Many clinical trials to test the use of psychedelic medicines for conditions such as depression have been underway since 2022 – with surprising results
In July 2024, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake hit near the city of Calama in northern Chile. The shaking damaged buildings and disrupted electrical power across the region.
Chile is no stranger to major earthquakes. The country experienced the strongest earthquake ever recorded in 1960, when a magnitude 9.5 megathrust event struck central Chile, triggering a massive tsunami and killing between 1,000 and 6,000 people. While devastating earthquakes are often linked to these massive megathrust events, the Calama earthquake stood apart from that familiar pattern.
Why This Earthquake Was Different
Megathrust earthquakes typically occur relatively close to the Earth’s surface, where tectonic plates collide. In contrast, the Calama earthquake originated far deeper underground. It ruptured at a depth of about 125 kilometers beneath the surface, inside the subducting tectonic plate itself.
Earthquakes that occur at these depths usually produce weaker shaking at the surface. However, the Calama event broke that expectation. Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin discovered that a rare sequence of underground processes significantly boosted the earthquake’s strength. Their findings were recently published in Nature Communications.
Beyond explaining why this earthquake was unusually intense, the study may also improve how scientists assess earthquake hazards in the future.
“These Chilean events are causing more shaking than is normally expected from intermediate-depth earthquakes, and can be quite destructive,” said the study’s lead author Zhe Jia, a research assistant professor at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. “Our goal is to learn more about how these earthquakes occur, so our research could support emergency response and long-term planning.”
How Scientists Thought Deep Earthquakes Worked
Earthquakes at intermediate depths, including the Calama event, were long believed to be triggered mainly by a process known as “dehydration embrittlement.” This occurs as an oceanic tectonic plate sinks deeper into the Earth’s interior. As temperatures and pressures rise, water trapped in minerals is released.
When the rock loses this water, it becomes weaker and more brittle. Cracks can form, allowing the rock to suddenly rupture and generate an earthquake within the slab.
Scientists have generally believed that this dehydration process stops once temperatures exceed about 650 degrees Celsius.
A Rare Heat Driven Process Takes Over
The Calama earthquake challenged that assumption. According to the research team, the rupture continued well beyond the expected temperature limit. It traveled roughly 50 kilometers deeper into much hotter rock due to a second process known as “thermal runway.”
During this process, intense friction from the initial rupture generates extreme heat at the front of the fault. That heat weakens the surrounding material, allowing the rupture to keep moving forward and grow stronger as it spreads.
“It’s the first time we saw an intermediate-depth earthquake break assumptions, rupturing from a cold zone into a really hot one, and traveling at much faster speeds,” said Jia, who is part of the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics (UTIG), a research unit of the Jackson School. “That indicates the mechanism changed from dehydration embrittlement to thermal runaway.”
Tracking the Rupture Deep Underground
To understand how the earthquake unfolded and how far the rupture traveled, the University of Texas team worked with scientists in Chile and across the United States. They combined several lines of evidence to build a detailed picture of the event.
The researchers examined seismic records from Chile to track how fast and how far the rupture spread. They also used data from the Global Navigation Satellite System to measure ground movement and fault slip. Computer models helped estimate the temperatures and rock properties at the depths where the earthquake occurred.
Improving Earthquake Risk Forecasts
“The fact that another large earthquake is overdue in Chile has motivated earthquake research and the deployment of multiple seismometers and geodetic stations to monitor earthquakes and how the crust is deforming in the region,” said Thorsten Becker, a co-author of the study and a professor at the Jackson School’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and a senior research scientist at UTIG.
Becker and Jia emphasized that understanding how earthquakes behave at different depths could improve predictions of future seismic events. Better models could help estimate how strong shaking might be, while also guiding infrastructure design, early warning systems, and rapid emergency response planning.
Research Support and Funding
The research was supported by the National Science Foundation, Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo (ANID), Chile, UC Open Seed Fund, Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, and the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics.
