Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio. I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

For LGBT people, the act of coming out is transformative, cathartic. We take a look at the shifting

dynamics and demographics of coming out around the world and at how the internet has mostly

been a great help. And in Laos, there's a dish that epitomizes the countryside and egg soup.

But as the country becomes more urban and globalized, young people want less traditional foods.

We ask whether diners will keep seeking out the tangy pop of jungle caviar.

But first,

when Russian opposition leader Alexina Valny became gravely ill last week, his allies

immediately suspected foul play. The long time opponents of Russia's President Vladimir Putin

and a campaigner against corruption collapsed on a plane on first day after drinking tea his

allies believed was laced with poison. If confirmed, it would be the latest in a string of

poisonings of Russian dissidents. On Saturday, Mr. Navalny was flown to Germany for treatment,

where he remains in an induced coma in a stable condition. Yesterday, his doctors in Berlin

said the tests indicated he was poisoned and he's been placed under armed guard.

This is not the first time Navalny has been attacked. Matt Steinglas is our Europe correspondent.

When he was fighting for President in 2017, someone threw a bright green die in his eye and he

may have lost 80% of the vision in his right eye because of that attack. And the suspicion is that

the Kremlin was behind what happened last week. He is the latest of a number of prominent Kremlin

critics who have fallen victim to apparent poison attacks. Alexander Lietfinenko, back in the 2000s,

was poisoned with Polonium in Britain, Sergei Sipipal, who was a former Russian intelligence officer,

was also attacked in Britain with Novichok in armed forces developed nerve toxin.

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