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‘A woman is not a baby-making machine’: a brief history of South Korea’s 4B movement – and why it’s making waves in America

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ming-gao-1496188">Ming Gao</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-catholic-university-747">Australian Catholic University</a> In South Korea, a growing number of young women are rejecting societal expectations of marriage, motherhood and heterosexual relationships, known as the “4B Movement” or the “4 Nos”. The “B” is a homophone for the Korean word bi (비/非), meaning “no”, representing the movement’s four principles: bihon (no marriage), bichulsan (no childbirth), biyeonae (no dating) and bisekseu (no sex). By refusing to marry, have children, engage in romance, or participate in sexual relationships with men, 4B feminists seek to redefine their lives outside the confines of traditional gender roles. In the wake of the reelection of Donald Trump, there has been <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-10/donald-trump-win-4b-movement-male-supremacists-make-threats/104575732">increased interest</a> in the 4B movement from women in the United States. But what is the 4B Movement, where did it come from, and how is it reshaping the feminist landscape in South Korea and beyond? <h2>Challenges facing young women</h2> The 4B Movement reflects <a href="https://www.khan.co.kr/national/national-general/article/202004140938001">a broader dissatisfaction</a> among young South Korean women who face instability of housing, digital sexual violence, economic disparities and cultural pressures. It emerged in the mid- to late-2010s, following a surge of interest in feminism in South Korea, and spread primarily through women’s online communities. The roots of the 4B Movement lie in South Korea’s rapid economic transformation and the subsequent challenges it posed for younger generations of the 2000s. For young women, economic insecurity is compounded by systemic gender inequality. South Korea <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/south-korea-s-gender-pay-gap-worst-in-oecd">consistently ranks</a> worst in the OECD for the gender wage gap, and social mobility remains limited. Against this backdrop, traditional life paths – marriage, childbearing and homemaking – have become less appealing. Living an alternative life without men emerged as a radical strategy for young digital feminists to challenge the rigid patriarchy in South Korea. The <a href="https://www.khan.co.kr/national/national-general/article/202405172212001">senseless killing</a> in 2016 of a woman in a train station toilet by a man in Seoul shocked the nation and fuelled the movement. Online platforms became spaces where women could share their frustrations, critique patriarchal norms and organise protests. During this period communities like radical feminist online groups gained traction. Among these was the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/korean/news-44329328">Tal-Corset</a> (escape the corset) movement, which encouraged women to reject societal beauty standards by foregoing makeup, cosmetic surgery and restrictive clothing. The 4B Movement built on this momentum, targeting not only beauty standards but the very institutions that sustain patriarchy. It collectively challenges the notion that women’s value lies in their ability to support men and sustain the family unit. <h2>‘A woman is not a baby-making machine’</h2> The birth rate in South Korea ranks among the <a href="https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/birth-rate-by-country">lowest in the world</a>. The government has long viewed this as a national crisis. Policies such as subsidised housing for newlyweds and tax incentives for families have sought to encourage marriage and childbearing. In 2016, the government launched a national <a href="https://www.womennews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=248514">pink birth map</a> visualising the number of women of reproductive age in each district. It sparked outrage. Women criticised it as reducing them to reproductive tools, proclaiming, “<a href="https://www.nocutnews.co.kr/news/4713565">my womb is not national property</a>” and “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FsEWD1bi3E">a woman is not a baby-making machine</a>”. For many 4B feminists, these policies represent a stark example of how the state prioritises population growth over women’s autonomy. In response, the movement frames its rejection of marriage and motherhood as an act of political resistance. As one <a href="https://www.womennews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=111598">protest slogan</a> declared: “End population policies! Stop blaming women”. <h2>Living on their own terms</h2> Despite its growing influence, the 4B Movement faces significant challenges. The radical principles have sparked backlash, with critics labelling participants as selfish or anti-social. Swearing off men as a form of protest against patriarchal structures and traditional marital norms is sometimes (mis)interpreted as implicitly favouring <a href="https://brunch.co.kr/brunchbook/radsview2">lesbianism</a>, given its stance against heterosexual relationships. The movement has also attracted negative political attention. <a href="https://www.khan.co.kr/national/national-general/article/202004140938001">Lee Seung-cheon</a>, a 58-year-old Democratic Party candidate, pledged to introduce “measures to reject the 4B Movement” as part of his policy campaign in 2020. Yet 4B feminists remain steadfast in their vision of a future where women can live on their own terms. Their rejection of traditional life paths is not a retreat into isolation but an attempt to create new ways of being free from patriarchal constraints. As one participant noted, rejecting marriage allows women to envision futures beyond societal deadlines like “<a href="https://brunch.co.kr/@404homealone/34">a woman’s age has an expiration date</a>”. <h2>An international movement</h2> The 4B Movement’s radical critique of patriarchy has resonated internationally. 4B Movement ideas are starting to strike a chord in the US. The movement’s core principles align with broader feminist critiques of patriarchy and capitalism, which have intensified in response to political developments such as Trump’s rhetoric and debates over reproductive rights. In the US, Trump’s presidency (and now his return) has been a flashpoint for feminist activism. Policies restricting access to abortion, coupled with an increase in conservative rhetoric around women’s rights, have galvanised movements that resist patriarchal structures. For American feminists, the 4B Movement offers a framework for resistance that goes beyond economic precarity. It provides a roadmap for rejecting political conflicts, focusing on reclaiming agency by prioritising autonomy over their own bodies and rights. 6B4T is inspired by the 4B Movement and has gained particular attention <a href="https://weibo.com/1263977197/KaFZGjoG4">in China</a>. This version incorporates additional principles, including rejecting consumerism and fostering mutual aid among unmarried women. The spread of 4B ideas across Asia and beyond highlights the universality of feminist struggles. As the movement continues to evolve, its impact extends beyond South Korea, sparking conversations about gender, autonomy and the future of feminism. Whether embraced or contested, the 4B Movement forces society to confront uncomfortable truths about the cost of sustaining patriarchy – and perhaps the possibilities of living without it. <hr /> Correction: 6B4T is inspired by the 4B movement and gained attention in China; it did not originate in China.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/243355/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ming-gao-1496188">Ming Gao</a>, Research Scholar, Gender and Women's History Research Centre, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-catholic-university-747">Australian Catholic University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-woman-is-not-a-baby-making-machine-a-brief-history-of-south-koreas-4b-movement-and-why-its-making-waves-in-america-243355">original article</a>.

Relationships

4 things ancient Greeks and Romans got right about mental health

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/konstantine-panegyres-1528527">Konstantine Panegyres</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> According to the World Health Organization, about <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression">280 million people</a> worldwide have depression and about <a href="https://www.who.int/health-topics/mental-health#tab=tab_2">one billion</a> have a mental health problem of any kind. People living in the ancient world also had mental health problems. So, how did they deal with them? As we’ll see, some of their insights about mental health are still relevant today, even though we might question some of their methods. <h2>1. Our mental state is important</h2> Mental health problems such as depression were familiar to people in the ancient world. Homer, the poet famous for the Iliad and Odyssey who lived around the eighth century BC, apparently <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL496/2003/volume.xml">died</a> after wasting away from depression. Already in the late fifth century BC, ancient Greek doctors recognised that our health partly depends on the state of our thoughts. In the Epidemics, a medical text written in around 400BC, an anonymous doctor <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL477/1994/volume.xml">wrote</a> that our habits about our thinking (as well as our lifestyle, clothing and housing, physical activity and sex) are the main determinants of our health. <h2>2. Mental health problems can make us ill</h2> Also writing in the Epidemics, an anonymous doctor <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL477/1994/volume.xml">described</a> one of his patients, Parmeniscus, whose mental state became so bad he grew delirious, and eventually could not speak. He stayed in bed for 14 days before he was cured. We’re not told how. Later, the famous doctor <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Galen">Galen of Pergamum</a> (129-216AD) <a href="https://dfg-viewer.de/show?tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&tx_dlf%5Bid%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fcmg.bbaw.de%2Fepubl%2Fonline%2Fmets%2Fsuppl_or_05_03.xml&tx_dlf%5Bpage%5D=1390&cHash=a0a715a587fa4e89a8839ccb310b0734">observed</a> that people often become sick because of a bad mental state: <blockquote> It may be that under certain circumstances ‘thinking’ is one of the causes that bring about health or disease because people who get angry about everything and become confused, distressed and frightened for the slightest reason often fall ill for this reason and have a hard time getting over these illnesses. </blockquote> Galen also described some of his patients who suffered with their mental health, including some who became seriously ill and died. <a href="https://dfg-viewer.de/show?tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&tx_dlf%5Bid%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fcmg.bbaw.de%2Fepubl%2Fonline%2Fmets%2Fsuppl_or_05_03.xml&tx_dlf%5Bpage%5D=1392&cHash=c93bf32c31975103b100e918bee893d9">One man</a> had lost money: <blockquote> He developed a fever that stayed with him for a long time. In his sleep he scolded himself for his loss, regretted it and was agitated until he woke up. While he was awake he continued to waste away from grief. He then became delirious and developed brain fever. He finally fell into a delirium that was obvious from what he said, and he remained in this state until he died. </blockquote> <h2>3. Mental illness can be prevented and treated</h2> In the ancient world, people had many different ways to prevent or treat mental illness. The philosopher Aristippus, who lived in the fifth century BC, used to advise people <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL486/1997/volume.xml">to focus on the present</a> to avoid mental disturbance: <blockquote> concentrate one’s mind on the day, and indeed on that part of the day in which one is acting or thinking. Only the present belongs to us, not the past nor what is anticipated. The former has ceased to exist, and it is uncertain if the latter will exist. </blockquote> The philosopher Clinias, who lived in the fourth century BC, <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL486/1997/volume.xml">said</a> that whenever he realised he was becoming angry, he would go and play music on his lyre to calm himself. Doctors had their own approaches to dealing with mental health problems. Many <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=KPHaAAAAMAAJ&q=caelius+aurelianus+drabkin+on+acute+diseases&dq=caelius+aurelianus+drabkin+on+acute+diseases&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjpqszXwuSGAxUjamwGHS1yCuoQ6AF6BAgHEAI">recommended</a> patients change their lifestyles to adjust their mental states. They advised people to take up a new regime of exercise, adopt a different diet, go travelling by sea, listen to the lectures of philosophers, play games (such as draughts/checkers), and do mental exercises equivalent to the modern crossword or sudoku. For instance, the physician Caelius Aurelianus (fifth century AD) <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=KPHaAAAAMAAJ&q=caelius+aurelianus+drabkin+on+acute+diseases&dq=caelius+aurelianus+drabkin+on+acute+diseases&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjpqszXwuSGAxUjamwGHS1yCuoQ6AF6BAgHEAI">thought</a> patients suffering from insanity could benefit from a varied diet including fruit and mild wine. Doctors also advised people to take plant-based medications. For example, the herb <a href="https://www.psychiatriki-journal.gr/documents/psychiatry/30.1-EN-2019-58.pdf">hellebore</a> was given to people suffering from paranoia. However, ancient doctors recognised that hellebore could be dangerous as it sometimes induced toxic spasms, killing patients. Other doctors, such as Galen, had a slightly different view. He believed mental problems were caused by some idea that had taken hold of the mind. He believed mental problems could be cured if this idea was removed from the mind and <a href="https://dfg-viewer.de/show?tx_dlf%5Bdouble%5D=0&tx_dlf%5Bid%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fcmg.bbaw.de%2Fepubl%2Fonline%2Fmets%2Fsuppl_or_05_03.xml&tx_dlf%5Bpage%5D=1396&cHash=1697e4b73dd653092cd8398749f1989f">wrote</a>: <blockquote> a person whose illness is caused by thinking is only cured by taking care of the false idea that has taken over his mind, not by foods, drinks, [clothing, housing], baths, walking and other such (measures). </blockquote> Galen <a href="https://dfg-viewer.de/show?id=9&tx_dlf%5Bid%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fcmg.bbaw.de%2Fepubl%2Fonline%2Fmets%2Fsuppl_or_05_03.xml&tx_dlf%5Bpage%5D=1418">thought</a> it was best to deflect his patients’ thoughts away from these false ideas by putting new ideas and emotions in their minds: <blockquote> I put fear of losing money, political intrigue, drinking poison or other such things in the hearts of others to deflect their thoughts to these things […] In others one should arouse indignation about an injustice, love of rivalry, and the desire to beat others depending on each person’s interest. </blockquote> <h2>4. Addressing mental health needs effort</h2> Generally speaking, the ancients believed keeping our mental state healthy required effort. If we were anxious or angry or despondent, then we needed to do something that brought us the opposite of those emotions. This can be achieved, they thought, by doing some activity that directly countered the emotions we are experiencing. For example, Caelius Aurelianus <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=KPHaAAAAMAAJ&q=caelius+aurelianus+drabkin+on+acute+diseases&dq=caelius+aurelianus+drabkin+on+acute+diseases&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjpqszXwuSGAxUjamwGHS1yCuoQ6AF6BAgHEAI">said</a> people suffering from depression should do activities that caused them to laugh and be happy, such as going to see a comedy at the theatre. However, the ancients did not believe any single activity was enough to make our mental state become healthy. The important thing was to make a wholesale change to one’s way of living and thinking. When it comes to experiencing mental health problems, we clearly have a lot in common with our ancient ancestors. Much of what they said seems as relevant now as it did 2,000 years ago, even if we use different methods and medicines today. <hr /> If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/232824/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/konstantine-panegyres-1528527">Konstantine Panegyres</a>, McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow, researching Greco-Roman antiquity, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/4-things-ancient-greeks-and-romans-got-right-about-mental-health-232824">original article</a>.

