Reasons to write

Once upon a time, writing was reserved for certain professions, such as lawyers and clerics. I often start anything I write with ‘Once upon a time’, fully intending to delete it eventually. This may seem odd, as research in science is all about looking forward, exploring what we don’t yet fully understand, but research often has both a history and a direction;  it can be helpful to appreciate how our understanding has evolved over time.… Read the rest

Ageing with grace: The longest living animals

There is something oddly captivating about superlatives. What is the biggest? The fastest? The cleverest? This article covers one in particular, the oldest.

As a benchmark, human life expectancy is on average 72 years as of 2016 (WHO).Read the rest