Physical activity continues to affect the body even after the movement itself has ended.
A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reports that being physically active increases the total amount of energy a person uses each day. The research, led by scientists at Virginia Tech working with colleagues from the University of Aberdeen and Shenzhen University, found that this increase happens without the body cutting back energy use in other areas.
The finding matters because while the health benefits of exercise are well established, scientists know less about how physical activity influences a person’s overall “energy budget,” which refers to how energy is divided among the body’s many functions.
How the Body Manages Energy
For years, researchers have debated whether the body treats energy like a fixed paycheck or a flexible bonus system. One idea suggests that when people move more, the body shifts energy away from other tasks to pay for that activity. The other model proposes that energy use can expand, allowing total daily expenditure to rise as activity increases. The researchers set out to learn which of these ideas best reflects what actually happens across different activity levels.
To answer that question, the team measured total energy expenditure, meaning the total number of calories burned in a day, among people with widely varying levels of physical activity.
“Our study found that more physical activity is associated with higher calorie burn, regardless of body composition, and that this increase is not balanced out by the body reducing energy spent elsewhere,” said Kevin Davy, professor in the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise and the principal investigator of the study.
Measuring Calories Burned in Real Life
Participants drank special forms of oxygen and hydrogen and provided urine samples over a two-week period. Oxygen leaves the body as both water and carbon dioxide, while hydrogen exits only as water. By comparing how much of each isotope was lost, researchers could estimate how much carbon dioxide participants produced and, in turn, how much energy they used. Physical activity was tracked using a small waist-worn sensor that recorded movement in multiple directions.
The study included 75 participants between the ages of 19 and 63. Activity levels ranged from largely inactive lifestyles to ultra-endurance running.
No Evidence the Body Cancels Out Exercise
The results showed that as people moved more, their total energy use increased accordingly. The body did not appear to compensate by dialing down energy use elsewhere. Essential functions such as breathing, blood circulation, and temperature regulation continued to require the same amount of energy, even as physical activity rose.
This means the body does not clearly offset or “cancel out” the extra calories burned through movement.
“Energy balance was a key piece of the study,” said Kristen Howard, senior research associate at Virginia Tech and the article’s lead author. “We looked at folks who were adequately fueled. It could be that apparent compensation under extreme conditions may reflect under-fueling.”
Less Sitting, More Moving
The researchers also observed a strong connection between higher activity levels and reduced time spent sitting. Simply put, people who move more tend to spend less time being inactive overall.
Taken together, the findings suggest that the long-debated idea that increased movement leads to increased calorie burn may be more accurate than some experts have assumed. While the results support the additive energy model, the researchers note that more work is needed. “We need more research to understand in who and under what conditions energy compensation might occur,” said Davy.
I’ve always found “Auld Lang Syne” exceedingly depressing. It’s not meant to be cheery, it’s meant to be contemplative. A musical cue to encourage New Year’s Eve revellers to reflect on the year that’s coming to close before celebrating what’s to come ahead.
But I listen to it and just get sad, not reflective. (Same obviously goes for “Same Old Lang Syne,” Dan Fogelberg’s ballad about meeting his old lover in the grocery store in the frozen food section around the holidays, but that one’s meant to be a moper.)
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As an adult, I realised that I found the whole new year – New Year’s Eve, that first week or so of January – a bummer. Maybe it’s feeling like I didn’t get enough done in the last year, or the outsized pressure to set new goals. (And it’s definitely sometimes that gnarly post-New Year’s Eve party hangover.)
Turns out, I’m not alone in not loving New Year’s.
“Lots of my clients express a feeling of low mood, motivation and sadness approaching the new year,” said Akua K. Boateng, a psychotherapist in Philadelphia. “I’d say about a quarter of my caseload feels it, so it’s prevalent.”
We frame the new year as a “fresh start,” but that can feel overwhelming, said Priya Tahim, a psychotherapist in Washington, D.C.
