1. Three pieces from The Conversation that have caught my eye recently:

Seychelles is becoming overwhelmed by marine plastic – we now know where it comes from https://theconversation.com/seychelles-is-becoming-overwhelmed-by-marine-plastic-we-now-know-where-it-comes-from-198350

This one includes a frightening video showing marine debris flows in the Indian Ocean https://youtu.be/ma0wlFfA6dI

Sugary drinks tax may be reducing obesity in girls but not boys – an expert explains what we know https://theconversation.com/sugary-drinks-tax-may-be-reducing-obesity-in-girls-but-not-boys-an-expert-explains-what-we-know-198743

We drank gallons of ‘fizzy pop’ as children, my own two favourites being dandelion and burdock and limeade – I wonder if the former had ever seen a dandelion or a burdock, or the latter a lime? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dandelion_and_burdock

Myanmar: two years after the military seized power the country is mired in a bloody civil war – but there are grounds for optimism https://theconversation.com/myanmar-two-years-after-the-military-seized-power-the-country-is-mired-in-a-bloody-civil-war-but-there-are-grounds-for-optimism-198254

I’m ashamed to say I’d forgotten about the conflict in Myanmar until I bought a suit recently, which I found to my surprise had been made in Myanmar – sanctions notwithstanding, it would seem.

2. More from UnHerd, who I mentioned on Tuesday: this is the sad tale of the decline of Boston in Lincolnshire here in the UK https://unherd.com/2023/01/how-brexitland-lost-control/ And if you’ve time, skim the almost unanimously critical (of the piece) comments.

3. Something I’m never quite sure I really understand is what exactly it is that The Economist’s Big Mac Index tells us about economies around the world. “The British pound is 12.9% undervalued against the US dollar” – what should I do with this information, I wonder? Here’s this year’s https://www.economist.com/big-mac-index

4. A New York Times ‘gift article’, a great photo-gallery, Gandhi’s Life in Photos, 75 Years After His Assassination https://tinyurl.com/4rentbab

5. And, finally and profoundly, How Deep The Ocean Really Is from InsiderTech https://youtu.be/UwVNkfCov1k