than...
The planet as the stakeholder
Money & Business

The planet as the stakeholder

...Open University tutor and business consultant, I’ve conducted many stakeholder analyses, often classified by the following dimensions: Power – those able to marshal the means to impose their will. Legitimacy – those who have little input in the decision-making but whose concerns are viable. Urgency – those who can create a call for action. In practice, businesses...
Volunteers in Green Social prescribing: contributions and inclusion
Nature & Environment

Volunteers in Green Social prescribing: contributions and inclusion

...open water swimming or arts and cultural activities which take place outdoors. Many green social prescribing activities are led and supported by volunteers. What is volunteering and why volunteer? Volunteering is considered an act of social service whereby individuals or organisations provide services and support without expectation of compensation. The value of...
What will Donald Trump do for the environment?
Nature & Environment

What will Donald Trump do for the environment?

...opening to strengthen environmental safeguards. Global commerce facilitated by international trade poses many threats to biodiversity. So trade protectionism could be used to support environmental protection. For example, nations could take action against importing products that threaten key ecosystems or species. At present, such restrictions are determined by consumers...