Tech and Science Daily | The Standard

Ever heard of “vibe coding”? It's been named Word of the Year by Collins Dictionary, but what does it mean? You can thank OpenAI's co-founder Andrej Karpathy, who came up with the phrase. The World Weather Attribution has released new data revealing that climate change significantly amplified Hurricane Melissa’s destructive winds and rainfall. We speak to the rapid study's co-author, climate scien...

Marks & Spencer’s revealed the impact of a massive cyber attack earlier this year. The retailer says profits were hit hard when hackers took them offline at Easter, knocking out online sales and leaving shelves bare for weeks. Elsewhere, scientists in London are looking at whether wireless power could be used to keep lunar rovers running in space. The collaboration between Imperial College Lon...

OpenAI has signed a $38 billion (£29 billion) deal with Amazon. The seven-year partnership gives OpenAI access to Amazon Web Services. It’s the latest in a string of partnerships necessary to ensure what OpenAI CEO Sam Altman describes as the ‘massive, reliable compute’ needed to scale up AI. Elsewhere, UK scientists have developed a gel that encourages teeth to regrow their own enamel - something...

Water companies are being urged to clean up potentially harmful ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water. High levels of per and polyfluoroalkyl substances have been discovered in UK water sources and while industry body Water UK says it’s still safe to drink - they are calling for a ban on the chemicals to avoid future problems. Also in this episode, The Bionic Awards are coming to London. Entries a...

Behavioural scientist Coltan Scrivner, from the Recreational Fear Lab, explains the science behind our fascination with fear. In this episode: What is morbid curiosity? How our bodies react to horror Why are we drawn to shows like Terrifier 2 and Netflix’s Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Do we lack empathy if we like scary films? Recurring themes in horror movies and why they’re used The morbid...

U.S. President Donald Trump has directed the Pentagon to restart nuclear weapons testing for the first time since 1992, citing the need to stay on an “equal basis” with Russia and China. Virgin is to take on the Channel Tunnel , challenging thirty years of Eurostar dominance. Ahead of the release of  Small Achievable Goals  on ITVX on November 1st, we join Canadian actress and write...

Nvidia is poised to reach a $5 trillion dollar market value after its shares jumped 5% following a string of announcements at its annual GPU Technology Conference. Hurricane Melissa has hit Cuba after ferocious winds caused power outages and catastrophic damage across Jamaica. And why looking at art in galleries can provide immediate stress relief, with Dr Tony Woods from King's College London. Al...

All main global operations are understood to be impacted, with the UK among those to see office roles axed . Storm hunters fly into Hurricane Melissa as Jamaica braces for 'storm of the century' . To hear our chat with Deputy Chief Meteorologist Dan Rudman, click here. From December, Meta, TikTok, and Snapchat will start blocking users under the age of 16 in Australia. And, why the British Library...

Hurricane Melissa is now Category 5, meaning it is the strongest storm to hit Jamaica since 1988. As of 5 a.m. EDT on Monday, maximum sustained winds of 160 mph were recorded. How destructive is Storm Melissa going to be? How much rainfall is expected to hit Jamaica, and has climate change played a role in its intensity? We speak to Deputy Chief Meteorologist Dan Rudman, from the Met Office. Also...

From 2am on October 26th, the clock change will mark the end of British Summer Time (BST) and the start of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). But when did the tradition begin? To find out more, we speak to the Curator of Time at Royal Museums Greenwich, Dr Emily Akkermans. Sir Keir Starmer has said digital IDs will “cut the faff” , in a bid to reverse scepticism for the scheme. To learn more about the gov...

We're joined by Swizz Beatz, a GRAMMY-winning producer who’s worked with Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, and Busta Rhymes. He’s also the co-founder of The Dean Collection, established with his wife, Alicia Keys. Swizz has announced a new global partnership with Qatar Airways - launching the  Creative 100 , a platform celebrating and connecting the world’s most visionary creatives. He also tells us...

OpenAI has unveiled its new AI-powered web browser, ChatGPT Atlas, now available for Mac users and coming soon to Windows, iOS and Android. The browser lets you chat with ChatGPT while you surf the web, summarise pages, and even perform actions like booking flights — all designed to make browsing more interactive and personalised. Eurostar unveils its first-ever  double-decker electric trains...

