Humans
Can you ever know yourself? Whatever the answer, it is worth trying
News
This week's magazine
12 December 2020
Issue 3312
On the cover
Editor's picks
Health
Why people enjoy alcohol or are teetotal may come down to a hormone
Features
Humans
Physics might create a backdoor to an afterlife 鈥� but don’t bank on it
Features
Humans
If the multiverse exists, are there infinite copies of me?
Features
Environment
If we can’t change the world, does anything we do matter?
Features
Humans
Do we have free will or are all our decisions predetermined?
Features
Humans
Why it鈥檚 the aliens living inside you that create your sense of you
Features
Humans
You are not one person: Why your sense of self must be an illusion
Features
Humans
Think your sense of self is located in your brain? Think again
Features
Humans
Why we鈥檙e in tune with our emotions 鈥� but suck at judging our smarts
Features
Humans
How nature, nurture and sheer randomness combine to make a unique you
Features
Humans
You are stardust: The long view of when your existence really began
Features
Technology
First virtual all-day event: What is the future of food?
Features
Table of contents
快猫短视频
Health
First Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccinations take place in the UK
A week after the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was approved in the UK, the immunisation of people over 80 and some healthcare staff has begun
News
Health
Everything you need to know about the Pfizer/BioNTech covid-19 vaccine
News
Health
Are children likely to give covid-19 to older relatives at Christmas?
News
Health
Covid-19 Christmas: How is Europe planning to tackle the holidays?
News
Health
Could England have avoided second lockdown by sticking to tiers?
News
Technology
Military robots perform worse when humans won’t stop interrupting them
News
Health
People experiencing a migraine climbed inside an MRI to find out why
News
Humans
Ancient rock art reveals life of the Amazon鈥檚 earliest inhabitants
News
Technology
Voice assistant recordings could reveal what someone nearby is typing
News
Space
China’s Chang’e 5 is bringing back the first moon rocks in 44 years
News
Physics
Superfluid used to make sounds that might be heard in neutron star
News
Health
Brain stimulation device lets monkeys ‘see’ shapes without using eyes
News
Physics
A quantum computer that measures light has achieved quantum supremacy
News
Technology
UK takes step towards world’s first nuclear fusion power station
News
Environment
Plastic bottles dumped in rivers can travel thousands of kilometres
News
Space
Heat inside Mars may have melted ice and made watery habitats for life
News
Technology
Google’s AI can keep Loon balloons flying for over 300 days in a row
News
Health
Vaginal bacteria may eat HIV prevention drugs and leave women at risk
News
Life
Bird beak extra sense evolved more than 70 million years ago
News
Environment
Health impacts of climate change have reached ‘worrying’ levels
News
Analysis
Earth
How geology can help steer us to a more sustainable future
Geologists have often served fossil fuel exploration - now is the time for them to focus on climate change and other global sustainability goals, says Christopher Jackson
News
Humans
Why is the coronavirus pandemic so politically polarising?
News
Features
Humans
You are stardust: The long view of when your existence really began
The point when you began depends on the scale you look at and how you define a person 鈥� in one sense you鈥檙e as old as the universe, in another you鈥檝e hardly begun at all
Features
Humans
How nature, nurture and sheer randomness combine to make a unique you
Features
Humans
Think your sense of self is located in your brain? Think again
Features
Humans
You are not one person: Why your sense of self must be an illusion
Features
Humans
Why it鈥檚 the aliens living inside you that create your sense of you
Features
Humans
Do we have free will or are all our decisions predetermined?
Features
Environment
If we can’t change the world, does anything we do matter?
Features
Humans
Why we鈥檙e in tune with our emotions 鈥� but suck at judging our smarts
Features
Humans
If the multiverse exists, are there infinite copies of me?
Features
Health
Why people enjoy alcohol or are teetotal may come down to a hormone
Features
Humans
Physics might create a backdoor to an afterlife 鈥� but don’t bank on it
Features
Technology
First virtual all-day event: What is the future of food?
Features
Culture
Humans
Unique review: A fascinating look at the science of individuality
Understanding how individual we all are means grappling with genetics and neuroscience. Unique: The new science of human individuality by David Linden is a great place to start
Culture
Don鈥檛 Miss: The Expanse returns for its fifth season
Culture
Technology
Superintelligence review: A fun take on the AI apocalypse storyline
Culture
Humans
The Preserve review: The inner struggle to survive in a robot world
Culture
More
Space
Jupiter Saturn conjunction: How to see tonight’s ‘Christmas star’
Get ready for 21 December 2020, when the "winter solstice great conjunction" of Jupiter and Saturn brings them closest in the night sky since 1623
Regulars
Twisteddoodles produces a lab accident form
Regulars
Tom Gauld: Rudolph the reindeer in 4 graphs
Regulars
Regulars
Are these the strangest Amazon book recommendations of all time?
Feedback is our weekly column of bizarre stories, implausible advertising claims, confusing instructions and more
Books
This Week鈥檚 Letters
Letters
Has the doubling of the human population increased Earth鈥檚 mass?
Last Word
What makes some people short-sighted and others long-sighted? (cont.)
Last Word
This week鈥檚 new questions
Last Word
What difference does the timing of meals over the day make?
Last Word
