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RTÉ Brainstorm - Brainstorm | Opinion, Analysis, Reports, Features | RTÉ

Why is there only one Irish cheese with protected status?

The protected designation of origin scheme could be of huge commercial benefit to Irish cheese makers

"Travelling by electric scooter means you are no longer dragging a tonne of metal with you every time you head out to pick up the milk"

Why it's time to make room on the road for electric scooters

"So what should you make of all this? Well, if you are offered a vaccine - any vaccine - take it enthusiastically."

How to make sense of reports on Covid-19 vaccine effectiveness

"The breakdown of trust between the UK and the EU is perhaps the biggest casualty of the latest stunt by Boris Johnson's government"

'Right now, the UK and the EU are not in a good place'

Northern Ireland

Would the Dublin Daredevils go on to win the 10 in a row?

Here are some radical ways to solve the GAA's Dublin problem

Inside the Volkswagen ID.3

How much money will an electric car save you over 5 years?

HSE CEO Paul Reid at the weekly update on the response to Covid-19. Photo: Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland

Are we suffering from 'numerical fatigue' when it comes to Covid?

Coming soon to Ireland?

Why we need to forget about Ireland's 2030 World Cup bid

"The 'Che' image inspired protest movements and was re-purposed to sell all manner of commodities."

How Che Guevara's iconic image became a design classic

A participant munches on some crisps during an eating contest on the Late Late Show in February 1969. Photo: Roy Bedell/RTÉ Stills Library

'Biologically we're built to eat more crisps. It's never one'

A selection of late 19th and early 20th century wedding corsets. Photo: Chicago History Museum/Getty Images

Why corsets are still not out of bounds for women

200 million J&J vaccines have been promised before the end of March to the EU and Ireland is set to receive 2.2 million doses

All you need to know about the Johnson & Johnson Covid vaccine

"There is evidence to suggest that watching TV can also be good for us if we go about it the right way" Photo: Getty Images

How watching TV during lockdown can be good for you

Ellen O'Mara Sullivan in 1905. Photo: Courtesy of Mark Humphrys https://humphrysfamilytree.com/

The Limerickwoman who was one of Ireland's film pioneers

More Brainstorm

Spotlight

How babies are born wired to learn languages

Mary-Pat O'Malley on the language recognition skills of new borns

How babies are born wired to learn languages

Mary-Pat O'Malley on the language recognition skills of new borns

Here's why greyhounds make great family pets

They're easy to live with and happy to be left alone to sleep

Do we really need to walk 10,000 steps a day?

Angie Hartnett on daily step counts and smart ways to achieve health and fitness goals

How to celebrate a child's birthday during the lockdown

Rebecca Boyd on how to mark the occasion in the middle of a pandemic

Ireland

What the Big Fellow kept under his bed in Dublin. Photo: Brenda Malone, Curator of Military History at the National Museum

The story behind Michael Collins' wolf slippers

"If we want to invoke the reality of Covid-19 to future generations, we must link the distressing experience of the pandemic to actual individual life-narratives."

How should Ireland commemorate Covid-19?

"In 1926, students were expected to use a result that you might teach to undergraduates today, so on the face of it, the exam was harder."

Have Leaving Cert maths' questions got easier or harder?

"Gender also appears to be a driver, with female-headed households giving 15% more. This finding is even more surprising given that females generally earn less. Are women simply the more generous gender?"

Why are Irish households giving less to charity?

What about my lovely dishes? Image: Universal History Archive/ Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Meet the 18th century Irish gents obsessed with plates and dishes

Vittorio Buffachi at UCC: "I'm no longer an Anglophile, I now consider myself a proud Hibernophile." Photo: Emmet Curtin

How I became disillusioned with the UK and fell for Ireland

Members of the Defence Forces during the National Day of Commemoration Ceremony at Collins Barracks in Dublin in 2019

Can a new Defence Forces' commission reboot Ireland's military?

1/3

How I became disillusioned with the UK and fell for Ireland

At the start of the third decade of the 21st century, Ireland is in a far better place compared to the UK..

The stories behind 12 great GAA nicknames

Whether they like it or not, some players' nicknames are better known than the names on their birth certificates

From Elvis to The Muppets, the story of "Danny Boy"

Just how did "Danny Boy" became a song loved and hated in equal measures?

st patricks day

Podcasts

A swimmer watches the sea at the Forty Foot in Dublin during the lates Covid-19 Level 5 lockdown. Photo: Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Why the dryrobe wars shouldn't put you off outdoor swimming

How we deal with traumatic events

"The applications of network science to crime fighting are even more remarkable and this relatively new field of research has proven to be very efficient in studying criminal systems"

How criminal gangs could be stopped by maths

"People often feel uncomfortable if others know their salary"

How much are you paid?

"By 1909, the London Great Central Parcels Office complained that it didn't have enough room in their "cold storage safe" for all the poorly labelled turkeys, which got lost in transit." Photo: Getty Images

How the Irish became food delivery pioneers in the 19th century

Ideas

Pana otters or Dublin otters? Photo: Vincent Wildlife Trust

Why otters are taking up residence in our towns and cities

John Hume addresses a meeting in Derry following violence at the Apprentice Boy Parade, August 1969. Photo: Mirrorpix via Getty Images

John Hume: the Derry boy who went global

Irish bogs: more than just turf

The inside story of the Irish bog

"Little is known about how our body copes with one-off occasions of overindulgence, and whether they have any effect on our overall health"

Here's how the body reacts to a massive one-off meal

A red sand stone located on farmland in Co. Roscommon said be the burial place of Daithi, the last pre-christian king of Ireland. Photo: Gary Dempsey

Why you shouldn't knock over or replace standing stones

'Fermentation can occur naturally when sugars in food, certain microorganisms and suitable storage conditions coincide'

From kimchi to kombucha, a guide to the world of fermented foods

"Yes, unfortunately, jobs will be lost, but new opportunities exist for creative, innovative, professional chefs." Photo: Getty Images

What next for professional chefs after the lockdown?

Editor's Choice

Daft Punk performing at the 2014 Grammy Awards. Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage via Getty Images

Daft Punk's farewell is a fitting conclusion to their reign

"The waffle and jargon used by the Minister for Health during this interview (and on many other occasions) leads to an air of suspicion around the trustworthiness of what is being said."

Why can't our politicians speak in plain English?

Oliver Cromwell: genocidal tyrant or darling of parliamentary democracy

Why did Oliver Cromwell end up in Ireland in the first place?

Two players from Waterford and two players from Limerick in last year's All Ireland hurling final

Do we know what our favourite hurling stars actually look like?

"We have the power to become the master of our own destiny."

Here are 5 secret steps to living a more meaningful life

"On the other hand, lesbian, gay and bisexual youth were equally likely as their heterosexual peers to feel that their friends support them". Photo: Getty Images

Is Ireland a safe haven for LGBT+ youth?