Novelist Arundhati Roy thinks deeply about what COVID-19 is doing to India, and to the world. ( The Financial Times | 13 min read )

A survey of PhD students and their supervisors in Australia has revealed an alarming gap in each other’s expectations. Students thought that publishing at least four papers and winning grants was the most important outcome of their candidature, but supervisors said critical thinking, written communication and discipline knowledge were the best indicators of success . The results show the importance of discussing expectations and goals early on, says the survey’s lead researcher Adam Cardilini.

Pioneering astrophysicist Margaret Burbidge, who helped to explain the origin of all chemical elements, from beryllium to zinc , died on Sunday at the age of 100. Burbidge was the lead author, along with William Fowler, Fred Hoyle and her late husband Geoffrey Burbidge, on a milestone 1957 paper that explained how stars synthesize many elements heavier than lithium through nuclear fusion. The paper helped Fowler to earn a Nobel Prize, an honour that some say Burbidge deserved, too. Burbidge was a trailblazer for women in the field — early in her career, she was barred from using some of the best telescopes of the time because of her gender.

The coronavirus outbreak might be peaking in some areas of the United States, says physician-scientist Brett Giroir, a member of the White House coronavirus task force. ( Reuters | 5 min read )

• Attorney Olga Lucia Torres, who takes hydroxychloroquine to treat her lupus, describes her worries for people who rely on the drug. There have been some shortages as people snap up supplies in the wake of unsubstantiated recommendations from US President Donald Trump, prominent US media figures and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. ( The New York Times | 5 min read )

Debate rages over whether a decades-old antimalarial, hydroxychloroquine, offers genuine promise as a potential COVID-19 treatment. The World Health Organization has included the drug in its global trial, SOLIDARITY , but its efficacy is as yet unproven.

• Early in the spread of COVID-19, before it had an official name, many news outlets — including this newsletter — labelled the virus after Wuhan or China. I apologize, and so does a Nature editorial. The outdated practice of associating a virus and the disease it causes with a specific place is irresponsible and needs to stop , argues the editorial. ( Nature | 4 min read )

• UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is in intensive care , with worsening COVID-19 symptoms. The British leader is not on a ventilator, but was moved as a precaution in case he needs one. The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, is standing in as head of the government. ( BBC | 8 min read )

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Buried in a very readable profile of comedy misanthrope Larry David, there is advice from lustrous fashion designer Tom Ford about how to look good on a video call. Which I reproduce here in full (you’re welcome):

“Put the computer up on a stack of books so the camera is slightly higher than your head. Say, about the top of your head. And then point it down into your eyes. Then take a tall lamp and set it next to the computer on the side of your face you feel is best. The lamp should be in line with and slightly behind the computer so the light falls nicely on your face. Then put a piece of white paper or a white tablecloth on the table you are sitting at but make sure it can’t be seen in the frame. It will give you a bit of fill and bounce. And lots of powder, et voilà!”

This newsletter is always evolving — tell us what you think! Please send your feedback to briefing@nature.com.

Flora Graham, senior editor, Nature Briefing

With contributions by Nicky Phillips and Davide Castelvecchi