Mind

Woman “bullied” on plane over budget seating trick

A young woman has recalled a flight from hell when she was “bullied” by a couple who were trying to utilise a seating hack that went viral on TikTok. The solo traveller took to Reddit to recount the story and ask social media users if she was in the wrong for her action. The woman began by saying she usually pays more to select her plane seat ahead of time, but a medical emergency on another plane had her waiting on standby and left with no option other than to sit in a middle seat. When she was finally able to board, she was greeted by a couple who had purchased both the window and aisle seats in a bid to have more space, utilising a travel “trick” that has been popular on TikTok. The method, which has been dubbed the 'poor man's business class', usually leaves travellers with an empty middle seat and more space, and few travellers opt to pick a middle seat. “When I got to my row the man and woman were chatting and sharing a snack... it was obvious they were together. I mentioned to the man that I'm in the middle, and he got up to let me in,” the unsuspecting traveller wrote on Reddit. “I asked them if they would prefer to sit together, I said I was totally okay with that. The woman reacted rudely to this and said ‘you're not supposed to be sitting here anyway’.” After noticing how the plane was full, she offered to show the pair her new ticket with the correct seat number on it. “She flicked her hand at my ticket and made a disgusted sound. I offered again if they wanted to sit together to which she didn't reply, her partner said it's okay and... made some small talk,” she continued. The man’s girlfriend then interrupted their conversation to ask,”'Did you use one of those third party websites to book your flight? It's so frustrating when people cheap out to inconvenience others.” The American woman explained that she had booked her flight directly and she had been placed on standby like everyone else and didn't choose the middle seat - she was assigned it. She then tried to keep the peace by refusing to engage with the furious woman. “I was so done with her attitude, I put my headphones on and attempted to do my own thing,” she explained. But the “entitled” girlfriend wasn't letting it go, as the woman explained, “This woman kept reaching over me and tapping her partner and trying to talk to him in a way that was super intrusive.” “I could tell even her partner was trying to engage her less so that she would hopefully stop, but she didn't.” “I think they tried to pull that tactic where they don't sit together on purpose...hoping no one will sit between them. But on full flights it doesn't work. And even so - it's not the other person's fault.” The traveller's post was met with hundreds of comments slamming the girlfriend’s behaviour, as one person wrote, “It's like a toddler having a tantrum.” “She was disappointed and a total a**hole. Gross entitled people,” another added. Another person applauded the traveller’s level-headed behaviour, writing, “Wow! You are my hero for keeping it classy - I’m afraid I would not have been as kind as you.” Image credits: Shutterstock

Travel Trouble

"I just got shot": Trump gives first interview after assassination attempt

In his first interview since a <a href="https://www.oversixty.co.nz/finance/legal/attempted-assassination-of-trump-the-long-history-of-violence-against-u-s-presidents" target="_blank" rel="noopener">failed assassination attempt</a> at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, Donald Trump provided new insights into his harrowing experience and "miraculous" survival. The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon when 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired upon the former president during his speech. Speaking aboard his private jet to a <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/07/14/us-news/grateful-defiant-trump-recounts-surreal-assassination-attempt-at-rally-im-supposed-to-be-dead/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">New York Post journalist</a>, Trump described the weekend’s events as a “very surreal experience". “The doctor at the hospital said he never saw anything like this, he called it a miracle,” Trump, wearing a white bandage over his right ear, told the Post. “I’m not supposed to be here, I’m supposed to be dead.” Trump recounted that his survival was due to a slight turn of his head to the right to read a chart on illegal immigrants. At that precise moment, what could have been a fatal shot tore off a small piece of his ear, splattering blood on his forehead and cheek. As Secret Service agents quickly led him off stage, Trump expressed his desire to continue speaking to his supporters. However, agents insisted it wasn’t safe and rushed him to a hospital. He marvelled at how the agents reacted, comparing them to "linebackers" as they shielded him. Unbuttoning his long-sleeve white shirt, Trump revealed a large bruise on his right forearm, evidence of the forceful protection provided by the agents. Trump had previously posted on his social media account, Truth Social, to thank the Secret Service and law enforcement. “The agents hit me so hard that my shoes fell off, and my shoes are tight,” he said. Microphones at the podium captured the urgent commands from security telling Trump to “get down, get down” before he was helped back up. In the commotion, Trump was heard saying, “let me get my shoes,” before being escorted to a waiting car. In a powerful photograph that has since circulated widely, Trump, after being shot, stood and raised his fist, shouting “fight” three times to the crowd as Secret Service agents tried to move him offstage. “A lot of people say it’s the most iconic photo they’ve ever seen,” Trump said of the image. “They’re right and I didn’t die. Usually, you have to die to have an iconic picture. I just wanted to keep speaking, but I just got shot.” The rally saw two people killed, including the shooter, and two others injured. Reflecting on his survival, Trump told reporters that “by luck or by God” he was still here. Images: Xinhua News Agency/Shutterstock Editorial

Legal

We finally know why some people got COVID while others didn’t

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/marko-nikolic-1543289">Marko Nikolic</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/ucl-1885">UCL</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kaylee-worlock-1543639">Kaylee Worlock</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/ucl-1885">UCL</a> Throughout the pandemic, one of the key questions on everyone’s mind was why some people avoided getting COVID, while others caught the virus multiple times. Through a collaboration between University College London, the Wellcome Sanger Institute and Imperial College London in the UK, we set out to answer this question using the world’s first controlled <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-01780-9">“challenge trial” for COVID</a> – where volunteers were deliberately exposed to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, so that it could be studied in great detail. Unvaccinated healthy volunteers with no prior history of COVID were exposed – via a nasal spray – to an extremely low dose of the original strain of SARS-CoV-2. The volunteers were then closely monitored in a quarantine unit, with regular tests and samples taken to study their response to the virus in a highly controlled and safe environment. For our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07575-x">recent study</a>, published in Nature, we collected samples from tissue located midway between the nose and the throat as well as blood samples from 16 volunteers. These samples were taken before the participants were exposed to the virus, to give us a baseline measurement, and afterwards at regular intervals. The samples were then processed and analysed using single-cell sequencing technology, which allowed us to extract and sequence the genetic material of individual cells. Using this cutting-edge technology, we could track the evolution of the disease in unprecedented detail, from pre-infection to recovery. To our surprise, we found that, despite all the volunteers being carefully exposed to the exact same dose of the virus in the same manner, not everyone ended up testing positive for COVID. In fact, we were able to divide the volunteers into three distinct infection groups (see illustration). Six out of the 16 volunteers developed typical mild COVID, testing positive for several days with cold-like symptoms. We referred to this group as the “sustained infection group”. Out of the ten volunteers who did not develop a sustained infection, suggesting that they were able to fight off the virus early on, three went on to develop an “intermediate” infection with intermittent single positive viral tests and limited symptoms. We called them the “transient infection group”. The final seven volunteers remained negative on testing and did not develop any symptoms. This was the “abortive infection group”. This is the first confirmation of abortive infections, which were previously <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-04186-8">unproven</a>. Despite differences in infection outcomes, participants in all groups shared some specific novel immune responses, including in those whose immune systems prevented the infection. When we compared the timings of the cellular response between the three infection groups, we saw distinct patterns. For example, in the transiently infected volunteers where the virus was only briefly detected, we saw a strong and immediate accumulation of immune cells in the nose one day after infection. This contrasted with the sustained infection group, where a more delayed response was seen, starting five days after infection and potentially enabling the virus to take hold in these volunteers. In these people, we were able to identify cells stimulated by a key antiviral defence response in both the nose and the blood. This response, called the “interferon” response, is one of the ways our bodies signal to our immune system to help fight off viruses and other infections. We were surprised to find that this response was detected in the blood before it was detected in the nose, suggesting that the immune response spreads from the nose very quickly. <h2>Protective gene</h2> Lastly, we identified a specific gene called HLA-DQA2, which was expressed (activated to produce a protein) at a much higher level in the volunteers who did not go on to develop a sustained infection and could hence be used as a marker of protection. Therefore, we might be able to use this information and identify those who are probably going to be protected from severe COVID. These findings help us fill in some gaps in our knowledge, painting a much more detailed picture regarding how our bodies react to a new virus, particularly in the first couple of days of an infection, which is crucial. We can use this information to compare our data to other data we are currently generating, specifically where we are “challenging” volunteers to other viruses and more recent strains of COVID. In contrast to our current study, these will mostly include volunteers who have been vaccinated or naturally infected – that is, people who already have immunity. Our study has significant implications for future treatments and vaccine development. By comparing our data to volunteers who have never been exposed to the virus with those who already have immunity, we may be able to identify new ways of inducing protection, while also helping the development of more effective vaccines for future pandemics. In essence, our research is a step towards better preparedness for the next pandemic.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/233063/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/marko-nikolic-1543289">Marko Nikolic</a>, Principal Research Fellow/Honorary consultant Respiratory Medicine, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/ucl-1885">UCL</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kaylee-worlock-1543639">Kaylee Worlock</a>, Postdoc Research Fellow, Molecular and Cellular Biology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/ucl-1885">UCL</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-finally-know-why-some-people-got-covid-while-others-didnt-233063">original article</a>.