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“People are encouraged to evaluate their lives, compare progress, and set big goals, often without acknowledging how exhausting the year may have been,” she explained. “That combination can naturally trigger sadness or self-doubt.”
What else is at play if you’ve got a case of New Year’s angst like me? Below, therapists like Tahim and Boateng unpack a few factors.
As another year comes to a close, we naturally turn inward and begin to take stock of our lives ― and we’re not always kind in our self-assessments.
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“We live in a culture of vision boards, grind and constant comparison. It’s easy to feel like you are surrounded by reminders of what has not happened yet ― goals still out of reach, plans that changed and expectations that went unmet,” Boateng said.
“For high achievers, this time of year can become a tender trigger, inviting waves of self-doubt and harsh self-evaluation,” she added.
Perfectionism often shows up as anxious dread about the future and the pressure to have a clear direction, Boateng explained, especially when life feels uncertain or off-course.
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“In those moments, it is common to quietly think, ‘I thought I’d be further along by now,’ and to wonder what to do next,” she said.
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For people with ageing parents, grandparents or other loved ones, the start of a new year can prompt reflection on how little time they may have left with them, said Rebecca Leslie, a psychologist and owner of Best Within You Therapy & Wellness practice in Atlanta, Georgia.
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“This awareness can also bring up sadness, grief or even guilt about how the past year was spent,” she said. “It can also result in people thinking about whether enough time or presence was given to important relationships.”
Every year, my mom gets upset when the Christmas tree has to come down, and the local oldies station stops playing the Christmas music they’ve had programmed since Nov. 1.
That’s a common feeling, Leslie said.
“People may have taken time off work. The streets are filled with lights, and stores play cheerful songs,” she said. “With New Year’s comes the end of this season. It is back to reality. It is back to the typical routine. This shift can be similar to how some people start to feel sad on the last day of vacation. Even though they are still on vacation, they know the end is near.”
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Emotional and physical burnout from the holidays is common come early January, too.
“Expecting big energy, optimism or transformation while still burned out can feel overwhelming rather than inspiring,” Tahim said.
We tend to associate New Year’s Eve with parties, closeness and celebration. But when there are no clear pathways to any of that – no invitations, no traditions, no “people” to be with – the night can quietly amplify feelings of disconnection or simply not being in the mood to celebrate at all, Boateng said.
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“For many, social isolation is not just an occasional experience but an ongoing reality,” she said. “The ache of feeling alone, hungry for connection or longing for romance can feel especially hard when social media timelines are full of highlight reels that appear to show the abundance of joy, friendship and intimacy.”
January is in the dead of winter – it’s cold, dark and gloomy – and that can easily affect your mood.
“Seasonal influences, like seasonal affective disorder, weaken our ability to bounce back from NYE emotional triggers and inner negative dialogue because we may not be going out as much,” Boateng said. “The winter blues are real and create a perfect environmental scenario for New Year’s blues.”
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Remember: January isn’t a diagnostic tool or a moral scorecard. We may trump it, but at the end of the day (or year, as it were), it’s just a month. If New Year’s feels activating, try to get back in your body, Tahim said. Pause the self-judgment and focus on regulation first: sleep, routines and emotional containment.
“Sustainable change comes from realistic, values-based goals, not shame-driven overhauls,” she said. “You don’t need a reinvention; you need nervous-system support and consistency.”
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As she put it, we need to regulate before we reinvent.
“Limit comparison, practice self-compassion, and remember: Sustainable change happens with consistency and nervous-system safety, not January pressure,” she said.
It’s worth recognizing that these are hard, challenging times outside of whatever’s going on personally for you.
“During these moments, remind yourself that you are doing your best in an unpredictable and changing world,” Boateng said. “You may not be where you wanted, yet, as you would a dear friend, be gentle, be kind and speak with love.”
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A new year. A new school year. A new week. Mental health experts say our brains are naturally drawn to fresh starts, wired to find motivation in new beginnings.
