Hybrid Epox Variant Detected in England; 400,000-Year Fire-Making Evidence; ADHD Link to Social Media – Guardian Science Weekly

The Guardian Science Weekly podcast delves into a newly detected Epox virus hybrid in England, explaining how recombinant clades may shape future public health. It also highlights Nature-backed findings that humans made fire 400,000 years ago, pushing back the timeline of controlled fire use and its role in cooking, warmth, and social development. The discussion extends to a longitudinal study from the Karolinska Institute and Oregon Health & Science University examining links between social media use and inattentiveness in children, with a note on Australia’s attempt to ban social media for under-16s. The episode blends virology, human evolution, and child development with expert commentary from Ian Sample and Madeleine Finlay.

Hybrid Epox Variant in England

The episode opens with an exploration of a newly identified Epox virus recombinant detected in England, a hybrid formed from clade 1 and clade 2 elements. Experts explain how co-infection and cell-level recombination can create a novel variant, underscoring that Epox remains a circulating human pathogen and that vaccination strategies are being guided by risk in high-exposure groups. A central quote from the discussion highlights the recombinant nature of the virus: the new strain is a hybrid with elements from different clades.

"The new strain that's been discovered in England is, as you say, a recombinant virus, meaning it's a hybrid" - Ian Sample

Evidence for Deliberate Fire-Making 400,000 Years Ago

A second story revisits Nature-backed research suggesting deliberate fire-making by early humans around 400,000 years ago, significantly earlier than previously documented. The researchers describe three converging lines of evidence from a Suffolk clay pit: heated clay consistent with repeated hearth use, heat-shattered hand axes, and iron pyrite fragments capable of producing sparks. The researchers argue this indicates purposeful fire creation by early Neanderthals, expanding our understanding of hominin tool use and social behavior in the Pleistocene.

"fire is the human tool" - Madeleine Finlay

Social Media, ADHD, and Population-Level Impacts

The programme also reports on a longitudinal study from the Karolinska Institute and Oregon Health & Science University tracking more than 8,000 U.S. children aged 10–14 over four years. The study finds a small association between social media use and rising inattentiveness, a signal that warrants further exploration despite modest individual effects. Researchers caution that causality is not established and highlight other media forms such as television and video games, which did not show the same association. The discussion emphasizes the complexity of ADHD heritability and the need for cautious interpretation.

"ADHD is considered to be highly heritable, so about 60 to 80% of the variation in the ADHD traits you would see across the population is driven by genetics" - Ian Sample

Australia's Social Media Ban and Implications

The hosts turn to the policy context, noting Australia’s attempt to ban under-16s from social media, framed around concerns about mental health and the developing brain. The discussion considers how such regulatory actions could generate natural experiments in the years ahead, potentially clarifying the social-media–ADHD relationship and highlighting the broader policy implications for digital well-being in young people.

"Australia has become the first country in the world to ban social media for under sixteens" - Madeleine Finlay

Throughout the episode, the hosts contextualize these findings within broader debates about digital health, child development, and the evolution of human behavior, and they remind listeners to critically assess study limitations and the need for robust replication.