Body

To-do list got you down? Understanding the psychology of goals can help tick things off – and keep you on track

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kim-m-caudwell-1258935">Kim M Caudwell</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/charles-darwin-university-1066">Charles Darwin University</a> It feels like we are living in busy times. According to the <a href="https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/work-life-balance/">OECD Better Life Index</a>, 12.5% of Australians report working at least 50 hours a week, higher than the OECD average. Many Australians are also <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-03/multiple-job-holders-hit-record-high-abs/102679190">working more than one job to buffer against cost-of-living pressures</a>. Psychology has long been interested in our goals – our mental representations of desirable outcomes. Much of this research is on how we form, pursue and attain goals, plus how goals make us feel. Across studies, we see a consistent pattern of <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10902-013-9493-0#Sec34">successful goal pursuit and wellbeing</a>. So, having time to work toward our goals is important. With this in mind, what is the best way to get things done – and how can we get better at achieving our goals, especially when we feel time poor? <h2>Make a list</h2> Most of us approach multiple goals with the age-old “to-do” list. First, you write down everything you need to do. Then you “check” or tick things off as you do them. One reason to-do lists are useful is because we are more likely to remember things we haven’t completed, rather than things we have. This is known as the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-F1U4bV2m8">Zeigarnik effect</a>. While to-do lists are easy to write, they don’t always work. There are however <a href="https://hbr.org/2021/01/i-tried-4-to-do-list-methods-heres-what-worked">various approaches for to-do lists</a> that may improve their effectiveness. Another thing to consider is the wide range of apps, tools and platforms that can make tasks more fun and outsource mental load. Adding elements of game play like point scoring or competition – called “<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-gamification-could-revolutionise-creative-thinking-in-the-workplace-122852">gamification</a>” – can <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563221002867">help people work toward goals in educational and work settings</a>. Similarly, app-based reminders can help people reach <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/2047487320905717">physical rehabilitation goals and form good exercise habits</a>. <h2>Finding your why</h2> Researchers have focused a lot on the psychology of why people pursue goals – and how this affects their approach to tasks. For example, some people want to complete a university degree because they want to get a job. Others may be more interested in developing skills or knowledge. In both cases, there is a desired outcome – albeit with differing reasons. Our goals can be differentiated by who or what is driving them. Goals that feel like our own, and for which we experience a sense of intrinsic motivation, are known as “self-concordant”. These goals represent enduring personal interests, are aligned with values and are positively <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12144-020-01156-7">linked to wellbeing</a>. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10648-006-9012-5">Goal orientation theory</a> offers a similar perspective. Using the same example, you may study so you score well on a test (a performance goal) or because you want to be sure you develop your knowledge (a mastery goal). Mastery goals tend to lead to <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10869-010-9201-6">better results and self-regulation</a>. <h2>Juggling goals – 4 to-do tips</h2> So, what happens when we have multiple – perhaps even competing – goals, or goals that aren’t so enjoyable? We might want to finish writing a report or assignment, then read a few chapters of a textbook – but also go to the gym and binge a few episodes of our favourite TV show. In such scenarios, psychological science offers some insights into how we might stay task-focused, and on track to tick more items off our to-do list. 1. Beware the <a href="https://www.pwc.pl/en/articles/planning-fallacy-part-I-cognitive-traps.html">planning fallacy</a>. This happens when we underestimate the amount of resources (such as time) it will take to reach a goal. As writer and religious thinker William Penn put it: “Time is what we want most, but what we use worst”. Think through the all the steps and time required to complete your goal. 2. Monitor your progress. <a href="https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/91437/8/3_PDFsam_Does%20monitoring%20goal.pdf">Incorporating goal monitoring</a> into an activity can boost progress. And reviewing your estimations and expectations against your actual times and achievements can be used to calculate a “<a href="https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/estimating-time-for-tasks">fudge ratio</a>” to aid future planning. For instance, you could multiply your expected time on tasks by 1.5 to help buffer against the planning fallacy. 3. Focus on mastery. Self-concordant goals and tasks feel easier, and their underlying tasks may be <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0146167215575730">less subject to forgetting</a>. Tedious but necessary goals (such as doing the dishes or filling out forms) are less intrinsically motivating. This means <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/EBHRM-04-2014-0013/full/html#idm45933122746592">planning, reminders and support become more important to goal progress</a>. 4. Plan for derailments. People vary in their ability to plan and might forget to take a goal-directed action at an appropriate time (this could be one reason the <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/the-streaming-services-winning-the-battle-for-attention-and-the-feature-australians-want/9crrpafgd">average Australian streams 27 hours of video each week</a>). <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10463283.2024.2334563">Implementation intentions</a> bring our attention back toward our goals by linking them to an environmental marker. These simple “if-then” plans are shown to <a href="https://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/brp/research/constructs/implementation-intentions#:%7E:text=Implementation%20intentions%20are%20formed%20for,might%20otherwise%20undermine%20goal%20striving.">help overcome issues with self-regulation</a>. Such a statement might be “if I see the ‘next episode’ icon appear, I will get up and turn off the TV so I can read a chapter of my textbook”. With time being frustratingly finite, it is inevitable we will run out of time to do all of the things on our to-do list. Finding an approach that works for us will take time and effort. But it’s probably a worthy goal in itself.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/230399/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kim-m-caudwell-1258935">Kim M Caudwell</a>, Senior Lecturer - Psychology | Chair, Researchers in Behavioural Addictions, Alcohol and Drugs (BAAD), <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/charles-darwin-university-1066">Charles Darwin University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-do-list-got-you-down-understanding-the-psychology-of-goals-can-help-tick-things-off-and-keep-you-on-track-230399">original article</a>.

Mind

Who really was Mona Lisa? More than 500 years on, there’s good reason to think we got it wrong

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/darius-von-guttner-sporzynski-112147">Darius von Guttner Sporzynski</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-catholic-university-747">Australian Catholic University</a> In the pantheon of Renaissance art, Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa stands as an unrivalled icon. This half-length portrait is more than just an artistic masterpiece; it embodies the allure of an era marked by unparalleled cultural flourishing. Yet, beneath the surface of the Mona Lisa’s elusive smile lies a debate that touches the very essence of the Renaissance, its politics and the role of women in history. <h2>A mystery woman</h2> The intrigue of the Mona Lisa, also known as <a href="https://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/artdok/4207/1/Zoellner_Leonardos_portrait_of_Mona_Lisa_1993.pdf">La Gioconda</a>, isn’t solely due to Leonardo’s revolutionary painting techniques. It’s also because the identity of the subject is unconfirmed to this day. More than half a millennium since it was first painted, the real identity of the Mona Lisa remains one of art’s greatest mysteries, intriguing scholars and enthusiasts alike. The painting has traditionally been associated with Lisa Gherardini, the wife of Florentine silk merchant Francesco del Giocondo. But another compelling theory suggests a different sitter: Isabella of Aragon. Isabella of Aragon was born into the illustrious House of Aragon in Naples, in 1470. She was a princess who was deeply entwined in the political and cultural fabric of the Renaissance. Her 1490 marriage to Gian Galeazzo Sforza, Duke of Milan, positioned Isabella at the heart of Italian politics. And this role was both complicated and elevated by the ambitions and machinations of Ludovico Sforza (also called Ludovico il Moro), her husband’s uncle and usurper of the Milanese dukedom. <h2>Scholarly perspectives</h2> The theory that Isabella is the real Mona Lisa is supported by a combination of stylistic analyses, historical connections and reinterpretations of Leonardo’s intent as an artist. In his <a href="https://www.bookstellyouwhy.com/pages/books/51791/robert-payne/leonardo-1st-edition-1st-printing">biography of Leonardo</a>, author Robert Payne points to <a href="https://emuseum.hydecollection.org/objects/94/study-of-the-mona-lisa?ctx=760b87fd-efbf-4468-b579-42f98e9712d2&idx=0">preliminary studies</a> by the artist that bear a striking resemblances to Isabella around age 20. Payne suggests Leonardo captured Isabella <a href="https://emuseum.hydecollection.org/objects/94/study-of-the-mona-lisa?ctx=760b87fd-efbf-4468-b579-42f98e9712d2&idx=0">across different life stages</a>, including during widowhood, as depicted in the Mona Lisa. US artist Lillian F. Schwartz’s <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0097849395000317">1988 study</a> used x-rays to reveal an initial sketch of a woman hidden beneath Leonardo’s painting. This sketch was then painted over with Leonardo’s own likeness. Schwartz believes the woman in the sketch is Isabella, because of its similarity with a cartoon Leonardo made of the princess. She proposes the work was made by integrating specific features of the initial model with Leonardo’s own features. This hypothesis is further supported by art historians Jerzy Kulski and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owjJWxcnKrE">Maike Vogt-Luerssen</a>. According to Vogt-Luerssen’s <a href="https://www.kleio.org/de/buecher/wer-ist-mona-lisa/">detailed analysis</a> of the Mona Lisa, the symbols of the Sforza house and the depiction of mourning garb both align with Isabella’s known life circumstances. They suggest the Mona Lisa isn’t a commissioned portrait, but a nuanced representation of a woman’s journey through triumph and tragedy. Similarly, Kulski highlights the <a href="https://www.academia.edu/40147186/The_Mona_Lisa_Portrait_Leonardos_Personal_and_Political_Tribute_to_Isabella_Aragon_Sforza_the_Duchess_of_Milan">portrait’s heraldic designs</a>, which would be atypical for a silk merchant’s wife. He, too, suggests the painting shows Isabella mourning her late husband. The Mona Lisa’s enigmatic expression also captures Isabella’s self-described state post-1500 of being “<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1468-0424.12683">alone in misfortune</a>”. Contrary to representing a wealthy, recently married woman, the portrait exudes the aura of a virtuous widow. Late professor of art history <a href="https://brill.com/display/book/edcoll/9789004304130/B9789004304130_014.xml?language=en">Joanna Woods-Marsden</a> suggested the Mona Lisa transcends traditional portraiture and embodies Leonardo’s ideal, rather than being a straightforward commission. This perspective frames the work as a deeply personal project for Leonardo, possibly signifying a special connection between him and Isabella. Leonardo’s reluctance to part with the work also indicates a deeper, personal investment in it. <h2>Beyond the canvas</h2> The theory that Isabella of Aragon could be the true Mona Lisa is a profound reevaluation of the painting’s context, opening up new avenues through which to appreciate the work. It elevates Isabella from a figure overshadowed by the men in her life, to a woman of courage and complexity who deserves recognition in her own right. Through her strategic marriage and political savvy, <a href="https://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85147429412&origin=resultslist">Isabella played a crucial role in the alliances and conflicts</a> that defined the Italian Renaissance. By possibly choosing her as his subject, Leonardo immortalised her and also made a profound statement on the complexity and agency of women in a male-dominated society. The ongoing debate over Mona Lisa’s identity underscores this work’s significance as a cultural and historical artefact. It also invites us to reflect on the roles of women in the Renaissance and challenge common narratives that minimise them. In this light, it becomes a legacy of the women who shaped the Renaissance.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220666/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/darius-von-guttner-sporzynski-112147">Darius von Guttner Sporzynski</a>, Historian, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-catholic-university-747">Australian Catholic University</a> Image credits: Xinhua News Agency/Shutterstock Editorial This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-really-was-mona-lisa-more-than-500-years-on-theres-good-reason-to-think-we-got-it-wrong-220666">original article</a>.

