Sam Wong

London

Assistant News Editor at New Scientist

Assistant news editor / crossword setter / food nerd @newscientist

Articles

What the surprising lives of solitary animals reveal about us

2 weeks ago | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

Lonesome George, the last of the Pinta Island tortoises, died in 2012, leaving no offspring. His solitude was imposed upon him by humans who killed the rest of his species and brought goats to his island in the Galapagos, destroying their habitat. But Lonesome George probably didn’t much mind being on his own. Tortoises are generally solitary, coming together only to mate.
What the surprising lives of solitary animals reveals about us

2 weeks ago | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

Lonesome George, the last of the Pinta Island tortoises, died in 2012, leaving no offspring. His solitude was imposed upon him by humans who killed the rest of his species and brought goats to his island in the Galapagos, destroying their habitat. But Lonesome George probably didn’t much mind being on his own. Tortoises are generally solitary, coming together only to mate.
The surprising lives of solitary animals shed light on human sociality

2 weeks ago | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

Lonesome George, the last of the Pinta Island tortoises, died in 2012, leaving no offspring. His solitude was imposed upon him by humans who killed the rest of his species and brought goats to his island in the Galapagos, destroying their habitat. But Lonesome George probably didn’t much mind being on his own. Tortoises are generally solitary, coming together only to mate.
All the action from New Scientist Live - in photographs

Oct 16, 2024 | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

There were big beasts, big crowds and big ideas at New Scientist Live, an awe-inspiring three-day festival of innovations and discoveries in London last weekend. Visitors young and old enjoyed a huge range of exhibits from leading research groups and companies working in STEM, including King’s College London’s hospital of the future and a pop-up planetarium.
Preventing respiratory syncytial virus in infants

Oct 15, 2024 | cfp.ca | Samantha Moe |Sam Wong |Michael R Kolber

Clinical questionHow safe and effective are monoclonal antibodies in preventing respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in infants? Bottom lineIn infants at high risk (born prematurely or with congenital heart or lung conditions), palivizumab (4 to 5 monthly doses during RSV season) reduces RSV hospitalization (4.4% vs 9.8% placebo). Nirsevimab (1 dose) reduces RSV hospitalizations in healthy premature infants (0.8% vs 4.1%) and term infants (0.3%-0.4% vs 1.5%-2.0%). Side effects are similar to placebo.
Flavorama review: Arielle Johnson digs into flavour science in a tasty new book

May 22, 2024 | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

Copenhagenâ€™s Noma restaurant, where researcher and cook ArielleÂ Johnson has workedTHIBAULT SAVARY/AFP via Getty ImagesFlavoramaArielle Johnson (Harvest)WHAT makes roasted meats taste so good? In the 19th century, scientists thought the answer was a mysterious substance known as osmazome, found in the flesh and blood of animals. The influential theorist Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin described osmazome as “the most meritorious ingredient of all good soups”.
Federal Agencies Provide Guidance on Clean Vehicle Tax Credit Eligibility

Feb 6, 2024 | lexology.com | Jean-Philippe Brisson |James Cole |Eli Katz |Qingyi Pan |Rob Thompson |Sam Wong | +1 more

Proposed regulations clarify FEOC restrictions and clean vehicle tax credit compliance for manufacturers aiming to produce eligible EVs. As countries around the world accelerate the transition to clean energy, the race to gain shares in the electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing market is intensifying, with global sales of EVs rising 31% in 2023.[1] To facilitate increased production of EVs in the United States, President Biden signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) on August 16,...
EPA Grants Louisiana Class VI Primacy

Feb 5, 2024 | lexology.com | Joshua Bledsoe |Jennifer Roy |Michael Dreibelbis |Brian McCall |Sam Wong

EPA’s transfer of primary enforcement authority to states for carbon capture and storage projects may decrease permitting delays but raise legal questions. Louisiana has become the third state in the United States to receive primacy from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), allowing it to assume permitting authority for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects. EPA granted primacy to Louisiana on December 28, 2023, for Class VI wells, effective February 5, 2024.
Can science explain why some drinks and foods are a perfect match?

Dec 13, 2023 | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

WE ALL know red wine goes with beef, white wine goes with fish and lager is the ideal foil for a spicy curry. But can science explain why some drinks are a perfect match for certain foods? One hypothesis for explaining flavour matches is that foods go together well if they share many aroma compounds (see “How to use ‘flavour bridging’ to cook a bizarre but tasty holiday meal“).
New Scientist recommends The Lazarus Project and Ark Nova

Nov 15, 2023 | newscientist.com | Sam Wong

I’m looking forward to the second series of Sky Max’s The Lazarus Project, which is arriving on Now in the UK on 15 November. The first series followed hapless everyman George, played by Paapa Essiedu (pictured above), as he got stuck in a time loop and then discovered a secret spy organisation that controls those time loops to save humanity from disaster.