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Seasonal Flu Epidemics: Why Do They Happen and Could this Year's Turn Into a Killer ?

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  The UK's 2026-27 influenza 'season' is now well underway and is taxing the NHS to its limits once again, as predicted. Adverse circumstances aside, this would be a good time to ask the question in the title i.e. is this years ‘flu virus any more potent or dangerous than the usual seasonal variety ? To answer this, we must first take a look at the causative virus and how it infects us and propagates itself with the aid of our own cells. What is Influenza ? The well-written and extensive wiki article tells us that Influenza is a highly contagious respiratory infection caused by various types of influenza virus, and infects us via the nose, throat, and sometimes the lungs.  It's worth remembering that viruses, unlike bacteria, don't have their own biochemical 'machinery' with which to reproduce themselves, and so are reliant on us, and other organisms to provide this for them. They are exquisitely designed 'infection machines' composed of g...
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There are Lies, Damned Lies….and Election Manifestos

First, please accept my apologies for butchering Disraeli’s old quote....however, needs must…. The reason for re-hashing it in 2026 is the vexed question of whether Labour breached their 2024 election manifesto as a result of Reeves’ 2025 budget measures (mercifully her last!), followed by Healey's in 2026. The point at issue is whether Reeves’ application of a 2p surcharge above the rate for earned income to the rates for both Rental and Savings income, followed by Healey's application of an additional 2p, actually constituted a double manifesto breach. What it essentially comes down to is the exact wording of the document in question.   The Labour Manifesto of June 2024 explicitly states on p19 of the document: “ …we will ensure taxes on working people are kept as low as possible. Labour will not increase taxes on working people, which is why we will not increase National Insurance, the Basic, Higher, or additional rates of Income Tax , or VAT.” The fact that the w...
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Producing Electronic Crosswords From their Printed Versions

  Most of us who indulge in crosswords, however infrequently, are well aware of the ‘crossings out syndrome’ as I call it.... This irritating by product often appears when trying to complete a puzzle from a printed newspaper or magazine. Depending on the accuracy (or otherwise in my case!) of your initial guesses, it’s possible to end up with a board which is virtually illegible. And Tippex is no solution – it just takes too darned long to dry ! The only practical solution using the printed version is to make notes of your guesses elsewhere...which I find is more trouble than it's worth. Having got thoroughly fed up with messy boards, and not found a better conventional solution, I decided to look at the practicality of capturing an image of the printed version of a board and creating an electronic version from that. Much easier, with that available, to eliminate any mistaken clues without leaving a single mark on the printed version. To cut a long story short, after much s...
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