Art

David Walliams' explosive new claims against BGT bosses

David Walliams has claimed he has suffered suicidal thoughts since being dropped as a judge from Britain's Got Talent, according to court documents. The explosive claims have been documented in the high-profile case with the UK High Court, which began after Walliams was axed from the popular TV show following a leaking of a hot mic conversation. The 52-year-old was unknowingly being recorded when he made <a href="https://oversixty.co.nz/finance/legal/david-walliams-sues-bgt-over-leaked-rant" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vile comments</a> about contestants, and was subsequently asked to leave the show after a decade on the judging panel. Now, Walliams is suing Fremantle Media after they allegedly “recorded, transcribed and retained” private conversations for ten years from Walliams and the other judges on the show. He alleges they collected private and sensitive details of conversations throughout his time on the family favourite series, and he claims fellow judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon were monitored the same way by production staff. Walliams, who says he has suffered suicidal thoughts after being cancelled from public life, is seeking £1 million (A$1.9 million) he stood to get from the prime-time ITV show, plus £1.7 million (A$3.25 million) in lost earnings from the last year. He wants an additional £3.4 million (A$6.5 million) covering future losses over at least the next two years, taking the total to £6.1 million (A$11.65 million). In addition he is seeking further unspecified damages for psychiatric harm, distress and upset and the loss of control over his private information and legal costs, which sources say could bring the total up to as much as £10 million (A$19 million). The court documents claim that Walliams was uninvited from an official royal event to read at the Commonwealth Writing Competition with Queen Camilla at Buckingham Palace, after he was dropped from BGT. He said in that time after he left the show, he has received only one new work booking, having “catastrophic results for his reputation and career”. Walliams says he is now fighting “active suicidal thoughts” and has “lost the ability to be funny” amid fears that whatever he says or does will be used against him. In the lengthy court documents, Walliams says the fallout destroyed his “reputation and career” as a comedian, TV personality and children’s author. Image credits: Getty Images

Legal

David Walliams sues BGT over leaked rant

David Walliams is suing Britain's Got Talent over a foul-mouth hot mic rant that was leaked. The former BGT judge is seeking significant damages after show bosses stunned viewers with the announcement he had quit the show in November 2022 after 10 years on the judging panel. The comedian abruptly left the show after a transcript of vile comments he made about contestants while his microphone was on during a filming break was made public. In the leaked transcript he called an elderly gentleman a “c***” three times, and said of another contestant, “She thinks you want to f*** her, but you don’t”. The vulgar remarks were make during an auditions round at the London Palladium in January 2020, and were then leaked to the media. After the transcript was made public, Walliams issued a grovelling apology, while his legal team argued he had never intended for his remarks to be heard by contestants or the public. Despite his apology, Walliams resigned from the show two weeks later. Walliams, who is a hugely popular figure in the UK, filed legal proceedings at London’s High Court last week. The star is accusing Fremantle, the studio behind the ITV talent show, of a data protection breach over the leaked transcript which ultimately ended his decade-long judging career. In a statement issued before he quit, Walliams said, “I would like to apologise to the people I made disrespectful comments about during breaks in filming for Britain’s Got Talent in 2020." “These were private conversations and – like most conversations with friends – were never intended to be shared. Nevertheless, I am sorry.” Image credits: Getty Images

Legal

What does having a ‘good relationship with food’ mean? 4 ways to know if you’ve got one

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/clare-collins-7316">Clare Collins</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-newcastle-1060">University of Newcastle</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tracy-burrows-172931">Tracy Burrows</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-newcastle-1060">University of Newcastle</a> Travelling on a train recently you couldn’t help but overhear two women deep in conversation about a mutual obsession with food, including emotional triggers that pushed them towards chocolate and pizza. They shared feeling guilty about a perceived lack of willpower around food and regularly rummaging through the fridge looking for tasty treats to help soothe emotions. Both lamented not being able to stop and think before eating. Their discussion was a long way from talking about physiological requirements for food to fuel your body and meet essential nutrient needs. Instead, it was highly emotive. It got me thinking about the meaning of a healthy relationship with food, how a person’s eating behaviours develop, and how a “good” relationship can be nurtured. Here’s what a “healthy” food relationship can look like. <h2>What does a ‘good relationship with food’ mean?</h2> You can check whether your relationship with food is “<a href="https://www.rwapsych.com.au/blog/what-does-a-healthy-relationship-with-food-and-eating-look-like/">healthy</a>” by seeing how many items on this list you tick “yes” to. Are you: <ol> <li> in tune with your body cues, meaning you’re aware when you are hungry, when you’re not, and when you’re feeling full? </li> <li> eating appropriate amounts and variety of foods across all food groups, at regular intervals so your nutrient, health and wellbeing needs are met? </li> <li> comfortable eating with others and also eating alone? </li> <li> able to enjoy food, without feelings of guilt or it dominating your life? </li> </ol> If you didn’t get many ticks, you might need to work on improving your relationship with food. <h2>Why does a good relationship with food matter?</h2> A lot of “no” responses indicate you may be using food as a coping mechanism in response to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36863205/">negative emotions</a>. The problem is this <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36839185/">triggers the brain’s reward centre</a>, meaning although you feel better, this behaviour becomes reinforced, so you are more likely to keep eating in response to negative emotions. Emotional eating and bouts of uncontrolled eating are more likely to be associated with <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36863205">eating disorder symptoms</a> and with having a worse quality diet, including lower intakes of vegetable and higher intakes of nutrient-poor foods. A review of studies on food addiction and mental health found healthy dietary patterns were associated with a lower risk of both disordered eating and <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29368800/">food addiction</a>. Higher intakes of vegetables and fruit were found to be associated with <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35586735/">lower perceived stress</a>, tension, worry and lack of joy in a cohort of more than 8,000 Australian adults. <h2>How to develop a healthy food relationship</h2> There are ways to improve your relationship with food. Here are some tips: 1. keep a ‘food mood’ <a href="https://nomoneynotime.com.au/ebooks-meal-plans-more/nmnt-food-and-mood-diary">diary</a>. Writing down when and where you eat and drink, whom you’re with, what you’re doing, and how all this makes you feel, will give you personal insights into when, what and why you consume the things you do. This helps increase awareness of emotions including stress, anxiety, depression, and factors that influence eating and drinking. 2. reflect on what you wrote in your food mood diary, especially “why” you’re eating when you eat. If reasons include stress, low mood or other emotions, create a distraction list featuring activities such as going for a walk or listening to music, and put it on the fridge, noticeboard or in your phone, so it’s easy to access. 3. practise <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28848310/">mindful eating</a>. This means slowing down so you become very aware of what is happening in your body and mind, moment by moment, when eating and drinking, without making any judgement about your thoughts and feelings. Mindless eating occurs when you eat without thinking at all. Being <a href="https://www.headspace.com/mindfulness/mindful-eating">mindful</a> means taking the time to check whether you really are hungry, or whether it’s “eye” hunger <a href="https://theconversation.com/health-check-six-tips-for-losing-weight-without-fad-diets-52496">triggered by seeing food</a>, “nose” hunger triggered by smells wafting from shops or cafes, “emotional hunger” triggered by feelings, or true, tummy-rumbling hunger. 4. learn about <a href="https://nomoneynotime.com.au/hacks-myths-faqs/healthy-eating-why-caring-about-the-foods-you-eat-is-worth-it">your nutrient needs</a>. Learning why your body needs specific vitamins and minerals and the foods they’re in, rather than just mentally coding food as “good” or “bad”, can help you drop the guilt. Banning “bad” foods makes you want them more, and like them more. Mindfulness can help you gain an <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24035461/">appreciation of foods that are both</a> pleasing and nourishing. 5. focus on getting enjoyment from food. Mindless eating can be reduced by focusing on enjoying food and the pleasure that comes from preparing and sharing food with others. One <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24035461/">intervention</a> for women who had concerns about dieting and weight control used workshops to raise their awareness of food cues that prompt eating, including emotions, or being in places they normally associate with eating, and also sensory aspects of food including taste, touch, smell, sound and texture. It also aimed to instruct them in how to embrace pleasure from social, emotional and cultural aspects of food. The intervention led to a reduction in overeating in response to emotional cues such as sadness and stress. Another <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33347469/">review</a> of 11 intervention studies that promoted eating pleasure and enjoyment found promising results on healthy eating, including better diet quality, healthier portion sizes, healthier food choices and greater liking of healthy foods. Participants also reported healthy food tasted better and got easier to cook more often at home. <h2>Where to get help to improve your relationship with food</h2> A healthy relationship with food also means the absence of <a href="https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/eating-disorders">disordered eating</a>, including binge eating, bulimia and anorexia. If you, or someone you know, shows <a href="https://www.rwapsych.com.au/blog/what-does-a-healthy-relationship-with-food-and-eating-look-like/">signs suggesting disordered eating</a>, such as regularly using restrictive practices to limit food intake, skipping meals, food rituals dictating which foods or combinations to eat at specific times, binge eating, feeling out of control around food, secret eating, inducing vomiting, or use of diet pills, follow up with a GP or health professional. You can get more information from <a href="https://insideoutinstitute.org.au/about-us">InsideOut</a>, an Australian institute for eating disorders. Try their online <a href="https://insideoutinstitute.org.au/for-myself">food relationship “check-up”</a> tool. The <a href="https://butterfly.org.au/">Butterfly Foundation</a> also has specific resources for <a href="https://butterfly.org.au/back-to-school-a-body-image-and-mental-health-guide-for-parents-and-children/">parents</a> and <a href="https://butterfly.org.au/">teachers</a> and a helpline operating from 8am to midnight, seven days a week on 1800 334673.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202622/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/clare-collins-7316">Clare Collins</a>, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-newcastle-1060">University of Newcastle</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tracy-burrows-172931">Tracy Burrows</a>, Professor Nutrition and Dietetics, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-newcastle-1060">University of Newcastle</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-does-having-a-good-relationship-with-food-mean-4-ways-to-know-if-youve-got-one-202622">original article</a>.

