Issue 3255 | Magazine cover date: 9 November 2019

This week's magazine

9 November 2019

Issue 3255

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On the cover

Features

What hypnosis does to your brain, and how it can improve your health

The bizarre plant-like animals that say life’s big bang never happened

Seeing around corners: How to decipher shadows to see the invisible

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AI could solve baffling three-body problem that stumped Isaac Newton

Newly discovered brain cells help us recall where we last saw objects

Female Asian elephants mysteriously stop reproducing later in life

Alien water may have been found on interstellar comet Borisov

Cosmological crisis: We don't know if the universe is round or flat

Analysis

Could your home be net zero carbon? The radical plan to make it happen

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Environment

Could your home be net zero carbon? The radical plan to make it happen

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Health

Return of hypnosis: Time to see if it really has a place in medicine

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Life

The bizarre plant-like animals that say life’s big bang never happened

Features

Health

What hypnosis does to your brain, and how it can improve your health

Features

Technology

Seeing around corners: How to decipher shadows to see the invisible

Features

Leaders

Health

Return of hypnosis: Time to see if it really has a place in medicine

Signs are growing that hypnosis, once the preserve of charlatans, has real medical benefits. We need robust research to find out for sure

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Physics

AI could solve baffling three-body problem that stumped Isaac Newton

Three's a crowd A notorious maths problem first posed by Isaac Newton may be getting closer to a solution thanks to artificial intelligence. The three-body problem - the question of how three objects orbit one another under their own gravity - has baffled physicists and mathematicians for more than 300 years, but it turns out …

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Mind

Newly discovered brain cells help us recall where we last saw objects

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Humans

Just thinking about bright objects changes the size of your pupils

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Technology

Delivery drones could land on public transport to extend their range

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Life

Female Asian elephants mysteriously stop reproducing later in life

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Technology

Electric cars could charge in 10 minutes with a new kind of battery

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Space

Alien water may have been found on interstellar comet Borisov

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Humans

Ötzi the Iceman's last journey revealed by moss found in his stomach

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Technology

DeepMind’s StarCraft-playing AI beats 99.8 per cent of human gamers

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Space

We've finally figured out what happens when a star explodes

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Humans

Genetic studies have missed important gene variants in African people

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Mind

A type of brainwave may help clean your brain while you sleep

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Environment

Exclusive: Spray-on gene editing could make genetic modification easy

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Health

Measles has a devastating and long-term effect on your immune system

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Environment

Discovering rainforest secrets atop the Eiffel Tower of the Amazon

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Physics

Tactical voting campaign says maths can solve the UK's political mess

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Space

Cosmological crisis: We don't know if the universe is round or flat

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Environment

UK government rings death knell for the fracking industry

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Environment

Australian government to be sued over firefighting foam contamination

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Health

Authorities do little to halt severe air pollution in northern India

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Life

A quarter of all pigs have died this year due to African swine fever

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Humans

Did apes first walk upright on two legs in Europe, not Africa?

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Analysis

Facebook's war room during Brazil's elections last year

Technology

Facebook has a plan to tackle fake news – here's why it won't work

Facebook's monitoring centre in Brazil last year Facebook has announced plans to reduce misinformation and foreign interference ahead of the UK general election. But its efforts are unlikely to make much of a difference. On 12 December, voters across the UK will go to the polls in the country’s first pre-Christmas election in nearly a …

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Environment

11 years remain to fight climate change – what progress have we made?

