Every medical student learns anatomy from historical illustrations, but few ask who those dissected bodies belonged to. Most were prisoners, the poor, or pregnant women who never consented to being cut open, let alone immortalised in textbooks.
From Leonardo da Vinci’s secret hospital deals to Nazi-era anatomical “atlases” still used by some surgeons today, the foundation of medical education is built on exploitation. Anatomist Lucy Hyde calls for “clear provenance research” and labelling of these historical illustrations. And that’s just for starters.
We also look at how Russia targets UK military satellites on a weekly basis with shadowing and jamming. And a new investigation reveals how Britain’s housing crisis is forcing desperate renters into sex-for-rent arrangements – and men are being exploited too.
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Clint Witchalls
Senior Health Editor
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Vector Hut/Shutterstock.com
Lucy E. Hyde, University of Bristol
Historical anatomy textbooks are built on the bodies of prisoners, the poor and the powerless – and we’re still using them today.
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The UK operates the Skynet series of military communications satellites.
Defence Images
Jessie Hamill-Stewart, University of Bath
Satellites can carry out jamming and intelligence gathering from other spacecraft.
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WPixz/Shutterstock
Chris Waugh, Manchester Metropolitan University
Young women are heavily targeted by sex-for-rent arrangements, and so are economically marginalised men.
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World
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Clodagh Harrington, University College Cork
Donald Trump increased his backing from women voters in his second presidential run.
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Maria Småberg, Lund University; Johan Schaar, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Many Skultuna cookpots survive in the kitchens of Palestinians, keeping alive the memory of Swedish friendship at a time of dire need.
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Politics + Society
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Peter John McLoughlin, Queen's University Belfast
Heather Humphreys is a republican but has family ties to the Orange Order.
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Arts + Culture
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Jen Harvie, Queen Mary University of London
In later life, Keaton found and created roles that continued to challenge expectations about how women can behave,
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Samuel Shaw, The Open University
Treasures inside the National Trust’s cultural collections can also draw attention to what is going on outside these estates.
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Mari Ellis Dunning, Aberystwyth University
Women in early modern Wales typically dressed in long skirts, large woollen shawls, and tall, black hats. Could they have inspired stereotypes of the witch?
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Beth Johnson, University of Leeds
By placing menopause at the centre of a punk-inflected drama, Wainwright opens a new televisual space for midlife women.
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Business + Economy
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Stuart Mills, University of Leeds
An £8 billion spending spree would show up in the UK’s economic data.
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Environment
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Esther Kettel, Nottingham Trent University
Why the loss of this species shines light on the global extinction crisis.
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Diogo Veríssimo, University of Oxford; Amy Hinsley, University of Oxford; Luis Baquero, Universidad de las Américas (Ecuador)
How the threatened monkey-face orchids could become icons for plant conservation.
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Kristian Kongshøj, Aalborg University; Troels Fage Hedegaard, Aalborg University
As wolves reappear, Danes are divided – a new poll shows just how much.
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Arrigo Moro, University of Galway
The wild cousins of beehive honeybees are disappearing – here’s why that matters.
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Health
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Dan Baumgardt, University of Bristol
If you’ve had chickenpox, the virus never fully leaves your body. Years later, it can reappear as shingles. Here’s what causes it — and what doesn’t.
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Rosie Young, Quadram Institute
Previously inactive people who started lifting weights showed significant changes in their gut bacteria within eight weeks.
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Science + Technology
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Phil Wilkinson, Bournemouth University
The media have been freaking out about children’s use of technology since at least the days of radio, and it doesn’t make parenting decisions any easier.
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10 September - 29 October 2025
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Southampton
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30 September - 22 October 2025
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Wivenhoe Park, Colchester
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