Food & Wine

Tony Bennett: the timeless visionary who, with a nod to America’s musical heritage, embraced the future

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jose-valentino-ruiz-1293457">Jose Valentino Ruiz</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-florida-1392">University of Florida</a> In the history of American popular music, there have been few luminaries as enduring and innovative as Tony Bennett. With a career that spanned almost 80 years, Bennett’s smooth tones, unique phrasing and visionary musical collaborations left an indelible mark on vocal jazz and the recording industry as a whole. That his <a href="https://apnews.com/article/tony-bennett-dies-c3b3a7e2360449fb936a38794c7c3266">death at the age of 96</a> on July 21, 2023, was mourned by artists as varied as <a href="https://twitter.com/KeithUrban/status/1682395658395824133">Keith Urban</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/OzzyOsbourne/status/1682411338340126720">Ozzy Osbourne</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/HarryConnickJR?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1682411086656557056%7Ctwgr%5E04a78435a793b5246d7bc19e09529f2b2f0bcfab%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fvariety.com%2F2023%2Fmusic%2Fnews%2Ftony-bennett-elton-john-reaction-tribute-1235676405%2F">Harry Connick Jr.</a> should come as no surprise. Yes, Bennett was a jazz crooner. But if his voice was always a constant – even late into his 80s, way past an age when most other singers have seen their vocal abilities diminish – then his embrace of the contemporary was every bit a facet of Bennett’s appeal. <h2>Vocal innovator</h2> Bennett’s journey is a testament to the power of daring innovation. From the early days of his career in the 1950s to his final recordings in the early 2020s, he fearlessly explored new musical territories, revolutionizing vocal jazz and captivating audiences across generations. His vocal style and phrasing were distinctive and set him apart from other artists of his time. He utilized a delayed or “laid-back” approach to falling on the note, a technique known as “<a href="https://www.musictheoryacademy.com/how-to-read-sheet-music/rubato/">rubato</a>.” This created a sense of anticipation in his phrasing, adding an element of surprise to his performances. Through Bennett’s skilled use of rubato, he was able to play with the tempo and rhythm of a song, bending and stretching musical phrases to evoke a range of emotions. This subtle manipulation of timing gave his songs a natural and conversational quality, making listeners feel as though he was intimately sharing his stories with them. Armed with this silky, playful voice, Bennett found fame fairly early on in his career, delivering jazz standards alongside the likes of Mel Tormé and Nat King Cole. By the mid-1960s, he was being touted by Frank Sinatra as “the best singer in the business.” But his musical style fell out of fashion in the 1970s – a lean period during which Bennett <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/07/21/tony-bennett-son-life-career-drugs/">almost succumbed to a drug overdose</a>. Then, in the 1990s, Bennett found a new audience and set off a series of collaborations with contemporary musical stars that would become the standard for his later career. No genre of artistry was deemed off-limits for Bennett. “<a href="https://www.tonybennett.com/music-detail.php?id=11">Duets: An American Classic</a>,” released to coincide with his 80th birthday in 2006, saw collaborations with country stars such as k.d. lang and the Dixie Chicks – now known as the Chicks – and soul legend Stevie Wonder, alongside kindred jazz spirits such as Diana Krall. “Duets II,” a 2011 follow-up, saw further explorations with the likes of Aretha Franklin, Queen Latifah, Willie Nelson and Amy Winehouse, in what would become the <a href="https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/amy-winehouse-final-recording-session/">British singer’s last recording</a>. But his cross-generational, cross-genre and cross-cultural appeal is perhaps best exemplified by his <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/21/arts/music/tony-bennett-lady-gaga.html">collaborations with Lady Gaga</a>, first on the 2014 Grammy-winning album “Cheek to Cheek.” The recording brought together two artists from different generations, genres and backgrounds, uniting them in a harmonious celebration of jazz classics. The collaboration not only showcased each one’s vocal prowess, but also sent a powerful message about the unifying nature of music. Lady Gaga, a pop artist with avant-garde leanings, might have seemed an unlikely partner for Bennett, the quintessential jazz crooner. Yet their musical chemistry and mutual admiration resulted in an album that mesmerized audiences worldwide. “Cheek to Cheek” effortlessly transcended musical boundaries, while the duo’s magnetic stage presence and undeniable talent enchanted listeners. The successful fusion of jazz and pop encouraged artists to experiment beyond traditional boundaries, leading to more cross-genre projects across the industry – proving that such projects could go beyond one-off novelties, and be profitable at that. <h2>Timeless artistry</h2> Bennett’s embrace of contemporary artists did not mean that he abandoned his own musical self. By blending traditional jazz with contemporary elements, he managed to captivate audiences across generations, appealing to both longtime fans and new listeners. One key aspect of Bennett’s success was his ability to embody the sentiment of old America, reminiscent of artists like Sinatra, Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong, while infusing contemporary nuances that resonated with the human condition of a more modern era. His approach to music captured both the essence and struggle of America, giving his songs a timeless and universal appeal. Moreover, his voice conveyed familiarity and comfort, akin to listening to a beloved uncle. Bennett’s albums stood out not only for his soulful voice and impeccable delivery but also for the way he drew others from varied musical backgrounds into his world of jazz sensibilities. As a producer, he recognized the importance of nurturing creativity and bringing out the best in artists. Meanwhile, Bennett’s approach to evolving his own sound while preserving its essence sets him apart as an artist. Fearless in his pursuit of innovation, he delved into contemporary musical elements and collaborated with producers to infuse new sonic dimensions into his later albums. The result drew listeners into an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kNpdLZwetU">intimate and immersive, concert-like acoustic journey</a>. <h2>Depth of emotion</h2> The greats in music have an ability to speak to the human experience. And either in collaboration with others or on his own, Bennett was able to achieve this time and time again. His albums were successful not only due to their technical brilliance and musicality but also because Bennett’s voice conveyed a depth of emotion that transcended barriers of time and culture, touching the hearts of listeners from various backgrounds. There was a universality in his music that made him a beloved and revered artist across the globe. Bennett’s life spanned decades of societal upheavals in the United States. But in his music, listeners could always find beauty in challenging times. And as the 20th- and 21st-century American music industry went through its own revolutions, Bennett’s artistic evolution mirrored the changes, cementing his place as a music icon who defies the boundaries of time and trends.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210244/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <iframe style="border-radius: 12px;" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/2UxxnhUE5YLchYgutxKEbJ?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="380" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" loading="lazy"></iframe> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jose-valentino-ruiz-1293457">Jose Valentino Ruiz</a>, Program Director of Music Business & Entrepreneurship, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-florida-1392">University of Florida</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/tony-bennett-the-timeless-visionary-who-with-a-nod-to-americas-musical-heritage-embraced-the-future-210244">original article</a>.

Music

Got no COVID-19 symptoms? A gene mutation might be the reason

<div class="copy"> A global study has unearthed a possible genetic reason why some people infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 show no symptoms. Human leukocyte antigens – or HLAs – are important genes that support immune function in the human body, particularly in identifying viral pathogens. And a particular variation in the HLA-B complex has been found to at least double the likelihood that a person infected with SARS-CoV-2 will be asymptomatic. For people who inherit a copy of the HLA-B15 variant from one parent, there was a 2.4 times greater chance of avoiding symptoms. Homozygous carriers — born with copies of the variant from each parent — were 8.5 times more likely to avoid symptoms. It’s a somewhat common variant among certain ethnicities – about 1 in 10 people with European ancestry are potential carriers – but having the gene is not a guaranteed protector against coronavirus symptoms. The findings, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06331-x" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06331-x">published</a> in Nature, have emerged from a joint study between researchers at the University of California San Fransisco and Australian institutions including Latrobe University, Monash University and the QIMR Berghofer Centre. The research came about almost by accident. <div class="in-content-area content-third content-right"> </div> Co-lead authors Professor Stephanie Gras from Latrobe and Jill Hollenbach from UCSF first met at a research conference in May 2022 and pooled their resources to track the association of possible gene variations with COVID-19 symptoms. Their teams narrowed a group of 30,000 people with high-quality HLA data to a cohort of about 1,500 unvaccinated people who tested positive for the virus. They then focussed on five locations of interest in the HLA genes while monitoring the emergence of symptoms to determine which variants, if any, might have a greater linkage to being COVID asymptomatic. “The [SARS-CoV-2] virus gets inside cells and ‘presents’ some small part of the virus on the surface via the HLA molecule,” Gras explains. “Those act as a red flag for T cells. The cell sends the signal to the T cell that it has been infected with the virus, and the T cells get activated and kill that [infected] cell. “HLA-B15 can actually present a small part of the spike protein that is very similar between SARS-CoV-2 and seasonal coronaviruses… [that] circulate every year in the population and give us the common cold during winter most of the time. They share some similarities.” The understanding provides a possible application for future treatments. Now an association between the variant and asymptomatic cases has been identified, the Gras and Hollenbach teams have begun to study the interaction between HLA-B15 and the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein at the atomic level. That research is already underway, including at the Australian Synchrotron at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation. “We’re doing atomic-level models of proteins to understand the interaction,” Gras says. “We want to compare the T cells within people who are asymptomatic with HLA-B15 and people who are not asymptomatic with HLA-B15. Actually, HLA-B15 is not a magic bullet, you can have it and still have severe COVID.” Image credits: Getty Images </div> <div id="contributors"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/covid/got-no-covid-19-symptoms-a-gene-mutation-might-be-the-reason/">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/matthew-agius">Matthew Ward Agius</a>. </div>

