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2 February 2022
From Penny Jackson, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, UK
In "How to hack your personality", you say "companies might pressure staff to undergo personality change training against their will" ( 15 January, p 46 ). This sort of thing already happens on a regular basis. Many firms try to push "mindfulness" and "resilience" training on staff, so that instead of trying to fix the …
2 February 2022
From Julia Baines, science policy adviser, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA UK)
You report on the first pig heart transplant into a person, in the US ( 15 January, p 7 ). Using animals as warehouses for spare parts is morally wrong. Pigs are sentient, complex, intelligent individuals that, like any animal, shouldn't be raised and raided for their organs. People who need a transplant need a …
2 February 2022
From Adam Walsh, Humane Research Australia
As science communicators, we must be considerate of the language we use to convey ideas and information. Terms such as "donated" imply an explicit decision by an individual. We must admit and clearly convey that animals aren't able to give their consent and, as such, aren't able to donate their organs.
2 February 2022
From Keith Hiscock, Plymouth, UK
David Hambling reports on the impressive accuracy of AI and mathematical modelling in predicting where drifting devices end up in the ocean, and speculates about its possible application to fish larvae ( 15 January, p 10 ). Some ecologists might try to use this to predict the trajectory, speed and landing site for larvae. But …
2 February 2022
From Bruce Denness, Niton, Isle of Wight, UK
Colin Heath's belief that replacing livestock with trees wouldn't deliver a sufficiently fast reduction of greenhouse gases because trees take 25 years to grow overlooks the immediate elimination of the animals' flatulence ( Letters, 15 January ).
2 February 2022
The 2013 novel Life After Life is by Kate Atkinson (15 January, p 2).
9 February 2022
From Philip Stewart, Oxford, UK
When I was a teenager, if anybody asked me, "Are you happy?", I immediately started thinking of reasons why I wasn't. The same happened if I asked myself the question. I decided that happiness is the normal state of an active animal; if I got on with what I was doing, the question didn't arise. …
9 February 2022
From Paul Whiteley, Bittaford, Devon, UK
A seeker of truth is asked by a prophet what he desires most. To be happy is the reply. Surely, says the prophet, you wouldn't want to be happy when your parents or a child dies? Likewise, how can we be happy when we know that the world we love is dying in front of …
9 February 2022
From James Ryan, Cambridge, Massachusetts, US
Perhaps I had too much quarantine time on my hands, but I tracked down every paper cited in your article on how to change the way we think about food ( 1 January, p 36 ). The median sample size of the 20 studies cited by the author is a paltry 51, and the largest …
9 February 2022
From Ed Prior, Poquoson, Virginia, US
Your article about the loss of cat-like animals in the US for millions of years was sad, but particularly so for the one poor US jaguar roaming alone somewhere in Arizona and searching for a non-existent mate ( 15 January, p 42 ). Why doesn't the US agency responsible for threatened wildlife find and capture …
