@alexthompo profile picture
Alexandra Thompson @alexthompo

Assistant news editor at @newscientist (health) | Now posting on the more pleasant, less offensive version of this site

Joined May 2017
  • Tweets 2,209
  • Following 1,543
  • Followers 1,528
53 Photos and videos
Pinned Tweet
Alexandra Thompson@alexthompo
20 May 2025
I've reached my limits here...find me on Bluesky bsky.app/profile/alexthompo.…

1
1
557
Scientists have engineered synthetic electrical synapses in mice 🤯this could have potential for treating certain mental health conditions down the line - but what an amazing feat already! Hear my 2 cents on the pod: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas…

Weekly: First brain engineering in a mammal; landmark in fossil fuel lawsuits, the legacy of Pope...

Podcast Episode · The World, the Universe and Us · April 25, 2025 · 29m

podcasts.apple.com
518
It may be time to drastically rethink our stance on Parkinson's. Mounting evidence suggests that it exists in two forms: one starts in the brain and one starts elsewhere in the body and travels to the brain - and they may need treating very differently newscientist.com/article/mg2…

A dramatic rethink of Parkinson’s offers new hope for treatment

Mounting evidence suggests there might be two separate types of the world’s fastest-growing neurological condition. Can this fresh understanding lead to much-needed new treatments?

newscientist.com
1
6
16
10,099
I've started a column - whoop! All about looking into the science (if any) behind wellness trends. Starting with #cyclesyncing - the idea that we should adapt how we eat and exercise according to our menstrual cycle phase...but should we? newscientist.com/article/247…

Should your menstrual phase dictate what you eat and how you exercise?

The idea of varying your lifestyle throughout your menstrual cycle to help relieve PMS or period pain seems intuitive, but the evidence reveals a nuanced picture, finds columnist Alexandra Thompson

newscientist.com
1
2
8
10,873
Loved reviewing Valley of Forgetting. The first book I've come across that really puts the turmoil of clinical trial participants at the heart of the highs and lows of drug discovery newscientist.com/article/mg2…

A moving story reveals hidden human cost of drug trials

Drug trials are vital to medicine, but what of those taking part? Jennie Erin Smith's moving new book about what happened in a rural community hit by early-onset Alzheimer's disease gives them a voice

newscientist.com
3
7
9,394
On the latest @NewScientistPod I dig into the research about smartphone use and screentime - are they really bad for you? And how to have a healthy relationship with your phone podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas…

Weekly: A remarkable view of pregnancy; how to waste less time on your smartphone; superacid...

Podcast Episode · The World, the Universe and Us · March 28, 2025 · 23m

podcasts.apple.com
196
Ozempic and similar drug are already demonstrating tremendous potential in many aspects of medicine. But what about their societal implications? Will they help us see obesity as a medical condition? Or could they worsen the rich-poor healthcare divide? newscientist.com/article/mg2…

The unexpected impacts of a society transformed by weight-loss drugs

Drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy have the power to block the forces driving obesity, but the knock-on societal effects may not necessarily be so positive

newscientist.com
1
7
8,611
The fascinating "nocebo effect" - the evil twin of the equally fascinating placebo effect - manifests as feeling supposed side effects from just a sugar pill, and thinking a drug is cheap may make it worse! I spill the beans on the pod, 12.10 onwards youtube.com/watch?v=vXNR_JFA…
1
434
From empty streets in Times Square to a priest distributing holy water via a water pistol (!), these are the most iconic and surreal covid-19 pics from the past 5 years newscientist.com/article/246…

The most iconic images taken during the covid-19 pandemic

Many emotive and inspiring photographs were taken when covid-19 turned our lives upside down – here are some of the best pictures from the past five years

newscientist.com
3
3
10
12,675
New Scientist is now filming podcasts....which is....great. Petition for less garish lighting @NewScientistPod . youtube.com/watch?v=bJu0ny8Q…
264
Karl Pilkington knew it was impossible, his logic always comes out eventually newscientist.com/article/245… youtube.com/watch?v=Se2RN1t-… @rickygervais @StephenMerchant

Chimpanzees will never randomly type the complete works of Shakespeare

The infinite monkey theorem states that illiterate primates could write great literature with enough time, but the amount of time needed is much longer than the lifespan of the universe

newscientist.com
2
3
1,966
Alexandra Thompson retweeted
New Scientist
@newscientist
20 Oct 2024
Bullying physically changes the structure of the brain. @alexthompo says brain scans of young people who are bullied show changes in 49 brain regions – and it seems to impact male and female brains differently link.chtbl.com/newscientist

1
10
20
17,917
Teachers told ⁦@millzymai⁩ that she should have come with a manual, but being neurodivergent has helped her become a brilliant scientist and writer #newscientistlive
225
Nate Rae knowing their audience when they hand out sweets (to test our sense of smell) #newscientistlive
1
1
213
I’m aware of the irony of me posting this on my phone during ⁦⁦⁦@garwboy⁩ talk about screen time…I’m also aware this is probably the incorrect use of the word “irony” #newscientistlive
1
173
Nate Rae at #newscientistlive gets major kudos for explaining genetics and neuroplasticity to kids in 40 minutes
2
1
236
Alexandra Thompson retweeted
Helen Thomson@hvthomson
10 Oct 2024
Are there any brain development researchers out there who’d like to speak with me about bulling and the brain? I’ve emailed 20 this week (non easy coast for obvs reasons) but not heard back. I feel like I’ve been ghosted by academia. #bullying #Neuroscience #braindevelopment #behaviouralscientist
1
409
972 people have won a Nobel prize - of whom 17 were Black and 64 were women. And before you come for me, many many women and minority people have done work that is more than worthy of the accolade. The Nobels are on a fasttrack to becoming a joke. newscientist.com/article/245…

Nobel prizes are still failing to celebrate the diversity of science

The Nobel committees seem to have an unfortunate habit of overlooking women and Black people when it comes to science – this must change, says Alexandra Thompson

newscientist.com
8
9
24
13,808
It won’t help you win the lottery but will make you less paranoid about burned toast. And please stop with the parent-sex jokes (read/subscribe for context)
New Scientist
@newscientist
21 Sep 2024
Top statistician David Spiegelhalter on how to deal with uncertainty newscientist.com/article/mg2…
317
If I may pull a Trump and quote myself…ahem…‘we’re not in the dark, we’re in a dimly lit room’ 💡
New Scientist
@newscientist
30 Aug 2024
Could mpox be the next covid-19? @alexthompo says the latest mpox variant has infected a record number of people in central Africa, has been found in travellers in Sweden and Thailand, and is now a public health emergency of international concern link.chtbl.com/newscientist
1:02
1
1
409
Load more