Body

“Devastated”: Britain's Got Talent star dies at 52

Britain’s Got Talent star Paula Moulton has died at 52-years-old. Paula, who was part of the wheelchair dance act Strictly Wheels, became a fan favourite when she appeared as a contestant on the hit show in 2012 with her dance partner Gary Lyness. Her death was announced on the Strictly Wheels Facebook account on Thursday. “We are devastated to announce the sudden passing of our co-founder Paula,” the post began. “Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this extremely sad time. Paula's legacy will always live in our memories from her utter joy of dance.” Although the cause of death has not yet been confirmed, Paula had been struggling with the effects of her battle with the MRSA superbug, which she contracted in 1995 after suffering from pneumonia. The infection left her with nerve damage which impacted her pelvis, lower spine, hips and femurs. Despite this Paula didn’t let it crush her spirit, and alongside her partner Gary, she has achieved a lot over her lifetime. In 2016 the pair launched the charity Strictly Wheels, as part of their mission to raise the profile of wheelchair dancing and promote “Ability not Disability”. In 2018, they ranked eighth in the world in Latin Wheelchair Dance after competing in the World Para Dance competition at IPC Level. Fans have taken to the comment section to share their condolences. “My heart is broken! My deepest condolences to family and friends! She will be missed,” wrote one fan. “Paula Moulton was a wonderful dancer from Great Britain, who will be missed dearly ♡ she was warm and always welcomed newcomers with open arms. This is a huge shock to everyone involved with paradancesport all around the world. Our deepest condolences to her friends and family.❤️” wrote another. “I’m shocked and saddened to hear this - love and condolences to all, and rest in peace, Paula x” commented a third. Images: Facebook

Caring

Tina Turner: an immense talent with a voice and back catalogue that unites disparate music lovers

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/freya-jarman-535397">Freya Jarman</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-liverpool-1198">University of Liverpool</a> On a few rare occasions (often at the end of a night), I’ve confided to my friends that Tina Turner was one of my biggest celebrity crushes. The revelation has usually been met with some surprise, and not unreasonably. Born in 1939, Tina was older than my mother and nearly 40 years older than me. But to me, she was a complete goddess from the moment I first encountered her. I vividly recall a white button-down shirt and figure-hugging blue jeans (probably the Foreign Affair tour of 1990) and an awakening of teenage desire. Turner has died aged 83. Reflecting now on her 50-year-long career, I can see the threads that made her the perfect icon for the young queer feminist I was in the early 90s. She was a strong and resilient woman who escaped the control of abusive men and went on to forge a stronger solo career afterwards. But her music also pushed boundaries of genre in ways that start to defy categories of gender, race and age, thereby changing the way female performers could be thought of. In 1967, Turner was both the first Black artist and woman to appear on the cover of <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-pictures/tina-turner-rolling-stone-covers-916255/">Rolling Stone</a>. She remains the only Black woman to have been inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2013, she became the oldest person (at 73) to appear on the <a href="https://www.thecut.com/2013/03/tina-turner-oldest-vogue-cover-model.html">cover of Vogue</a>. Vocally, Turner was raised in the church, Spring Hill Baptist Church in Nutbush, specifically. However, her voice was different from the others she came up alongside. Unlike Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin or Diana Ross, Turner’s voice had a grit and a rasp, qualities that always added an unexpected edge to her early work. It was also a sound that enabled her to move beyond soul and blues in her solo career. <h2>A genre-fluid singer</h2> Turner’s first solo album (in 1974) was country, replete with steel guitars and talk of the bayou. The very next year, she performed the role of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rJGX8uqoL8&ab_channel=StevenPrestidge">Acid Queen</a> in film of The Who’s psychedelic operetta fantasy, Tommy. The role gave its name to an album featuring several notable rock covers by Turner, such as Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love. Famously, she escaped from an abusive relationship with her singing partner Ike Turner, securing the rights to her stage name to her comparative financial detriment in their divorce settlement in 1978. Ike exerted his dominance in plain sight, slipping verbal threats of violence into <a href="https://youtu.be/FqdhfwUd2lk?t=88">a live performance of I’ve Been Loving You Too Long</a> at a concert in Ghana (1971). From the early 1980s, Turner made what has repeatedly been described as one of the most remarkable career comebacks of the century. The chart success of her cover of Al Green’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rFB4nj_GRc&ab_channel=TinaTurner">Let’s Stay Together</a> (1983) came from left of field and the ensuing album, Private Dancer (1984) went platinum five times. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/d4QnalIHlVc?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Private Dancer represented another musical turn, this time towards the electro-synth pop world inhabited by Heaven 17, whose Rupert Hine and Martyn Ware produced several of the songs. The title song of the album exemplifies the narrative of Tina as a feminist powerhouse. Even 40 years on, the idea of a woman in her mid-40s singing a pop song about sex work is somewhat surprising. It’s not just an allusion to sex work (like, for instance, Blondie’s Call Me). And it’s far from the many songs about female sex workers written and performed by men (take Roxanne by The Police or Killer Queen by Queen for instance). Private Dancer is an explicit and unambiguous declaration of female desire and power in the first person. If anyone were in any doubt that Beyoncé owes a great deal to Turner’s trailblazing, her video for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZ12_E5R3qc&ab_channel=Beyonc%C3%A9VEVO">Partition</a> is surely evidence, being a direct descendant of Private Dancer with its cage-dancing sex show. Over her 14 solo albums, Turner developed a remarkable capacity to push through boundaries and exist between categories. Along the way, she also changed how a woman in popular music was positioned for consumption. This magic made her fans in all sorts of music listeners. <h2>A musical uniter</h2> Turner’s musical agility allowed her to inhabit contradictory musical spaces simultaneously. For instance, there is the Tina Turner who makes regular appearances on the setlists of DJs at retro club nights, inspiring inebriated patrons to shake their tail feathers in unison. There is an exuberance here that crosses times and identities to bring a crowd together in the ritual of “rolling on the river”. It’s a song that also invites all shades of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLUJz5xrdds&ab_channel=ThatRPDRChannel">drag performance to honour it</a>. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GC5E8ie2pdM?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></figure> Then there is the Tina Turner who appears – frequently as the only woman, and perhaps uniquely as a Black woman – on compilations targeted at a predominantly male audience. The world of “dad rock” and “driving anthems” is a stronghold of largely white, male baby boomers. Think Robert Palmer, ZZ Top, The Jam and Whitesnake. There alongside them is Turner with songs like The Best, We Don’t Need Another Hero and Nutbush City Limits. Tina Turner’s capacity to transcend these borders of genre, and with them, borders of race, age, and gender, is what made her the absolute legend that she was. To me, it will also always represent a hybridity that calls to my identity as a queer feminist.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/206526/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/freya-jarman-535397">Freya Jarman</a>, Reader in the Department of Music, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-liverpool-1198">University of Liverpool</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/tina-turner-an-immense-talent-with-a-voice-and-back-catalogue-that-unites-disparate-music-lovers-206526">original article</a>.

Music

"What a FIGHTER!": Susan Boyle reveals secret health scare during comeback

Singing sensation Susan Boyle surprised her fans with an unexpected appearance on Britain’s Got Talent for the competition’s extravagant final. Boyle, who had previously appeared on the show herself in 2009, took to the stage with the cast of the West End’s Les Miserables for a performance of the song ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ - the same one she auditioned with when she was a competitor. And fans were treated to one more song, with the ensemble joining Boyle for a rendition of ‘Do You Hear The People Sing?’ too. Once the crowd’s delighted applause had quietened, Britain’s Got Talent hosts Ant and Dec approached Boyle, gushing over her as they welcomed her back to the stage. “It is so lovely to see you,” Dec declared. “It’s hard to believe you appeared on this show in 2009 - fourteen years ago. How does it feel to be back at BGT?” “It feels great,” Susan told him, to further cheering from the audience. She went on to share that the whole affair was “extra special” to her, before revealing that “last April there, I suffered a minor stroke.” The theatre was quiet, everyone taken by surprise, before Boyle announced that she’d “fought like crazy to get back on stage, and I have done it.” As Dec shared that they were “thrilled” to hear of her triumphant return, cheers rang out once again, and applause echoed throughout the room in celebration of Boyle. When judge Simon Cowell - who was present for Boyle’s audition as well - was asked how it felt to see her back on the stage, he noted that it was “unbelievable”. “Susan, we owe you so much,” he said, “and I knew you weren't well, but if anyone was going to come back, you were going to come back, because we wouldn't be the same without you. You are amazing." And when clips from her performance, and following reveal, made it online, fans wasted no time in sharing their love and support for the singer. “Huge huge respect for Susan Boyle,” one wrote. “Post stroke and absolutely smashing it on BGT tonight! Incredible!” “Good for her! Great to see her back!” another said. “Never ever be defined by an illness or disability. Never.” “Aww! Susan Boyle is an absolute superstar in every sense of the word, so humble,” one gushed. “It’s so good to see her back with her microphone!” And as someone else put it, “bless Susan Boyle, she spent her entire life not realising her full potential as a West End singer, to then go on to be one of the biggest stars to come out of #BGT. Her performance tonight had passion; she has real HEART and her having a stroke last year - what a FIGHTER!” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> ⭐ STAGEY SMILE OF THE DAY ⭐ Here's Lucie Jones & Susan Boyle performing "I Dreamed A Dream" from Les Misérables, for the BGT grand final 🇫🇷 ✨ X x x <a href="https://t.co/nmIB5eo29c">pic.twitter.com/nmIB5eo29c</a> — Theatre Fan (@ShaunTossell) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaunTossell/status/1665467122053443586?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 4, 2023</a></blockquote> Images: Twitter

Caring

A brief history of the mortgage, from its roots in ancient Rome to the English ‘dead pledge’ and its rebirth in America

