Helen Pearson

Autism is on the rise: what’s really behind the increase? RFK Jr has vowed to find out what’s responsible, but scientists say he is ignoring answers from decades of research.

Now might be a good time to repost this story about what scientists actually know about the complex causes of autism, and what's behind the increasing prevalence.

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A good news story. A new birth cohort to add to the UK’s unique series of such studies

Autism is on the rise: what’s really behind the increase? RFK Jr has vowed to find out what’s responsible, but scientists say he is ignoring answers from decades of research.

Good summary by my friend @helenpearson.bsky.social of what we have been saying for years: if there’s an epidemic in autism, it’s of diagnoses, which is not a bad thing www.nature.com/articles/d41...

“While X has primarily served as a dissemination tool, Bluesky may support a more interpretive, reflective mode of science communication.” 👇

Very surprised and delighted to be one of 4 finalists for European Science Journalist of the Year Award 2025 - along with amazing reporters @mikepeeljourno.bsky.social, Jonas Reese & Christopher Weingart.

Yes, thanks - several researchers said this was a factor in the rise in diagnoses. A diagnosis may help families access support.

Many thanks to the autistic people, scientists and autism groups who spoke to me about this important area incl. @autistica.org.uk, @aims2trials.bsky.social, @autismsciencefd.bsky.social, Autism Society of America, Coalition of Autism Scientists and more

Autism is on the rise: what’s really behind the increase? RFK Jr has vowed to find out what’s responsible, but scientists say he is ignoring answers from decades of research.

What’s really driving the rise in prevalence of autism? My @nature.com story looks at what scientists and the autism community have learned about the causes of autism and the growth in diagnoses. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

You’ll be sorely missed Meredith! ❤️

Meet the Winners 2025 | Association of British Science Writers The winners of the 2025 ABSW Awards were announced at a ceremony held on Wednesday July 9, 2025

Congratulations to the fantastic crop of winners of the @absw.bsky.social Awards 2025 but especially (of course!) to our @nature.com winners Nisha Gaind (www.nature.com/articles/d41...) & Lizzy Gibney (www.nature.com/articles/d41... ) 🎉🎉🎉
@lizziegibney.bsky.social
🧪
www.absw.org.uk/pages/meet-t...

Research-integrity sleuths say their work is being ‘twisted’ to undermine science Some sleuths fear that the business of cleaning up flawed studies is being weaponized against science itself.

Some sleuths fear that the business of cleaning up flawed studies is being weaponized against science itself

go.nature.com/3TwCNXA

Metascience can improve science — but it must be useful to society, too Researchers studying research must avoid the temptation to get too stuck in the academic weeds.

‘Metascience can improve science — but it must be useful to society, too’. Good, thoughtful editorial in @nature.com on #Metascience2025 & the new Alliance

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

@helenpearson.bsky.social @magdalenaskipper.bsky.social @briannosek.bsky.social

How to speed up peer review: make applicants mark one another ‘Distributed peer review’ of grants makes process more than twice as fast — and includes some cheat-prevention measures.

An experimental peer-review system slashes the time taken to review grant applications, according to results reported at #Metascience2025. 'Distributed peer review' requires researchers who apply for funding to review the other applications.

My story for @nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Metascience 2025 Conference A global gathering for knowledge sharing, community building, and opportunities to define a roadmap of research and intervention priorities to accelerate science.

I’m at #Metascience2025 this week, aka the ‘Glastonbury of metascience’. Looking fwd to #sciencepolicy but not the #heatwave metascience.info Metascience 2025 Conference

Thanks to @victimofmaths.bsky.social @lynnemargalit.bsky.social, Mary Pat Campbell and others who helped explain the data

How to make America healthy: the real problems — and best fixes The United States has lower life expectancy than most similarly wealthy nations. Chronic disease is part of the cause, but so are guns, drugs and cars.

RFK Jr uses the poor ROI in healthcare to justify cost-cutting.

But US public health experts say they want more investment in disease prevention; widening health insurance coverage; and tackling difficult social issues underlying deaths from drugs, guns and cars.

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

The US is an outlier in high spending on healthcare, as this chart shows.

But compared with similar high-income countries, it’s also unusual in lacking universal health insurance. This + high costs means people seek care later in a disease, hence more premature death.