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Life

Who owns life? The world is about to decide, with huge ramifications

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Environment

Could your home be net zero carbon? The radical plan to make it happen

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Aperture

Technology

Massive solar panels in Chilean desert point to our renewable future

ALTHOUGH protests in Chile have led the nation to withdraw from hosting the 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP25), its ambitious plans for a renewable energy future continue. This dramatic image of a solar facility, contrasting starkly with the ancient sand of the Atacama desert, shows how those intentions are becoming reality. These panels …

Regulars

Features

Health

What hypnosis does to your brain, and how it can improve your health

The history of hypnotherapy is riddled with hucksters, but it can provide real benefits – from weight loss to managing pain. Why modern medicine is starting to take it seriously

Features

Life

The bizarre plant-like animals that say life’s big bang never happened

Features

Technology

Seeing around corners: How to decipher shadows to see the invisible

Features

Culture

Environment

Naomi Oreskes asks "why trust science" in an age of denialism

In Why Trust Science?, Naomi Oreskes's asks bold questions but knows there are no clear answers – and critiques herself as the book unfolds

Culture

Technology

Flop, an exhibition about failure, shows the joy and pain of mistakes

Culture

Physics

Don’t miss: Art meets science, atoms find love and numbers grow curves

Culture

Life

Netflix’s Living With Yourself shows the dangers of perfectionism

Culture

How to inspire the next generation of engineers

Inspiring and hiring the next generation of talented, diverse engineers for the cutting edge projects of the future will need careful planning and considerable thought. But the first steps are already underway

bae-systems

Technology

How to watch Mercury's transit of the sun with just binoculars

Regulars

Cryptic crossword #18: Satellite destroyed – it’s punk! (7)

Regulars

��è��Ƶ puzzle #29: How many strips?

Regulars

Mind

Why embracing failure, mistakes and forgetfulness is key to success

Regulars

New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

How to read 20,000 words a minute, and more unbelievable claims

Feedback is our weekly column of bizarre stories, implausible advertising claims, confusing instructions and more

Regulars

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This week's magazine

9 November 2019

On the cover

Environment

Could your home be net zero carbon? The radical plan to make it happen

Health

Return of hypnosis: Time to see if it really has a place in medicine

Life

The bizarre plant-like animals that say life’s big bang never happened

Health

What hypnosis does to your brain, and how it can improve your health

Technology

Seeing around corners: How to decipher shadows to see the invisible

Table of contents

Leaders

Health

Return of hypnosis: Time to see if it really has a place in medicine

��è����Ƶ

Physics

AI could solve baffling three-body problem that stumped Isaac Newton

Mind

Newly discovered brain cells help us recall where we last saw objects

Humans

Just thinking about bright objects changes the size of your pupils

Technology

Delivery drones could land on public transport to extend their range

Life

Female Asian elephants mysteriously stop reproducing later in life

Technology

Electric cars could charge in 10 minutes with a new kind of battery

Space

Alien water may have been found on interstellar comet Borisov

Humans

Ötzi the Iceman's last journey revealed by moss found in his stomach

Technology

DeepMind’s StarCraft-playing AI beats 99.8 per cent of human gamers

Space

We've finally figured out what happens when a star explodes

Humans

Genetic studies have missed important gene variants in African people

Mind

A type of brainwave may help clean your brain while you sleep

Environment

Exclusive: Spray-on gene editing could make genetic modification easy

Health

Measles has a devastating and long-term effect on your immune system

Environment

Discovering rainforest secrets atop the Eiffel Tower of the Amazon

Physics

Tactical voting campaign says maths can solve the UK's political mess

Space

Cosmological crisis: We don't know if the universe is round or flat

Environment

UK government rings death knell for the fracking industry

Environment

Australian government to be sued over firefighting foam contamination

Health

Authorities do little to halt severe air pollution in northern India

Life

A quarter of all pigs have died this year due to African swine fever

Humans

Did apes first walk upright on two legs in Europe, not Africa?

Analysis

Technology

Facebook has a plan to tackle fake news – here's why it won't work

Environment

11 years remain to fight climate change – what progress have we made?

Life

Who owns life? The world is about to decide, with huge ramifications

Environment

Could your home be net zero carbon? The radical plan to make it happen

Aperture

Technology

Massive solar panels in Chilean desert point to our renewable future

Features

Health

What hypnosis does to your brain, and how it can improve your health

Life

The bizarre plant-like animals that say life’s big bang never happened

��è��Ƶ

��è��Ƶ

��è��Ƶ puzzle #29: How many strips?