The average interest rate for a new U.S. <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/home-loan-mortgage-interest-rate-7-percent-highest-since-2001/">30-year fixed-rate mortgage topped 7% in late October 2022</a> for the first time in more than two decades. It’s a sharp increase from one year earlier, when <a href="https://www.valuepenguin.com/mortgages/historical-mortgage-rates">lenders were charging homebuyers only 3.09%</a> for the same kind of loan. Several factors, including <a href="https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/mortgages/fed-mortgage-rates">inflation rates and the general economic outlook</a>, influence mortgage rates. A primary driver of the ongoing upward spiral is the <a href="https://abc7chicago.com/fed-interest-rate-decision-today-hike-federal-reserve-meeting-november/12408055/">Federal Reserve’s series of interest rate hikes</a> intended to tame inflation. Its decision to increase the benchmark rate by <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20221102a.htm">0.75 percentage points on Nov. 2, 2022</a>, to as much as 4% will propel the cost of mortgage borrowing even higher. Even if you have had mortgage debt for years, you might be unfamiliar with the history of these loans – a subject I cover <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=KVv47noAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">in my mortgage financing course</a> for undergraduate business students at Mississippi State University. The term dates back to <a href="https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/medieval/">medieval England</a>. But the roots of these legal contracts, in which land is pledged for a debt and will become the property of the lender if the loan is not repaid, go back thousands of years. <h2>Ancient roots</h2> Historians trace the <a href="https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Nehemiah-5-3/">origins of mortgage contracts</a> to the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia, who ruled modern-day Iran in the fifth century B.C. The Roman Empire formalized and documented the legal process of pledging collateral for a loan. Often using the <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%202%3A13-16&version=NIV">forum and temples as their base of operations</a>, mensarii, which is derived from the word mensa or “bank” in Latin, would set up loans and charge <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%202%3A13-16&version=NIV">borrowers interest</a>. These government-appointed public bankers required the borrower to put up collateral, whether real estate or personal property, and their agreement regarding the use of the collateral would be handled in one of three ways. First, the <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fiducia">Fiducia</a>, Latin for “trust” or “confidence,” required the transfer of both ownership and possession to lenders until the debt was repaid in full. Ironically, this arrangement involved no trust at all. Second, the <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pignus">Pignus</a>, Latin for “pawn,” allowed borrowers to retain ownership while <a href="https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1684&context=penn_law_review">sacrificing possession and use</a> until they repaid their debts. Finally, the <a href="https://legaldictionary.lawin.org/hypotheca/">Hypotheca</a>, Latin for “pledge,” let borrowers retain both ownership and possession while repaying debts. <h2>The living-versus-dead pledge</h2> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Claudius-Roman-emperor">Emperor Claudius</a> brought Roman law and customs to Britain in A.D. 43. Over the next <a href="https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/romans/">four centuries of Roman rule</a> and the <a href="https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/early-medieval/">subsequent 600 years known as the Dark Ages</a>, the British adopted another Latin term for a pledge of security or collateral for loans: <a href="https://worldofdictionary.com/dict/latin-english/meaning/vadium">Vadium</a>. If given as collateral for a loan, real estate could be offered as “<a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vadium%20vivum">Vivum Vadium</a>.” The literal translation of this term is “living pledge.” Land would be temporarily pledged to the lender who used it to generate income to pay off the debt. Once the lender had collected enough income to cover the debt and some interest, the land would revert back to the borrower. With the alternative, the “<a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mortuum%20vadium">Mortuum Vadium</a>” or “dead pledge,” land was pledged to the lender until the borrower could fully repay the debt. It was, essentially, an interest-only loan with full principal payment from the borrower required at a future date. When the lender demanded repayment, the borrower had to pay off the loan or lose the land. Lenders would keep proceeds from the land, be it income from farming, selling timber or renting the property for housing. In effect, the land was <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1321129.pdf">dead to the debtor</a> during the term of the loan because it provided no benefit to the borrower. Following <a href="https://www.royal.uk/william-the-conqueror">William the Conqueror’s victory</a> at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the English language was heavily influenced by <a href="https://blocs.mesvilaweb.cat/subirats/the-norman-conquest-the-influence-of-french-on-the-english-language-loans-and-calques/">Norman French</a> – William’s language. That is how the Latin term “Mortuum Vadium” morphed into “Mort Gage,” Norman French for “dead” and “pledge.” “<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/mortgage">Mortgage</a>,” a <a href="https://ia600201.us.archive.org/1/items/cu31924021674399/cu31924021674399.pdf">mashup of the two words</a>, then entered the English vocabulary. <h2>Establishing rights of borrowers</h2> Unlike today’s mortgages, which are usually due within 15 or 30 years, English loans in the 11th-16th centuries were unpredictable. <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1323192.pdf">Lenders could demand repayment</a> at any time. If borrowers couldn’t comply, lenders could seek a court order, and the land would be forfeited by the borrower to the lender. Unhappy borrowers could <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/chancery">petition the king</a> regarding their predicament. He could refer the case to the lord chancellor, who could <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Chancery-Division">rule as he saw fit</a>. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Francis-Bacon-Viscount-Saint-Alban">Sir Francis Bacon</a>, England’s lord chancellor from 1618 to 1621, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/752041">established</a> the <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/equity_of_redemption">Equitable Right of Redemption</a>. This new right allowed borrowers to pay off debts, even after default. The official end of the period to redeem the property was called <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/foreclosure">foreclosure</a>, which is derived from an Old French word that means “<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/foreclose">to shut out</a>.” Today, foreclosure is a legal process in which lenders to take possession of property used as collateral for a loan. <h2>Early US housing history</h2> The <a href="https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/united-states-history-primary-source-timeline/colonial-settlement-1600-1763/overview/">English colonization</a> of what’s now <a href="https://themayflowersociety.org/history/the-mayflower-compact/">the United States</a> didn’t immediately transplant mortgages across the pond. But eventually, U.S. financial institutions were offering mortgages. <a href="https://www.huduser.gov/publications/pdf/us_evolution.pdf">Before 1930, they were small</a> – generally amounting to at most half of a home’s market value. These loans were generally short-term, maturing in under 10 years, with payments due only twice a year. Borrowers either paid nothing toward the principal at all or made a few such payments before maturity. Borrowers would have to refinance loans if they couldn’t pay them off. <h2>Rescuing the housing market</h2> Once America fell into the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression">Great Depression</a>, the <a href="https://www.stlouisfed.org/news-releases/2008/05/02/does-the-great-depression-hold-the-answers-for-the-current-mortgage-distress">banking system collapsed</a>. With most homeowners unable to pay off or refinance their mortgages, the <a href="https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-depression">housing market crumbled</a>. The number of <a href="https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-and-education-magazines/housing-1929-1941">foreclosures grew to over 1,000 per day by 1933</a>, and housing prices fell precipitously. The <a href="https://www.fhfaoig.gov/Content/Files/History%20of%20the%20Government%20Sponsored%20Enterprises.pdf">federal government responded by establishing</a> new agencies to stabilize the housing market. They included the <a href="https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/housing/fhahistory">Federal Housing Administration</a>. It provides <a href="https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-mortgage-insurance-and-how-does-it-work-en-1953/">mortgage insurance</a> – borrowers pay a small fee to protect lenders in the case of default. Another new agency, the <a href="https://sf.freddiemac.com/articles/insights/why-americas-homebuyers-communities-rely-on-the-30-year-fixed-rate-mortgage">Home Owners’ Loan Corp.</a>, established in 1933, bought defaulted short-term, semiannual, interest-only mortgages and transformed them into new long-term loans lasting 15 years. Payments were monthly and self-amortizing – covering both principal and interest. They were also fixed-rate, remaining steady for the life of the mortgage. Initially they skewed more heavily toward interest and later defrayed more principal. The corporation made new loans for three years, tending to them until it <a href="https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,858135,00.html">closed in 1951</a>. It pioneered long-term mortgages in the U.S. In 1938 Congress established the Federal National Mortgage Association, better known as <a href="https://www.fanniemae.com/about-us/who-we-are/history">Fannie Mae</a>. This <a href="https://www.financial-dictionary.info/terms/government-sponsored-enterprise/">government-sponsored enterprise</a> made fixed-rate long-term mortgage loans viable <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/securitization.asp">through a process called securitization</a> – selling debt to investors and using the proceeds to purchase these long-term mortgage loans from banks. This process reduced risks for banks and encouraged long-term mortgage lending. <h2>Fixed- versus adjustable-rate mortgages</h2> After World War II, Congress authorized the Federal Housing Administration to insure <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CPRT-108HPRT92629/html/CPRT-108HPRT92629.htm">30-year loans on new construction</a> and, a few years later, purchases of existing homes. But then, the <a href="https://files.stlouisfed.org/files/htdocs/publications/review/69/09/Historical_Sep1969.pdf">credit crunch of 1966</a> and the years of high inflation that followed made adjustable-rate mortgages more popular. Known as ARMs, these mortgages have stable rates for only a few years. Typically, the initial rate is significantly lower than it would be for 15- or 30-year fixed-rate mortgages. Once that initial period ends, <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/arm.asp">interest rates on ARMs</a> get adjusted up or down annually – along with monthly payments to lenders. Unlike the rest of the world, where ARMs prevail, Americans still prefer the <a href="https://sf.freddiemac.com/articles/insights/why-americas-homebuyers-communities-rely-on-the-30-year-fixed-rate-mortgage">30-year fixed-rate mortgage</a>. About <a href="https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=DP04&t=Housing">61% of American homeowners</a> have mortgages today – with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15214842.2020.1757357">fixed rates the dominant type</a>. But as interest rates rise, demand for <a href="https://www.corelogic.com/intelligence/interest-rates-are-up-but-arm-backed-home-purchases-are-way-up/">ARMs is growing</a> again. If the Federal Reserve fails to slow inflation and interest rates continue to climb, unfortunately for some ARM borrowers, the term “dead pledge” may live up to its name. Image credits: Getty Images This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-brief-history-of-the-mortgage-from-its-roots-in-ancient-rome-to-the-english-dead-pledge-and-its-rebirth-in-america-193005" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.

Real Estate

“Incredibly gifted”: Homeless man stuns with piano talents

A homeless man who sleeps in his car has amazed onlookers with his “incredible” piano talent. Shane has been taking to the piano every day and night in a pedestrian tunnel underneath the Queensland Performing Arts Centre in South Brisbane. The “incredibly gifted” man has drawn attention from listeners for his musical talents, despite never having any lessons, and never owning a piano. “I was just walking past and had to stop, absolutely amazing - it blows me away to be honest,” a man walking past told <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Crsn-qCp-Ue/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link">7News</a>. “One of the best piano players I have ever seen,” another onlooker said. <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Crsn-qCp-Ue/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Crsn-qCp-Ue/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by 7NEWS Queensland (@7newsqueensland)</a> </div> </blockquote> Shane said playing the piano has a therapeutic effect on him, and helps him escape his harsh reality of living in his car a few streets away from the theatre. “It takes me to a place out of reality, away from beyond whatever is around us. I can hear an orchestra in my head, the piano plays me rather than I play the piano,” he said. Shane doesn't know how to read music, or know any of the names of the keys, but couldn’t help being drawn to the instrument that is available for public use. After hearing the sound of a piano coming from a local ballet school in the area when he was a child, he has been enamoured by the piano and dreams of performing with others one day. Shane’s talents have gone viral online, with commenters being “gobsmacked” over the man’s “beautiful music”. “Wow! So incredibly gifted. I hope he gets his dream of playing with others,” one impressed viewer said. “We need more stories like this. What a remarkable man,” another wrote. “I hope someone can help this man, he needs a job in a restaurant playing nice music and getting well paid so he can rent a place to live and a happy life,” a third said. Image credits: 7News