These moments act like a psychological reset button, nudging us toward self-reflection, habit-building and behaviour change. Yet despite making resolutions year after year, many of us struggle to stick with them. Why do we keep coming back for more?
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Here’s why we crave resolutions and how to harness them in a way that actually boosts productivity and keeps momentum going, helping you feel more accomplished all year long.
Though the start of a new year has long been tied to making resolutions, there’s more behind the tradition than just cultural habit.
“For many, fresh starts feel hopeful,” said Jennifer Birdsall, a board-certified, licensed clinical psychologist and chief clinical officer at ComPsych. “Psychologically, they allow people to release the baggage of past experiences, including failures, and set forth on goals with renewed energy and optimism.”
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This ties into what psychologists call the fresh start effect. When a clear milestone, like a new year, a birthday or the start of a new semester, gives us the sense of turning the page, it helps us mentally separate our past self from our future self, motivating us to break old habits and approach change with a bit of extra momentum.
Resolutions can also give your brain a boost. There are actually psychological benefits to making goals, even if you don’t follow through on them. Simply setting resolutions can help you feel a greater sense of control.
“This is especially important right now given how much uncertainty people experience in today’s volatile social, political and economic climate,” Birdsall said.
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Alivia Hall, a licensed clinical social worker and clinical director at LiteMinded Therapy, noted that just picturing a future version of ourselves, one who feels healthier, more grounded and more intentional, activates the brain’s reward system, triggering a dopamine boost.
“The anticipation alone can create a sense of energy and momentum before we’ve taken a single step,” she explained.
Many of us start the year with the best intentions, only to find our goals slipping away a few months in.
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One reason, according to Hall, is that we often approach goal-setting with an all-or-nothing mindset, viewing success as binary: either you succeed or fail. So when someone skips a single workout or misses a day of journaling, the brain quickly convinces them they’ve completely blown it.
“That harsh, all-or-nothing lens can make people give up on their goals entirely, instead of seeing it as just a small setback they can recover from,” she explained.
Another common pitfall is relying on willpower. “Early on, motivation runs high because the brain is lit up by novelty and reward anticipation. But once that dopamine surge fades, sheer discipline often isn’t enough to sustain change,” Hall said.
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Without structure, environmental cues or a deeper connection to our values, goals can start to feel less like inspired choices and more like chores. “Psychologically, this creates friction between intention and behaviour – which is why so many resolutions quietly start to fizzle by February or March,” she added.
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What we need to be mindful of is falling into a cycle of constantly setting new resolutions, enjoying that dopamine boost, and then quickly abandoning those goals. Here are some tips for sticking to a goal long-term when you start to fall off:
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“I’m a big proponent of doing a self-audit prior to making resolutions or setting goals, as it encourages a more structured and intentional approach to personal growth by reflecting on one’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as one’s accomplishments and growth opportunities,” Birdsall said.
Taking time to look back at what you’re most proud of, what may have held you back and how closely you’ve been living your values can help clarify where you want to focus your energy next and which goals will feel most meaningful to pursue.
“Attune to the aspect of the goal that taps into your motivation,” said Lorain Moorehead, a licensed clinical social worker and therapy and consultation practice owner.
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So if the end result of finishing a marathon doesn’t excite you, maybe what does is the value of improving your physical health. “The motivation that is there when the goal is initially set can wear off, especially as you become tired or the goal becomes challenging or draining,” she said. But when you stay connected to the deeper why behind your goal, it becomes much easier to keep going, even when the momentum dips.
“Break goals into the smallest possible steps, so small they almost feel too easy,” said Ellen Ottman, founder and licensed therapist at Stillpoint Therapy Collective.
For example, instead of running 10 miles per week, start with putting on your running shoes and walking outside three times a week, as completing even tiny goals triggers dopamine, which boosts both motivation and confidence.
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Form connections with other goal-setters who can offer support, encouragement or feedback along the way.
