The Week Unwrapped: Happiness, coral and gay Singapore

Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.

In this week’s episode, we discuss:

Gay rights in Singapore

This week gay rights campaigners failed in their attempt to overturn section 377A of Singapore’s criminal code, which outlaws gay sex between men. Although prosecutions are rare and lawyers had argued that the law was obsolete, judges said it was still “important in reflecting public sentiment and beliefs”. This comes at a time when the coronavirus outbreak is raising questions about privacy, social contact and the power of the state and police - specifically in Singapore but in the rest of the world too.

Coral in distress

While the world’s attention is on coronavirus, the Great Barrier Reef has suffered another mass bleaching event - in which coral is damaged and potentially destroyed by rising sea temperatures. It’s part of a broader pattern, in which reefs around the world are under threat from rising sea temperatures, which could lead to their extinction.

In search of happiness

An increasing number of people are turning to science for answers on how to be happy in these turbulent times, with 1.7 million enrolled in a Yale University online class about achieving well-being, according to latest figures. But can we really train our brains to feel this elusive emotion - and if so, how?

You can subscribe to The Week Unwrapped on the Global Player, Apple podcasts, SoundCloud or wherever you get your podcasts. It is produced by Sarah Myles and the music is by Tom Mawby.