My partner teases me about the constant sound of “little voices” that follows me around the house. I just find life without the radio, podcasts or music is a less relaxing place. Even when I go to sleep, I keep them chatting away.

But what is this constantly-on soundscape doing to my and many other people’s minds? Victor Pérez from Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University says what has changed is not only how we listen, but what listening is for. The key, he says, is to match your sound environment to the kind of thinking you’re doing – and protect some precious moments of silence. Point taken!

The gardeners among you may still be haunted by memories of 2024’s “slugageddon”, when a mild winter and wet spring saw a veritable army of these slimy little creatures munching everything in their path. Prepare yourself: here’s our slug forecast for the year ahead.

The latest episode of our Strange Health video series investigates everything you wanted to know – and some things you probably didn’t want to know – about body odour. In this accompanying article, microbiologist Primrose Freestone explains it’s not simply a matter of cleanliness.