COVID-19 death toll far higher than official numbers, says WHO "The World Health Organisation estimates that the COVID-19 pandemic caused 22.1 million excess deaths globally between 2020 and 2023. The figure is more than 3 times higher than the officially reported 7 million COVID deaths worldwide"

"Scientists develop a dual action strategy to destabilize the COVID virus." Researchers developed two antiviral approaches: peptides that block viral replication and immune evasion, and a compound that introduces replication errors. Both reduce the virus’s ability to infect cells.

I'm a big fan of adaptive game tutorials that wait to see if the player can work something out for themselves before stepping in.

A small number of people in Scotland may have been exposed to hantavirus, according to Public Health Scotland (PHS)

I didn't hear this on radio, nor saw it on TV yesterday. Are we only to have 24/7 coverage on Keir Starmer in the UK now? @mrjamesob.bsky.social @lbc.co.uk www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Dutch Health Council urges government action on long Covid. The Dutch Health Council says around 400,000 people in the Netherlands may be living with long Covid, many with severe symptoms. There’s still ongoing debate over whether long Covid treatment should be fully included in regular healthcare.

Scotland showing real leadership in sustainable healthcare www.edie.net/scottish-med...

80% of holidaymakers visit only 10% of global destinations. Parliament is pushing for a more balanced tourism strategy to relieve pressure on overcrowded destinations. Learn more: link.europa.eu/pVC7nK

Oh good. The place I swim every week explicitly named on this list of places not to swim. “Too much bacteria linked to faeces find at almost all river bathing sites”.

I had a long chat to a pharmacist yesterday who was complaining that the private vaccines were so expensive for COVID and a lot of people can’t afford them. He was also surprised when I told him everyone in France is offered for free because of long covid risk. France will come out healthier than

And this is the problem. Everyone is at risk. Risks last years after a single infection, even when you have no symptoms.

"Hantavirus is a pathogen with documented person-to-person transmission and high case fatality. Therefore, the starting point should not be to downplay the risk of airborne transmission until it is definitively proven" The @who.int response is disappointing. Again.

wow — the preprint host, arxiv, is banning authors for a year if they submit papers with hallucinated citations 🤖

The Celtic nations have embraced civic nationalism: if you live here, you can consider yourself to come from here. England still has not come to terms with itself, or how it sees itself.

BREAKING: Keir Starmer has appointed James Murray as the new Health Secretary

The final game in the hugely popular Talos Principle series was just announced!!

Could academic freedom be Europe’s secret weapon against the US and China? 🧬🇪🇺 sciencebusiness.net/news/interna...

We are working with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), and colleagues across the UK, to respond to the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak and take appropriate action. Read our update here: https://publichealthscotland.scot/news/2026/may/hantavirus-cruise-ship-outbreak/

The hantavirus outbreak isn't just about hantavirus. It's public health and IPC showing us that they have learned nothing from their mismanagement of COVID. Regardless of where hantavirus falls on the spectrum from "pandemic" to "dry run for the next pandemic", that is unacceptably sloppy.

CDC not requiring hantavirus cruise passengers to isolate at home thehill.com/homenews/587...

My daughter went to the gp today. And got the most famous question of this Covid time from a nurse. 💬 Why are you wearing a mask? Do you have a cold ' 🤔 So what! You clearly do not care about getting a cold, Covid or another virus. Why are you not wearing a mask yourself, as a medical professional?

📣 ATTENTION! 📣 The Leader is looking for press and creators to spread his broadcast. If you work in media or create content and are interested in covering Phonopolis, please use the form below to request a Steam key.

canadahealthwatch.ca/2026/05/13/c... @flannerydean.bsky.social - All of this still holds true one full year later.

New fund for UK game developers launched today and I'm super proud to say I worked on it! Please go and apply if you have a suitable game as its been a labour of love! New fund of up to 50k per game for localisation, marketing, PR, Influencers, etc  www.bfi.org.uk/get-funding-...

For comparison: Annual global excess deaths due to influenza estimated at roughly 0.5 million

COVID-19 didn't end for Thousands. The Inquiry heard from adults and representatives of children about living with long COVID – including Long Covid Scotland, about and the challenges faced by a lack of understanding. Read the full Narrative Record: www.covid19inquiry.scot/report/narra...