High mortality among young people in the US sadly means that roughly one 5 year-old in every class of 20 will die before age 45, according to calculations by @victimofmaths.bsky.social

Why do more young people die young in the US? Chronic diseases are one big driver of premature deaths in 15-49 year olds, as shown here. Obesity is a big driver.

But what really sets the US apart is high death rates from drug abuse, car accidents and suicide / homicide (largely by guns).

The US has higher death rates than comparable rich countries in most age groups, but the biggest difference is in young adults.

Young deaths drag down life expectancy more than older ones.

US life expectancy at birth (78.4 years) is 4 years shorter than the average of 11 comparably large, wealthy countries.

Life expectancy plateaued around 2010, and COVID widened the gap.

How to make America healthy: the real problems — and best fixes The United States has lower life expectancy than most similarly wealthy nations. Chronic disease is part of the cause, but so are guns, drugs and cars.

RFK Jr wants to Make America Healthy Again. But is America really that unhealthy?

I spoke with public health experts & data analysts to find out. My story for @nature.com and brief🧵

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

AI slashes time to produce gold-standard medical reviews — but sceptics urge caution Although language models can help to accelerate systematic reviews, a fully automated system is still some way off.

Scientists say they used LLMs to reproduce 12 gold-standard #Cochrane systematic reviews in 2 days - rather than 12 years.

But other experts are sceptical; the system doesn't automate some review steps and needs independent testing. My news story for @nature.com

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Judge rules against NIH grant cuts — and calls them discriminatory The decision means that the US biomedical agency has to restore funding to hundreds of research projects, but the government will likely appeal.

After ruling the NIH grant cuts were illegal yesterday, Judge Young, a Reagan appointee on the bench since 1985, ended the hearing with a blistering 15-minute speech.

I've cleaned up my notes — here are his remarks in full. 🧵

Rapid emergence of a maths gender gap in first grade - Nature Boys and girls exhibit very similar maths scores upon school entry, but a gender gap in favour of boys becomes highly significant after 4 months of schooling, which increases with years of schooling,&...

Do girls and boys really differ in their mathematical skills? A recent @nature.com paper by @standehaene.bsky.social et al shows that French boys and girls enter school with similar abilities, but after just four months, boys pull ahead 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Who is on RFK Jr’s new vaccine panel — and what will they do? Critics fear that anti-vaccine leader’s picks for crucial committee will be a ‘disaster for public health’.

Critics fear that anti-vaccine leader’s picks for crucial committee will be a ‘disaster for public health’.

So our news team asks: who is on RFK Jr’s new vaccine panel — and what will they do?

🧪 #MedSky

@nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

How to speak to a vaccine sceptic: research reveals what works Hesitancy about vaccinations is on the rise, but studies show there are specific ways to overcome people’s doubts.

Trust in vaccines is being undermined.💉But what should you say to someone who has doubts? I spoke with vaccine hesitancy researchers for @nature.com to find out how best to speak to someone with questions /concerns about vaccines.

Anyone can use their helpful advice
www.nature.com/articles/d41...

PhD students in STEM: Nature wants to hear from you Buried in lab work or drowning in data? Take a break and help shape the future of PhD education.

Nature has launched its seventh global survey of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) doctoral students, which will probe graduate students’ views about their goals and challenges, and their experiences of their studies so far. Survey runs until June 11. #Academicsky 🧪

I told AI to make me a protein. Here’s what it came up with A new crop of artificial-intelligence models allows users to create, manipulate and learn about biology using ordinary language.

"Please design a protein that is an alcohol dehydrogenase"

Scientists are making AI tools that take plain-language instructions and turn them into proteins and other molecules, including potential drugs.

Ewen Callaway | @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Associate or Senior Editor, Nature Medicine, Digital Medicine and Artificial Intelligence  Job Title: Associate or a Senior, Nature Medicine (Digital Medicine and Artificial Intelligence) Location: New York or Milan (Hybrid Working) Application Deadline: May 30, 2025 About Springer Nature G...

📣 #NatureMedicine is hiring a new editor with expertise in #AI, #DigitalMedicine and/or Health #Informatics! This job is open to applicants in NYC 🗽and Milano 🎭! Deadline is Fri, May 30th. Please share!
springernature.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/SpringerNatu...

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