Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.
In this week’s episode, we discuss:
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Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
An Australian researcher who had lost her own son to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome has published a study suggesting that testing for a particular enzyme could help to identify babies at risk of succumbing to the little-understood condition. While experts in the field have welcomed the research, they have also received it with caution. The results of the test are unlikely to provide anything like a definitive prediction – and it is not yet clear how the enzyme in question is linked to the risk of sudden death.
Tasers
At the Police Federation’s annual conference this week, Priti Patel announced that she was authorising Special Constables to carry Tasers for the first time. The home secretary said this would ensure that the UK’s nearly 9,000 voluntary police officers are not “at a disadvantage when facing an attacker wielding a knife or a marauding terrorist”. The move has caused concerns, with Amnesty International UK warning that it will lead to “more instances of misuse, serious harm and death”. But how dangerous are Tasers – and with public confidence in policing at rock bottom, is this really the right time to be giving officers more power?
Trans rights in Alabama
A judge in Alabama has blocked part of a law that makes it a felony to give gender-affirming puberty blockers and hormones to people under the age of 18. US district judge Liles Burke, who was appointed by Trump, issued a preliminary injunction to stop the state from enforcing the medication ban. It leaves in place the part of the law that bans sex-altering surgeries and prohibits school officials from keeping certain gender-identity information secret from parents. But could it mark a turning of the tide against anti-trans legislation in the US.
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5 museum-grade cartoons about Trump's Smithsonian purgeCartoons Artists take on institutional rebranding, exhibit interpretation, and more
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Settling the West Bank: a death knell for a Palestine state?In the Spotlight The reality on the ground is that the annexation of the West Bank is all but a done deal
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Crossword: August 23, 2025The Week's daily crossword puzzle
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Tourist sparks bomb alert after accidentally ordering a 'grenade'Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
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‘Irony’ as Zoom calls staff back to officefeature And other stories from the stranger side of life
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Green man will stay on longer for fat Britsfeature And other stories from the stranger side of life
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George Floyd legacy: what has changed in the US three years onfeature Police officers are more accountable but has ‘white empathy’ hit a wall?
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How your laughter shows when you’re in lovefeature And other stories from the stranger side of life
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The Week Unwrapped: Korean succession, terror by algorithm and German disquietpodcast Could a 10-year-old girl rule North Korea? Will an Isis victim upend web law? And why is Germany upset with its Oscars contender?
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The Week Unwrapped: Chinese chips, the Pope in Africa and podcastingpodcast Is China losing the microchip war? What is the Vatican doing in South Sudan? And has the podcast tide turned?
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US elite crime-fighting units: a recipe for trouble?feature Tyre Nichols’ death in Memphis highlights the dangers of using of elite crime-fighting units