Music

Britain’s Got Talent burned by 334 complaints after "insensitive" stunt

Warning: This article contains content that some readers may find disturbing. Britain’s Got Talent is in hot water with its 16th season after the second episode drew in a staggering 334 complaints - a total of 400 across both episodes, Ofcom reported. The stunt that caused the ire, dubbed “insensitive” and “unacceptable” by the public, saw a professional stuntman named Thomas Vu cover himself in a fire-retardant gel, before he was set alight and left to solve a Rubik’s Cube. In the wake of the stunt, hosts Ant and Dec were quick to issue a warning to viewers, telling them “do not try this at home, ever.” And when the clip was uploaded to the official BGT Twitter account, the text ‘do not try this at home’ is splashed across the video. However, distressed viewers still took to the comments section to share their distaste, with one writing that it was “absolutely ridiculous and irresponsible [and] should never have been allowed to be televised especially on a family programme!!” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Stuntman Thomas Vu solved the Rubik's cube in the most UNEXPECTED way: <a href="https://t.co/nSEWOokCSb">https://t.co/nSEWOokCSb</a> Do not try this at home!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BGT?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BGT</a> <a href="https://t.co/awPLBTmaEf">pic.twitter.com/awPLBTmaEf</a> — BGT (@BGT) <a href="https://twitter.com/BGT/status/1649110690987376642?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2023</a></blockquote> “BGT totally ill-considered showing a guy setting himself on fire whilst solving a Rubik’s Cube,” tweeted another. “No thought to the fact that impressionable children watch the show.” “Don’t get me wrong,” one began, “people do crazy stuff and it’s their choice and that’s fine by me but maybe that last act should have been well after the 9pm watershed?? Not sure that kind of playing with fire thing is suitable for young kids who probably stay up to watch BGT.” “Like what has BGT come to when we set people on fire for entertainment,” someone else said on the matter. And as yet another user put it, “sorry but showing a man setting himself on fire on a ‘family’ show is not acceptable. Even with the mention ‘do not try this at home’.” Concern for children continued from there, with one tweeting “The Rubik’s Cube fire stunt on BGT was totally inappropriate. Did you not think about burn victims and how seeing this would affect them?” Meanwhile, others simply found the stunt to be insensitive, with one even referencing the 1965 Bradford City disaster when they wrote “I just find this insensitive to anyone that has been through any trauma caused by fire.” Criticism for the episode was so intense, coupled with the volume of complaints flowing in, that the show was forced to issue a statement, telling viewers “Britain’s Got Talent showcases a mix of variety acts to engage audiences. “In this case, it was made very clear on screen that this act should not be tried at home and the programme was subject to strict compliance rules." Images: Britain’s Got Talent / ITV

Body

"We got in trouble a lot": Fergie spills all on Princess Diana arrest

Sarah Ferguson has opened up about the time she and the late Princess Diana got themselves arrested in 1986. The pair were celebrating at a nightclub when they were arrested for impersonating law enforcement officers. The two had decided to dress up as police for Fergie’s bachelorette party, unaware that they were setting themselves on a path to trouble in an event described by Royal Expert Tom Quinn as a “riot”. Speaking to The Sun, Fergie claimed that once authorities came to the realisation that she and Diana were actually royals, it wasn’t long before they were released. And while appearing on The Kelly Clarkson Show, she expanded on the tale, outlining exactly how the two had gotten themselves into such a situation in the first place. “It was extraordinary,” the 63-year-old Duchess of York said, “because we went to a nightclub, of course, you go to a nightclub with the Princess of Wales. “We sat down, and the waiter came up to us and said ‘excuse me, this is a members club. It’s for fun, and we don’t serve police officers here’." “They thought you were real police officers?" host Kelly Clarkson exclaimed. Fergie confirmed the detail with a confident "yes!" She explained that once they had been arrested and ushered into the police van, they opted to hide their engagement rings. Fergie went on to recall that Diana had been told off for eating some chips - “smoky bacon-flavoured” she’d found in the vehicle. Their brief encounter with the law didn’t ruin their fun though, with the party continuing on into Annabel’s nightclub - an establishment known to be one of the world’s most exclusive. And their fun reportedly wasn’t limited to their own celebration, with Town and Country Magazine claiming that the two got up to some more mischief when they decided to lock Andrew out of Buckingham Palace after his bachelor party. Their fun kept the two close over the course of their friendship, and Fergie has admitted that she carries Diana everywhere she goes, telling Kelly, “she’s with me all day”. “She and I, we laughed a lot,” Fergie reminisced, “we got into trouble a lot. “You know what she used to do? She used to tell me the worst story, joke story, just before I had to be serious." Although, despite her admiration for Diana’s sense of humour - and her belief that Diana would be “incredibly proud” of her grandchildren - Fergie did once share on Good Morning America that if the two had had the chance to go head-to-head as grandmothers, she believed they’d “have a ‘Granny-off’. Because she would run faster in the races, I wonder … she’d probably be funnier. No, I think I’d be funnier.” Images: Getty

Relationships

5 things the latest season of The Crown got right and 3 things that were inaccurate

<h2>Separating fact from fiction</h2> Season 5 of The Crown finally aired on Netflix after two years of waiting. The first season of The Crown aired in 2016, telling the story of all the major players in the royal family trees starting just before Queen Elizabeth II’s ascension to the throne. Every season since has covered roughly a decade or so in the lives of the royals. The new season of The Crown takes place between 1991 and 1997 and sees Charles and Diana nearing the end of their tumultuous marriage, securing their position as global tabloid fodder. (And, as season five points out, coverage of their lives would often blur the line between journalism and salacious gossip.) Despite the fact that there was so much real-life royal drama during this time, there are elements of The Crown that are not based on real events – so much so that Netflix added a disclaimer when releasing the trailer for this season that stated, ‘Inspired by real events, this fictional dramatisation tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II and the political and personal events that shaped her reign.’ It can be confusing to parse fact from fiction. Here’s a fact check of The Crown season five to help understand what’s real and what’s not. <h2>Here’s what was actually true in The Crown – and what wasn’t</h2> Most of the historical events that have appeared on The Crown are based on true events. Let’s start with a few things that definitely happened. <div> </div> <h2>Truth: Martin Bashir did use false evidence to convince Princess Diana to appear on Panorama</h2> On The Crown Season 5 Episode 7, BBC journalist Martin Bashir (played by Prasanna Puwanarajah) is shown fabricating fake bank statements to convince Charles Spencer and his sister, Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki), into believing that members of their trusted teams were being paid off by British intelligence services for information about them. In turn, Bashir played into their fears and earned Diana’s trust enough to convince her to appear on his TV show, Panorama, giving one of the most explosive interviews of the decade. In 2020, an independent inquiry did find Bashir guilty of wrongdoing, and the BBC apologised to Charles Spencer for Bashir’s deception. <h2>Truth: Prince Philip was a world-class carriage driver</h2> Season 5 Episode 2 is when we learn of Prince Philip’s obsession with carriage driving. In fact, Philip (played by actor Jonathan Pryce) was not just a hobbyist in the sport, but he competed internationally as a member of the British Diving Team. He also wrote several books and served as the president of the Fédération Équestre Internationale. <h2>Truth: Windsor Castle sustained massive fire damage in 1992</h2> In Season 5 Episode 4, Queen Elizabeth (Imelda Staunton) referred to 1992 as an “annus horribilis,” or, a horrible year. It was the year that marked the separation of Charles and Diana as well as Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson. Adding to the heartbreak, 1992 was also the year that Windsor Castle caught fire when a spotlight ignited a curtain, destroying dozens of rooms and several priceless works of art. <h2>Truth: Mohamed Al-Fayed hired the Duke of Windsor’s former valet, Sydney Johnson, to work for him</h2> In Season 5 Episode 3, we are introduced to Mohamed Al-Fayed (Salim Daw), the Egyptian businessman who would build up an empire that included the Ritz Hotel in Paris and Harrods Department Store in London. As the show depicts, Al-Fayed was a lifelong Anglophile and did meet and hire Sydney Johnson, a Bahamian man who previously spent three decades as Edward, Duke of Windsor’s valet after Edward abdicated the throne. Johnson began working for Al-Fayed in 1977, five years after Edward passed away. After Edward’s wife, Wallis Simpson died, Al-Fayed purchased their Paris estate and, along with Johnson, helped restore it. With regard to the end of this episode, when Mohamed Al-Fayed met Princess Diana, while we’re not sure if they really did bond instantly at a polo match, it’s true that the two became friends years before Diana began dating Mohamed’s son, Dodi Al-Fayed. Dodi would later die in the 1997 car crash that also took Diana’s life. <h2>Truth: tampongate really did happen</h2> In 1989, when Charles and Camilla’s affair was not yet public, the two engaged in a phone conversation where Charles compared himself to a tampon. The conversation was later released to the public in 1993 after Diana and Charles separated. <h2>And now for a few things that appear on The Crown season 5 that didn’t actually happen… Fiction: The Sunday Times poll</h2> Throughout the season, Prince Charles (Dominic West) is seen as a man who is ready for new responsibilities. Specifically, the responsibility of being king. In Episode 1, a poll revealing that half the British population thinks that his ageing mother Queen Elizabeth, should abdicate her role is published in the Sunday Times, and Charles takes that as a sign that he should start preparing himself to be king. He even goes so far as to meet with Prime Minister John Major (Jonny Lee Miller) to seek his support. But, none of that happened. There was no such poll published in 1991 by the Sunday Times, and no such conversation between Major and the Prince of Wales. In fact, Major is one of this season’s biggest detractors. He has called the series “a barrel-load of nonsense.” <h2>Fiction: Prince Philip and Penny Knatchbull’s affair</h2> It’s true that Prince Philip and his godson’s wife, Penny Knatchbull, were both invested in the sport of carriage driving, and it is also true that their friendship was fodder for speculation that there was something more to it. But alas, there is no concrete evidence that Prince Philip engaged in an affair with Penny. <h2>Fiction: Diana warning the queen about her Panorama interview</h2> Everyone involved in Princess Diana’s Panorama interview knew it was a giant risk to let the estranged princess speak so candidly on the most revered broadcasting network in the country. While it’s true that Marmaduke Hussey, then-chairman of the BBC, felt that it was a disgrace to air the interview, the queen herself was not actually given a heads-up by Diana before the inflammatory program aired in 1995. The conversation between Diana and the queen was pure fabrication, confirmed by Patrick Jephson, Diana’s press secretary at the time. While it can be confusing parsing out what The Crown gets wrong about the royal family and what the show gets right, season 5 remains as engrossing as ever thanks to its excelling writing and cast. What we do know for sure is that season six, which tackles the final months of Diana’s life and the years after, can’t come soon enough. This article originally appeared on <a href="https://www.readersdigest.com.au/culture/5-things-the-latest-season-of-the-crown-got-right-and-3-things-that-were-inaccurate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reader's Digest</a>. Image: Netflix

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A brief history of the mortgage, from its roots in ancient Rome to the English ‘dead pledge’ and its rebirth in America

“Incredibly gifted”: Homeless man stuns with piano talents

Britain’s Got Talent burned by 334 complaints after "insensitive" stunt

"We got in trouble a lot": Fergie spills all on Princess Diana arrest

5 things the latest season of The Crown got right and 3 things that were inaccurate