The best kept secret in London during August is London itself.

With what seems like millions of Londoners and commuters away on holiday, the streets are clear, the buses and trains are sitting-room only, and you can find a parking space with relative ease. The city becomes just that little bit more civilised for four weeks.

And yet the work still seems to come thick and fast for those of us who are holding the fort. Long gone seem the days when you could rely on August being the month to feel whole again.

I have just done a guest blog on the international role played by charities which has appeared today on ResearchMedia Ltd’s leadership blog pages of their website.

And in my habitual Friday catch-up of various reading matter, I rather liked this blog by Daniel Sarewitz that appeared on naturenews earlier in the week.  Although talking from a US perspective,  the general thrust of his argument around involving the public to shape emerging technologies and think through their impact, is of universal relevance.

As we all begin to develop a new regulatory regime for UK medical research based focused on reducing bureaucracy and managing risk, we must not also forget the opportunity it presents to build a new model of public accountability and involvement.

Have a great weekend.