Shattering the Two-Hour Barrier (Image Credits: Pixabay)
Athletes pushed human limits at the London Marathon, where Kenyan runner Sabastian Sawe clocked a world-record 1:59:30, the first sub-two-hour performance in a competitive race.[1][2] This feat, alongside rapid declines in healthy life expectancy across the UK and new insights into why certain buildings evoke unease, captured attention in recent science discussions. The Guardian’s Science Weekly podcast, hosted by Madeleine Finlay and featuring science editor Ian Sample, explored these developments in depth.
Shattering the Two-Hour Barrier
Sabastian Sawe’s triumph marked a pivotal moment in marathon history. The 31-year-old Kenyan not only won the men’s elite race but also became the first to dip under two hours in an open competition, surpassing Kelvin Kiptum’s previous world record of 2:00:35.[1] Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha followed closely with 2:00:41 on his marathon debut, while Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo clocked 2:00:28. These times arrived despite London’s challenging course, known for its twists and turns rather than straight-line speed.
Technological advances played a starring role. Sawe donned Adidas’s Adizero Adios Pro 3, the lightest supershoe ever at 97 grams per foot, featuring advanced carbon plates and foam that return energy with each stride.[1] Nutrition and training regimens further optimized performance. Sawe trained with the 2Running group under coach Claudio Berardelli, who credited his athlete’s perseverance: “Thank God, he didn’t give up… what happened today is 90% of Sabastian.” Post-race, Sawe reflected, “I am feeling good, I am so happy… It is a day to remember. I have shown that nothing is not possible.”[1]
The race unfolded on a blustery spring day, with the leaders hitting the halfway mark in 60:29. Sawe’s negative split – his second half just over 59 minutes – highlighted exceptional pacing and resilience, even as Kejelcha admitted, “Before 41 kilometres, I’m enjoying, I’m relaxed… At exactly 41 kilometres, my body stopped.”[1] Adidas bolstered credibility with rigorous anti-doping measures, including 25 tests on Sawe using cutting-edge detection.
UK’s Healthy Life Expectancy Hits Decade Low
Britons now endure fewer years free from serious illness than they did ten years prior, according to analysis from the Health Foundation thinktank. Healthy life expectancy for men dropped from 62.9 years in 2012-14 to 60.7 years in 2022-24, while for women it fell from 63.7 to 60.9 years over the same span.[3] This reversal bucks trends in most comparable wealthy nations, where such measures rose by about four-tenths of a year.
The data, drawn from Office for National Statistics figures, reveals broader concerns. The share of life spent in good health shrank from 79% to 77% for men and from 77% to 73% for women. In over 90% of UK areas, ill health begins before state pension age at 66. Dr Jennifer Dixon, chief executive of the Health Foundation, warned, “These findings reveal a stark truth – the UK’s health is going backwards.” She added, “The lights on the dashboard are flashing red. We are the most obese country in western Europe, mental ill health has surged to unprecedented levels and more people than ever before are living with chronic health conditions.”[3]
Obesity fuels rises in diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and cancer. Excess deaths from alcohol, drugs, and suicides compound the issue, alongside stark inequalities between affluent and deprived regions. Notably, overall life expectancy has held steady, ruling out pandemic effects alone and pointing to entrenched, UK-specific challenges.[3]
Demystifying the Chill of Old Houses
That eerie sensation in aged buildings might stem from infrasound – low-frequency vibrations below 20Hz emitted by creaky boilers, pipes, and vents. A new study in Frontiers in Behavioural Neuroscience tested this theory with 36 participants exposed unknowingly to such sounds amid varying music.[4]
Volunteers reported heightened irritability, sadder mood ratings, and elevated cortisol levels when infrasound played, even without conscious detection. Lead researcher Prof. Rodney Schmaltz of MacEwan University explained, “What infrasound may do is supply a bit of bodily discomfort that a ghost or haunting explanation can then attach itself to.” He noted, “In plain terms, you cannot hear infrasound, but your body and your mood appear to respond to it anyway, and the response tends to be unpleasant.”[4]
While promising, the work calls for larger trials. It accounts for unease but not apparitions or poltergeists, which lack controlled evidence, as anomalistic psychologist Chris French observed. Common sources like traffic or HVAC systems could amplify these subtle effects in heritage structures.
Key Insights from the Week:
These stories underscore science’s power to both celebrate peaks of performance and confront societal vulnerabilities. As researchers probe further, they remind us that progress in one arena does not preclude setbacks elsewhere.