Interesting but asymptomatic shouldn’t be thought of as necessarily benign and carries a cumulative risk of long Covid. We need a vaccine that stops all infections. Time to move away from thinking about the acute onto Post infection risks from ANY infection! www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/05...

The charade of forcing elected representatives to swear and oath they don't believe in to a King who does not deserve it needs to end

"The results... do not mean that 6-8 hours is the optimum amount of sleep for every person, nor do they prove that achieving that ‘Goldilocks’ range of sleep each day directly improves health or slows ageing." @heidiledford.bsky.social on sleep study & impt caveats www.nature.com/articles/d41...

🚆 One journey. One ticket. Full rights. Travelling by train across Europe can still be complicated, especially across borders and multiple providers. We want to change that. Our new package will make it easier ⬇️

71% of employees in the UK’s 4-day week trials reported lower burnout. This Mental Health Awareness Week, let's move beyond "self-care" to "systemic-care." It’s time for action. It’s time for a 4-day week. ⏰

Cette déclaration de Stephanie Rist encourage directement le stigma dejà réel des personnes (souvent) malades chroniques et handicapées qui portent le masque FFP2 sur une base régulière. Il faut au contraire normaliser les comportements de prévention, non les dramatiser… 🤷🏻‍♀️🫩

Again looking at those in charge of Covid guidance. www.cnn.com/2026/05/12/h...

on pourrait réduire les dépenses de santé si le port du masque était systématique au moins dans les transports et les lieux de soin, mais non, on incite les gens à ne PAS se protéger. Le principe de précaution, la prévention et la réduction des risques sont des concepts définitivement enterrés.

Pourquoi, mais pourquoi décourager le port du masque ? Quel est l'intérêt d'une telle déclaration ? De dizaines de virus circulent, le covid circule toute l'année, provoque encore des covid longs (impliquant des arrêts maladie, sans qu'on n'associe jamais les deux...), ⤵️

Why do guinea pigs have so many natural bypass arteries — and mice and humans almost none? We develop in vivo Perturb-seq for endothelial cells to ask how protective collateral arteries are built. Preprint with by Irene Fan, Ronghao Zhou, and Kristy Red-Horse: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Today's recommended read on Hantavirus "The implicit tone of the coverage is that the only reason that you, the audience, should care about a disease outbreak is whether it is coming for you personally" tinyurl.com/54wxn2jd

Outstanding day at the British Pig and Poultry Fair 2026 with Ilimex, discussing spillover risks and long-range transmission of H5N1.

Welp. 🍺 🦠 #Hantavirus www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-n...

A country almost a tenth the size of Scotland joining the EU? Surely it's too wee?

Signing off on Keir Starmer's flagship Brexit to reset would be 'tricky' during leadership chaos, insiders say 🔴 Arj Singh reports Read more: trib.al/T9gU3HJ

It seems counterintuitive, but more intense, irregular rainstorms --driven by climate change -- are actually causing the planet's land to dry out. @eroston.bsky.social explains important new research (🎁) www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Satire Creators Urge CDC and WHO To Slow Down With All The Source Material Please

What’s next? I mean, we’ve joked before about letting Ebola loose… but is that where we are at? Voluntary home quarantine for Marburg? Nipah?

A 72 hour quarantine for a virus with a 42 day incubation period?! For a virus with a case fatality rate of 32%?!

Doctor's offices should be one of the highest priority targets for improved regulation regarding indoor air quality / ventilation - the purpose of a visit there is to get better, not to get infected. Sadly it's also a setting where people often get unrightfully psychologized for wearing a mask.

Families are struggling, workers are exploited, and our climate is in crisis. All this pomp and grandeur for an unelected billionaire won't help the people of Scotland. It's time to #AbolishTheMonarchy

Ukrainian troops routed Swedish forces during NATO drills simulating a Russian attack on Gotland, AP reported. Sweden paused the exercise 3 times to rethink tactics, while commanders said NATO must rapidly learn how to use and counter drones from Ukraine. #Ukraine

Satellite measurements show that in the early 2010s sea level rise suddenly accelerated to a rate of 4.1 millimetres per year, possibly in response to an increase in the rate of global warming