“Achieving something can be lonely,” Moorehead said. “People can diminish the goal if they don’t understand the process, so it can be helpful to receive support from others who are committed to a goal.”
As a way to foster community, join a group of people practicing the same skill or who have already tackled similar goals.
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Some 92% of people fail to achieve their goals, so if you’ve fallen off track partway through the year, you’re not alone. The good news is that it’s never too late to reset without feeling like you’ve failed.
“Progress rarely happens in straight lines, so the most powerful thing you can do when you lose momentum is to reset with kindness,” Ottman said. “Shame tends to freeze us, while curiosity and self-compassion help us move forward.”
Instead of trying to catch up or scrapping your goal altogether, try reworking it. If your original goal was to read more, make it smaller and more specific, like reading one page a day. “Small, consistent wins rebuild trust and confidence in your ability to follow through,” Ottman said, “creating the true foundation for lasting change.”
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Ring in the New Year with the “Champagne Cluster,” a distant galaxy cluster featured in a new image that combines data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and optical telescopes.
Astronomers first identified this galaxy cluster on Dec. 31, 2020. That date, along with the cluster’s bubbly look and the superheated gas detected by Chandra (represented in purple), led researchers to give it the memorable nickname “Champagne Cluster” instead of its formal name, RM J130558.9+263048.4.
Two Galaxy Clusters Colliding and Merging
The composite view reveals that the Champagne Cluster is not a single cluster at all. It is two galaxy clusters merging into a larger structure. In most clusters, gas heated to millions of degrees appears roughly circular or slightly oval in images. Here, the hot gas stretches much more from top to bottom, a clue that two clusters are colliding. You can also see two concentrations of galaxies, one above the center and one below it, marking the two groups involved in the merger. (The image has been rotated clockwise by 90 degrees so that North points to the right.)
Hot Gas and Dark Matter Dominate the Mass
In this forming cluster, the mass of the hot gas exceeds the combined mass of all the hundred-plus galaxies. Beyond that, the clusters hold even larger quantities of dark matter, the invisible material believed to be spread throughout the universe.
Alongside the Chandra X-ray observations, the image includes optical measurements from the Legacy Surveys (red, green, and blue). The Legacy Surveys bring together three complementary surveys using multiple telescopes located in Arizona and Chile.
A Rare Merger Like the Bullet Cluster
The Champagne Cluster belongs to an uncommon category of merging galaxy clusters. This group includes the famous Bullet Cluster, where the hot gas in each cluster has slammed together and slowed down, creating a clear offset between the hot gas and the most massive galaxy in each cluster.
To understand what happened, astronomers compared the observations with computer simulations and proposed two scenarios. In one, the two clusters collided more than two billion years ago, moved apart, and were pulled back together by gravity, with a second collision now underway. In the other, the clusters experienced a single collision about 400 million years ago and are currently moving away from each other. Researchers say additional studies of the Champagne Cluster could help show how dark matter behaves during a high-speed collision.
Research Paper and Chandra Mission Operations
A study presenting these findings recently appeared in The Astrophysical Journal. The paper’s authors are Faik Bouhrik, Rodrigo Stancioli, and David Wittman from the University of California, Davis.
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, oversees the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory’s Chandra X-ray Center runs science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and manages flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts.
As people grow older, visible changes like gray hair and weaker muscles are only part of the story. Aging also affects the immune system. One major reason is that the stem cells responsible for producing blood and immune cells can accumulate genetic mutations over time, increasing the risk of cancer and other health problems.
Scientists at the University of Illinois Chicago have identified a key biological process behind this shift. Writing in the journal Blood, the researchers report that aging is linked to declining levels of a protein called platelet factor 4. Even more striking, restoring this protein in older blood cells reversed several signs of cellular aging. The findings suggest a potential new target for treating age-related disorders of the blood and immune system.
