The Know Daily - Monday 17 July 2023

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Hundreds of golden retrievers from around the world gathered at their ancestral home in the Scottish Highlands last week. The first golden retriever puppies were born at Guisachan House 155 years ago and, in recent years, owners have regularly gathered at the site to celebrate the breed.

🎓 Uni overhaul

The government has announced plans to crack down on “rip-off” degrees in England - but opposition parties have criticised the measures as a “cap on aspiration”.

What’s the story?
Under the plans, the independent regulator Office for Students (OfS) will be asked to limit the number of students that universities can recruit onto courses which are seen to not have “good outcomes” for students. This would be assessed on the basis of each course’s graduate employment and drop out rates, as well as potential future earnings.

“The OfS already has the power to investigate and sanction universities which offer degrees falling below minimum performance thresholds - but the new rules would require the regulator to limit student numbers for those courses,” explained the BBC.

Why is this happening?
The plans are part of the government’s response to a review which was established by Theresa May in 2017 to look into post-18 education and funding.

“​​Among the report's recommendations [...] was an aim to reduce the number of ‘low value’ courses leaving students with poor job prospects,” said Sky News. PM Rishi Sunak has said that too many young people are being sold a “false dream”.

How have opposition parties responded?
Labour has said the measure will put up “fresh barriers to opportunity in areas with fewer graduate jobs”, while the Lib Dems decried it as a “cap on aspiration” that would “[make] it harder for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to go on to further study”.

🔬 Preventing pre-eclampsia 

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has for the first time approved a new test to detect pre-eclampsia - and experts hope the move will help make childbirth safer in the US.

What’s pre-eclampsia?
It’s a complication that affects around one in 25 pregnancies in the US, and up to 6% of pregnancies in the UK - and it disproportionately affects black women in both countries.

“It is a combination of raised blood pressure (hypertension) and often protein in your urine (proteinuria) or problems with the kidneys or liver,” explained pregnancy charity Tommy’s.

Pre-eclampsia can be life-threatening and the only cure is giving birth, so women who develop the condition often deliver early.

Got it. So what does this new test do?
The test - which is already available in Europe - is intended for pregnant women who are hospitalised with a blood pressure disorder,

It works by measuring the ratio of two key proteins that are produced by the placenta. Based on this, the test can tell with 96% accuracy who will not develop pre-eclampsia within the next two weeks and can therefore be safely discharged from hospital.

What’s the story across the pond?
Late last year, the UK’s drug regulator fast-tracked a new pill for development which scientists believe could prevent women from developing the condition.

MZe786 is a single pill which women deemed at risk of pre-eclampsia would take once a day from the 20th week of their pregnancy.

Writing on Twitter in May, Professor Asif Ahmed - founder of the pharmaceutical company behind MZe786 - said he believes the pill will be “a game changer and quite possibly a blockbuster drug to prevent pre-eclampsia”.

🎾 Wimbledon winners: 20-year-old Carlos Alcaraz beat Novak Djokovic in a thrilling Grand Slam men’s singles final yesterday evening. Marketa Vondrousova won the women’s final while teenager Henry Searle became the first British boys’ singles champion at Wimbledon since 1962.

♨️ “Heat storm”: Meteorologists are warning that temperatures will hit record highs across southern Europe this week, following days of sweltering heat in Spain, Italy and Greece. An anticyclone called Charon could push temperatures above 45C in parts of Italy.

🗺️ Ukraine/Russia update: ​​Two people have died after an apparent attack on the bridge linking the occupied Crimean peninsula to the Russian region of Krasnodar, which may have been carried out by surface drones. Russia has blamed Ukraine for the attack.

✈️ Private jets are soaring: One in 10 flights departing from UK airports are now private jets, according to a new report. Before the pandemic, private jets accounted for around 7.5% of departures but that has risen to 10%, posing a challenge to Britain’s 2050 net zero goal.

🐟 Stranger than fiction: An Australian man and his dog have been rescued after they were stranded at sea for months following a storm which damaged their boat. The pair survived on a diet of raw fish and rainwater.

Trivia answer: B) The sea otter has been snapped stealing surfboards - and riding them! While it’s made for some pretty incredible pictures, US wildlife authorities have warned that the behaviour puts both people and wildlife in danger.

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