Experts are warning that women are being exploited by a growing ‘menopause gold rush’ as companies and influencers rush to give profit-driven advice. It’s led to a call for a national education programme to ensure women get clear, evidence-based support and advice. Meanwhile, UK scientists are hoping to join NASA in working on the Habitable Worlds Observatory - a new telescope designed to search f...

A huge internet outage caused widespread global disruption on Monday, with a number of major websites and apps experiencing significant service issues. The issue was linked to a problem on cloud computing provider, Amazon Web Services (AWS).  Major organisations such as HMRC, Lloyds Bank, Ring Doorbell, Snapchat, Slack, and Fortnite were among those affected, with outage monitoring website Do...

Enshittification:  Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What To Do About It  by digital activist Cory Doctorow is now out in hardback. In his new book, Cory explains why the internet is getting worse - and  who  is behind it. The Standard’s Will Rogers-Coltman sat down with Cory to dig a bit deeper. Will joins us on the podcast to tell us what Enshittification is, and why Cory...

Thousands of people have alleged that they, or a family member, developed forms of ovarian cancer after using Johnson’s Baby Powder — and are now seeking damages at the High Court in London. The pharmaceutical giant has been accused of knowingly selling talcum powder in the UK that was contaminated with asbestos. To find out more about the case and what comes next, we spoke to  The Standard ’...

Scientists have found a way to “see” anxiety in the brain. This is the first study of its kind looking at the intense "avoid-avoid conflict" anxiety. Participants took part in a video game-style task, which was designed by PhD student Ben Stocker - who joins us to discuss the findings in more detail. Meta has introduced a PG-13 cinema-style rating for teenagers using Instagram. And an image of a r...

Apple has announced a major expansion of its renewables investment in Europe. It's part of the company's ongoing effort to cut the carbon footprint caused by customers powering and charging Apple devices. By 2030, Apple aims to become carbon neutral across its entire supply chain. According to researchers from University College London, quitting smoking in middle age or later is linked to slower a...

Is God real? Since the Big Bang Theory was proposed, it has been a point of contention between science and religion. To tie in with the release of the English edition of God: The Science, The Evidence, The Standard's features writer Claudia Cockerell spoke to one of its authors, French engineer Michel-Yves Bolloré. Their book claims that there is evidence of the existence of God. Claudia walks us...

Around 70,000 users of Discord globally could have had sensitive data stolen by hackers. The platform says criminals targeted a third-party service called 5CA, hired for age verification appeals. Data stolen includes official ID photographs, and potentially personal information such as partial credit card numbers and messages. A new tool is being developed by MI:RNA to help diagnose osteoarthritis...

On this replay preview of Brave New World, Evgeny Lebedev is in conversation with the Oscar-winning actor, Dame Helen Mirren. Now, this is a bit of a break from the usual guests on Tech & Science Daily, but in this wide ranging conversation Evgeny and Dame Helen discuss everything from the evolution of technology, ageing, to the contemporary media landscape and social media. “It’s so sad that...

Two teenagers have been arrested after a ransomware attack stole data from a nursery chain in London. The Met Police say the pair, aged 17, have been arrested on suspicion of computer misuse and blackmail. Cyberhackers were said to be using the pictures and names of about 8,000 children, to demand ransom money. Women who have a caesarean birth at an advanced stage of labour are about eight times m...

The world may be at a crucial turning point in the transition to clean power. A new analysis by energy think tank Ember shows renewable energy generation has overtaken coal globally for the first time on record. We’re joined by Robert Palmer, deputy director at Uplift, to unpack what this milestone means for the future of energy — from falling costs and growing solar capacity to the political will...

Former England captain and 2003 World Cup winner Lewis Moody has revealed that he’s been diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND). What is motor neurone disease , what are the symptoms, how is it diagnosed, and can sport cause the condition? We join UCL’s professor of clinical neurology, Andrea Malaspina. Professor Malaspina is also clinical and academic lead of the Queen Square Motor Neuron Dis...

The device called Tissue Metrics could transform the way eczema is diagnosed and treated. In the UK, there are 1.5 million adults who suffer from the condition. Their tech aims to provide objective data for faster and more accurate eczema diagnosis and treatment - even within a week. To find how the technology works and why this will “end misery for millions”, we speak to lead researcher, Professo...