The Role of Blood Stem Cells in Immune Health
Hematopoietic stem cells, often called blood stem cells, reside in the bone marrow and serve as the foundation of the body’s blood and immune systems. These rare cells generate all major types of blood and immune cells needed for oxygen transport and protection against infection.
“Our hematopoietic stem cells are very rare,” said UIC’s Sandra Pinho, associate professor of pharmacology and regenerative medicine in the College of Medicine. “We call them the Holy Grail of the immune system.”
In younger individuals, these stem cells maintain a healthy balance. They produce myeloid cells, which include red blood cells and some immune cells, as well as lymphoid cells, such as T and B cells that play a central role in fighting infections.
Why Aging Stem Cells Lose Balance
As the body ages, blood stem cells begin to favor the production of myeloid cells while generating fewer lymphoid cells. This shift alters immune function and weakens the body’s ability to respond to disease.
“That’s one of the reasons why, normally, older individuals are not used as donors for bone marrow transplantation, because their stem cells are not as potent,” Pinho said.
This imbalance not only affects immunity but also increases vulnerability to age-related diseases.
Platelet Factor 4 and Stem Cell Control
Through studies in mice and human bone marrow samples, the researchers found that platelet factor 4 plays a central role in regulating blood stem cell behavior. In younger people and animals, the protein acts as a signaling molecule that limits how often stem cells divide. This control is especially important for stem cells that produce myeloid cells.
With age, immune cells produce less platelet factor 4. As a result, stem cells divide more frequently and without proper regulation.
“When stem cells start to divide more often than they should, and if their proliferation is not regulated, they can accumulate mutations over time,” said Pinho.
In humans, these mutations are linked to chronic inflammation, a higher risk of blood cancers, and even cardiovascular disease.
Reversing Signs of Immune Aging in the Lab
The team discovered that restoring platelet factor 4 could counteract these age-related changes. Older mice received daily blood infusions of the protein for more than a month. After treatment, their blood and immune cells showed behavior and characteristics more typical of much younger animals.
Similar effects were observed in laboratory experiments using human stem cells. When platelet factor 4 was added to aged human cells, the researchers saw a clear improvement in stem cell function.
“It rejuvenated the aging of the blood system,” Pinho said.
What This Means for Aging and Disease
While the results are promising, platelet factor 4 alone is not expected to reverse aging throughout the entire body or significantly extend human lifespan.
Though the effect was strong, platelet factor 4 won’t be a silver bullet that reverses the aging of all tissues and prolongs the lifespan of elderly human patients alone, Pinho said. However, it could become part of broader strategies aimed at improving age-related conditions.
“It’s clear evidence that it’s possible to reverse, intrinsically, certain age-associated disorders,” Pinho said.
Sen Zhang, a postdoctoral fellow in the Pinho lab, is the study’s first author. The research was co-led by Constantinos Chronis from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, who also served as a co-corresponding author. Additional contributors from UIC include Charles Ayemoba, Anna Di Staulo, Kenneth Joves, Chandani Patel, Eva Leung, Maura Bueno, Xiaoping Du and Sang-Ging Ong.
Personally, I find the holidays hard. I love Christmas as a concept but with three of my closest family members dying during this season, it just feels a little too tender for me.
One of my favourite Christmas songs is called “It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop” in which the singer describes Christmas as a chance to breathe during difficult times, a moment to forget the heavy weight of our lives. Then he goes on to say “next day life went back to its’ bad self”.
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This is how it feels to me, and many of us. Life hits harder after moments of reprieve and celebration.
According to a medically reviewed article by Health Central, 64% of us struggle with post-holidays depression.
Writing for The Conversation, Jolanta Burke, Associate Professor, Centre for Positive Health Sciences, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences has given her advice for muddling through.
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First, she explains, this slump makes perfect sense: “During the festive period, dopamine levels tend to rise. Anticipation of celebration, time spent with others, indulgent food and festive rituals all stimulate this feel-good system.
