Alan Cartwright

Alan Cartwright

Alan Cartwright spent twelve years in academic research before he started writing for a wider audience. He did a PhD in biochemistry, held postdoctoral positions at two Russell Group universities, and spent three years on a public engagement fellowship before realising he was better at explaining science than producing it. He writes about scientific research, health claims, evidence policy, and the gap between what a study actually shows and what the headline says it shows. He has peer-reviewed enough papers to know that 'further research is needed' is the most honest sentence in science. Alan lives in Oxford. He reads preprints before press releases and considers this the correct order of operations.
  • Photo of Leucine mitochondrial energy production boosted via protein quality control, Cologne study finds

    Leucine mitochondrial energy production boosted via protein quality control, Cologne study finds

    A new study from the University of Cologne claims that leucine mitochondrial energy production is connected through a previously uncharacterised mechanism: the amino acid appears to protect key proteins on the outer surface of mitochondria from being broken down, allowing cells to generate more energy when nutrients are plentiful. The findings, published in Nature Cell Biology (volume 27, pages 1889–1901),…

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  • Photo of Brite Payments UK launch targets checkout rage with Pay by Bank

    Brite Payments UK launch targets checkout rage with Pay by Bank

    The premise behind the Brite Payments UK launch is straightforward: British shoppers are losing patience at the checkout, and existing payment infrastructure is not keeping up. The company says it has now secured its Electronic Money Institution (EMI) licence from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), clearing the way for a phased roll-out of its Pay by Bank service to UK…

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  • Photo of Yaspa Sifted 250 ranking puts it seventh among Europe’s fastest-growing scale-ups

    Yaspa Sifted 250 ranking puts it seventh among Europe’s fastest-growing scale-ups

    Yaspa’s Sifted 250 ranking, announced on 2 October 2026, places the payments company seventh among the fastest-growing scale-ups across Europe, following its earlier recognition as the fourth fastest-growing startup in the UK and Ireland on the same leaderboard. The Sifted 250 is an annual list compiled by FinTech Futures-covered publication Sifted, which is backed by the Financial Times. The methodology…

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  • Photo of Anchiale robusta misidentified for decades, new study finds two more species

    Anchiale robusta misidentified for decades, new study finds two more species

    A stick insect known to researchers and enthusiasts across Australia turns out to have been Anchiale robusta misidentified for decades, according to a new study from the University of Sydney that also formally describes two entirely new species within the same genus. The research, published in Austral Entomology, focused on Australian members of the stick insect genus Anchiale. A team…

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  • Photo of Maz Farrelly closing keynote to challenge safe thinking at OBExpo UK 2026

    Maz Farrelly closing keynote to challenge safe thinking at OBExpo UK 2026

    The Maz Farrelly closing keynote at Open Banking Expo UK & Europe 2026 will carry a blunt proposition: that caution, predictability and safe ideas are not a defence against failure but a reliable route towards it. Farrelly’s session, titled ‘Why be boring when you can be bad ass’, is scheduled for 14:45 on the Main Stage on Day Two of…

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  • Photo of Cannabis use and violence: what a 265,000-person review actually found

    Cannabis use and violence: what a 265,000-person review actually found

    A large systematic review has found an association between cannabis use and violence, both as perpetrator and victim, but the researchers are clear that the data do not establish cannabis as a direct cause. The review, led by researchers at King’s College London, pooled data from 63 studies covering more than 265,000 people and has now been published in Cambridge…

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  • Photo of Experian Cashflow Attributes for commercial lenders targets thin-file SME credit gap

    Experian Cashflow Attributes for commercial lenders targets thin-file SME credit gap

    Experian says its new Experian Cashflow Attributes for commercial lenders turns business bank transaction data into more than 500 analytics-ready attributes designed to give financial institutions a fuller picture of small business health, particularly where traditional credit histories fall short. The product, announced on 30 September 2026, draws on first-party transaction data, either from an institution’s existing business checking account…

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  • Photo of Enceladus ice grain chemistry is stranger than Cassini data suggested

    Enceladus ice grain chemistry is stranger than Cassini data suggested

    The Enceladus ice grain chemistry measured by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft is far more varied than the moon’s subsurface ocean alone can explain, according to a new study involving researchers from the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at the Institute of Science Tokyo and Prof Frank Postberg’s group at Freie Universität Berlin. The team’s findings, published in Science Advances, point to a…

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  • Photo of Token.io EUDI Wallet Germany push backed by Bitkom MoU signing

    Token.io EUDI Wallet Germany push backed by Bitkom MoU signing

    Token.io has signed up to the Token.io EUDI Wallet Germany commitment, joining over 120 companies in backing a Memorandum of Understanding brokered by Bitkom with the German Federal Ministry for Digital and State Modernisation (BMDS), intended to support the practical introduction of the European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet) in Germany. The MoU is a non-binding declaration of intent, and…

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  • Photo of Glucose variability quality of life link challenges tight blood sugar dogma

    Glucose variability quality of life link challenges tight blood sugar dogma

    New research to be presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) annual meeting in Milan suggests that glucose variability quality of life outcomes may move in the same direction under certain conditions, a finding that complicates the straightforward case for minimising every blood sugar fluctuation. The study, from Professor Dominic Ehrmann of FIDAM (Research Institute Diabetes…

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