This week's magazine
13 November 2021
Issue 3360
On the cover
Editor's picks
Clean energy tech needs to be pursued despite the mining it involves
Health
The surprising upsides of the prions behind horrifying brain diseases
Technology
How an upgrade on calculus is taking maths into uncharted territory
Environment
Will a scramble to mine metals undermine the clean energy revolution?
Table of contents
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Life
Chimpanzees dislike the smell of death like we do
Some chimpanzees will carry around an infant that did not survive, which made researchers wonder if they are as sensitive to the chemicals that produce odours in dead bodies
Environment
Current COP26 climate plans would lead to 2.4°C of global warming
Life
Penis worms had hermit crab-like defence system 530 million years ago
Space
Earth may have grown around a rock from an alien star system
Space
Pluto’s dark side revealed by moonlight in pictures from New Horizons
Technology
US military offers $50,000 to predict where sensors drift in the ocean
Health
CRISPR-based ‘antibiotic’ eliminates dangerous bacterium from the gut
Health
Only 45% of US parents give peanuts to infants despite latest advice
Life
Brainless sponges have cells that might be the precursors of neurons
Environment
Cutting ammonia emissions may be the best way to reduce air pollution
Technology
Water-absorbing material inspired by plant roots could power robots
Space
US astronomers plan $11 billion telescope to picture another Earth
Humans
Homo naledi infant skull discovery suggests they buried their dead
Mind
Tiny region of human brain that helps regulate sleep studied at last
Technology
Einstein’s theory of relativity could help stop bank account hackers
Life
Baleen whales eat three times more krill than we thought
Life
Dogs may get worse separation anxiety when left alone with another dog
Health
Exercising more often doesn’t increase your risk of knee arthritis
Life
Nursery web spiders woo mates with food wrapped in chemical-laced silk
Analysis
Health
How a universal flu vaccine could prevent the next pandemic
Even now, the risk of a deadly flu pandemic is an ever-present danger. But progress on a universal vaccine could protect us and remove the need for annual jabs
Health
Medicine must stop using race and ethnicity to interpret test results
Space
Sterile neutrinos could explain dark matter – if we can find them
Features
Environment
Will a scramble to mine metals undermine the clean energy revolution?
Creating green technologies like batteries and solar panels requires a lot of minerals, and a lot of mining. The challenge now is to extract what we need without destroying the environment
Technology
How an upgrade on calculus is taking maths into uncharted territory
Health
The surprising upsides of the prions behind horrifying brain diseases
Culture
Sticky review: Everything you could ever want to know about surfaces
Surfaces rarely get a second thought, but Laurie Winkless's new book explains the fascinating science behind them, finds Gege Li
Don’t miss: Cowboy Bebop gets a live-action remake on Netflix
Space
Cosmogramma review: An eclectic mix of sci-fi and cosmic horror tales
Environment
Waste Age review: Can good design save the planet from waste?
More
Space
How you can get involved with the hunt for gravitational waves
In the search for high-energy astronomical events like black holes colliding, the data often has glitches. You can help weed those out using the Gravity Spy platform, says Layal Liverpool
Twisteddoodles: The earthworm has five hearts, but hungers for more
Tom Gauld takes the finger of blame to a whole new level
Regulars
Sinking under the mortgage costs of ‘new normal’ undersea homes
Feedback is our weekly column of bizarre stories, implausible advertising claims, confusing instructions and more