“Compared with everyday life, the brain experiences a powerful boost. Even thinking about Christmas before it arrives can activate these pathways, creating a surge of sensory excitement.”
I can relate to this. The build-up to Christmas is almost always more fun than the day itself.
Burke adds: “Once Christmas is over, dopamine levels naturally fall back to their usual baseline. This sharp contrast between heightened stimulation and everyday routine can leave people feeling flat, unmotivated or low. This is the familiar post-Christmas slump.”
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As for helping yourself…
Burke says: “Re-establishing your usual routine as soon as possible can also help. Returning to regular bedtimes and wake times supports your circadian rhythm and helps your body regain a sense of normality.
“Exposure to daylight soon after waking is especially useful, as natural light signals to the brain that the day has begun. A short walk around midday, when light levels peak, can further support energy and mood.”
Burke urges: “Scheduling small activities, social connections, or goals gives you something to look forward to and softens the emotional contrast between the festive season and everyday life. Practising presence and finding small moments of enjoyment each day can also help restore balance.”
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We’re going to be okay.
A lot of us won’t look back so fondly on 2025 but, if dating app Feeld’s latest findings can tell us anything, we’re all still feeling pretty open minded and pretty damn horny.
Ah, the human spirit.
Last week, we reported that the fastest-growing sexuality in 2025 was heteroflexibility and now we can reveal the sex act which has risen by 200% in 2025: pegging.
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Pegging was a term coined back in 2002 by sex columnist Dan Savage who was referring to a cisgender woman using a strap-on dildo to penetrate her cisgender male partner.
However, as with all words, language can evolve and now on their website, Ann Summers explains: “Pegging is the act of one partner taking the lead in penetrative anal sex using a strap-on. While it’s often associated with women using a harness on their male partners, that’s far from the only way to enjoy it.
“Whether you’re queer, trans, non-binary or just looking to mix things up, pegging can be a thrilling way to explore power dynamics, penetration and pleasure. For those already dabbling in anal play, pegging can be a natural next step.”
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Dr. Luke Brunning, a lecturer in Applied Ethics who specialises in love and relationships at the University of Leeds explains: “Pegging has shifted from taboo to mainstream preference. Feeld data shows cis men are driving the surge — a sign of decreasing stigma around anal pleasure, regardless of gender and sexuality.
“This trend reflects expanding definitions of masculinity and growing curiosity about pleasure beyond traditional scripts.”
Dr Brunning is hopeful that this is part of a bigger picture of deconstructing masculinity and men exploring pleasure beyond heteronormative norms.
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He says: “It does point towards a vision of masculinity that is more comfortable talking about the body, pleasure, female agency.”
Here’s hoping.
Theresa May has taken a swipe at Kemi Badenoch over her decision to ditch the Tories’ support for Net Zero.
The former prime minister – who committed the UK to ending carbon emissions by 2050 when she was in No.10 – warned her successor that “there’s a cost to not doing something”.
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That was a clear dig at Badenoch’s criticism of Net Zero, which she said “tied us in red tape, loaded us with costs, and did nothing to cut global emissions”.
Badenoch announced the Conservatives were no longer committed to Net Zero in a major policy shift in October.
“We want to leave a cleaner environment for our children, but not by bankrupting the country,” she said.
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But appearing on Radio 4′s Today programme on Wednesday, May made clear her unhappiness at the move, suggesting that Badenoch was not thinking about the “longer term” impacts for the planet of her decision.
She said: “One of the challenges in government is always to remember that yes, you need to be concerned about the here and now, but you do also have to think about the longer term as well.
“Obviously when I was prime minister we put through the legislation to put Net Zero by 2050 into law, the first major country to do so, was to set that target so people would start to innovate. And we have seen huge innovations, and we still see innovations taking place.
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“You always hope that whatever you put into government is going to stay there forever, and people talk about the cost of doing something. There’s a cost to not doing something as well – we always have to remember that.”
