Unwanted weight gain or weight loss during the pandemic? Blame your stress hormones

It's been a stressful year, and for 61% of US adults, a year of unwanted weight change too. This isn't surprising, as stress, eating and motivation are all linked through hormones in the brain.

Lina Begdache, Assistant Professor of Nutrition, Binghamton University, State University of New York • conversation
April 2, 2021 • ~6 min

How the UK's first lockdown changed water habits – and risked shortages

With fewer people commuting, home water use changed radically overnight in March 2020.

Ruby Smith, Research Assistant in Geography, University of Manchester • conversation
March 22, 2021 • ~7 min

How the UK's first lockdown changed our water habits – and risked shortages

With fewer people commuting, home water use changed radically overnight in March 2020.

Ruby Smith, Research Assistant in Geography, University of Manchester • conversation
March 22, 2021 • ~7 min

How watching TV in lockdown can be good for you – according to science

TV programmes with certain themes can help boost our mood.

Kirsty Gardiner, Lecturer in Positive Psychology, University of East London • conversation
March 1, 2021 • ~7 min

We're sleeping more in lockdown, but the quality is worse

A year into the pandemic, sleep scientists are beginning to understand how our sleep has changed.

Rebecca Crowley, Phd Candidate, Psychology, Royal Holloway • conversation
March 1, 2021 • ~6 min

First lockdown's effect on air pollution was overstated, our study reveals

Exaggerating how much lockdown improved air quality could allow us to underestimate the scale of the air pollution problem.

William Bloss, Professor of Atmospheric Science, University of Birmingham • conversation
Jan. 13, 2021 • ~7 min

Why living in the future, rather than the past, is key to coping with lockdowns – new research

Being nostalgic about the past can lead to a sense of loss in tough times.

Amelia Dennis, PhD Researcher in Psychology, University of Surrey • conversation
Dec. 11, 2020 • ~6 min

Coronavirus dreams: how anger, sadness and fear crept in during lockdown – new research

The level of anger and sadness in our dreams may be related to how much we suffer mentally with social isolation.

Mark Blagrove, Professor of Psychology, Swansea University • conversation
Nov. 30, 2020 • ~7 min

Four energy-saving lessons from the first lockdown which may help us through the winter

Spreading electricity demand throughout the day is much better for the environment.

Philipp Grünewald, EPSRC Fellow, Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford • conversation
Nov. 5, 2020 • ~6 min

Why lockdown had little to no effect on global temperatures

Some atmospheric pollutants actually help cool the planet, but the sudden shutdown of heavy industry threatened to purge them.

James Weber, PhD Candidate in Atmospheric Chemistry, Pembroke College, University of Cambridge • conversation
Oct. 22, 2020 • ~7 min

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