Science
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Scientists hope to develop new drugs that prevent virus shutting down key parts of the immune system
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US corporation says its lunar lander concept would reduce ‘complexity and risk’ of Nasa mission -
Astronomers say S5-HVs1 ventured close to supermassive black hole before being ejected -
Illegitimacy more likely over past 500 years among urban poor, say geneticists -
Dramatic shift from wet to dry climate could have caused crop failure in Neo-Assyrian empire
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Blood vessel function found to improve within a month if tobacco replaced with e-cigarettes -
Soaring prices likely as potatoes rot in sodden fields and farmers struggle to sow wheat -
Science Weekly podcast
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In 1992, Anthony Pelosi voiced concerns in the British Medical Journal about controversial findings from Hans Eysenck – one of the most influential British psychologists of all time – and German researcher Ronald Grossarth-Maticek. Those findings claimed personality played a bigger part in people’s chances of dying from cancer or heart disease than smoking. Almost three decades later, Eysenck’s institution have recommended these studies be retracted from academic journals. Hannah Devlin speaks to Pelosi about the twists and turns in his ultimately successful journey. And to the Guardian’s health editor, Sarah Boseley, about how revelations from tobacco industry documents played a crucial role -
Two research teams have developed artificial wombs which they hope could help premature babies continue to develop. Nicola Davis asks what benefits they could offer, and looks at the ethical and legal implications -
In 1986, philosopher Harry G Frankfurt wrote: “One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much bullshit.” This was the opening line of his seminal essay (later a book), On Bullshit, in which Frankfurt put forward his theory on the subject. Three decades later, psychologists are finally getting to grips with what might be going on in the minds of those who dabble in the dark arts of BS. Ian Sample speaks asks two such psychologists what we can do to fight back -
Prof Stuart Russell wrote the book on artificial intelligence back in 1995, when the next few decades of AI were uncertain. Sitting down with Ian Sample, he talks about his latest book, which warns of a dystopian future in which humans are outsmarted by machines. But how did we get here?
Key issues
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The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts
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Pentagon officials view climate breakdown as an existential threat to human society – and are already taking action, says Michael Klare, author of All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon’s Perspective on Climate Change -
Many of us crave historical connections – but ultimately, everybody now is descended from everybody then, says geneticist and author Adam Rutherford -
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The solution to today’s puzzle -
Try your luck at its fiendish maths entrance exam -
The solution to today’s dot-to-dot puzzle -
A dot-to-dot puzzle with a difference
Multimedia
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Callum Roberts is a British oceanographer, author and one of the world’s leading marine biologists. Sitting down with Ian Sample, Callum talks about his journey into exploring marine habitats, his subsequent work observing the world’s coral reefs and how, despite the urgent threat posed to the majority of these densely populated habitats, he still maintains an almost unswerving optimism for the future of his profession and of coral reefs in general -
The night sky above the US midwest was illuminated by a meteor on 11 November
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Since launching in 1977, the Nasa probe has captured never-before-seen images of the solar system
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Engineers demonstrate new spacesuits designed to fit a more diverse crew with the goal of landing the first woman on the moon by 2024
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Marine biologists recorded the feeding behaviour for the first time off the coast of Alaska, where the whales lurk around salmon hatcheries that release juvenile fish into the sea
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The Geological Society has announced the winners of this year’s competition, which for the first time includes images taken from around the world
Science Weekly podcast Callum Roberts on a life spent diving on coral reefs