This week's magazine
21 October 2023
Issue 3461
On the cover
Editor's picks
Table of contents
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Technology
Ukrainian AI attack drones may be killing without human oversight
Ukraine is using drones equipped with artificial intelligence that can identify and attack targets without any human control, in the first battlefield use of autonomous weapons or "killer robots"
Humans
A site used by ancient humans was also a latrine for giant hyenas
Environment
Dusting and vacuuming reduce wildfire air pollution inside homes
Health
High-dose vitamin D may lower your risk of going to hospital
Humans
Student uses AI to decipher word in ancient scroll from Herculaneum
Earth
Earth’s core is oddly squishy and we may now know why
Health
We now have the most detailed description of the human brain ever
Mathematics
AI is helping mathematicians build a periodic table of shapes
Life
Inventions based on threatened animals like rhinos are on the rise
Environment
Toys produce far more electronic waste than vapes
Space
Samples from asteroid Bennu contain the key ingredients of life
Humans
Early humans lived in Ethiopian highlands 2 million years ago
Environment
Climate change may be improving the quality of Bordeaux wines
Health
Simple blood test tweak could make intensive care treatment safer
Space
Two giant planets collided and vaporised in a distant star system
Space
We could make roads on the moon by melting lunar dust
Humans
Mysterious Viking queen may have helped unify Denmark in the 900s
Life
Female frogs sometimes play dead to avoid mating with males
Analysis
Physics
Could nuclear weapons testing resume as global tensions rise?
Only North Korea has detonated nuclear weapons during the 21st century, but recent indications suggest Russia, the US and China are preparing to resume tests
Technology
Let’s use AI to rethink education, instead of panicking about cheating
Health
The surprising ways cannabis can be part of drug addiction treatment
Environment
Why I won’t be buying sea-farmed salmon ever again
Features
Health
We may finally know how cognitive reserve protects against Alzheimer’s
Why does mental effort lead to a more resilient brain that can withstand dementia and decline? We are now discovering the mechanisms behind this cognitive reserve, opening up new ways to boost it
Environment
The trees in our cities are dying — a sick microbiome may be to blame
Space
Seven wonders of the Milky Way: An astronomer’s guide to the galaxy
Culture
Comment
Her Space, Her Time review: Trailblazing women astronomers
A disdain for misogyny past and present shines through in Shohini Ghose's rich history of women's underappreciated contributions to astronomy and physics
Comment
Blood in the Machine review: Going back to the Luddites
Comment
¿ìè¶ÌÊÓÆµ recommends: Spies, Lies and Deception and Chimp Empire
Comment
Cocoon review: One of the biggest gaming treats of the year
More
Space
How to spot the constellation Aquila and its deep-sky objects
Use the night sky pattern known as the summer triangle to help you track down Aquila, the eagle, and its collection of open star clusters, says Abigail Beall
Tom Gauld on optimising good ideas
Twisteddoodles on new tech able to keep track of your missing items
Regulars
Major breakthrough for beer-foam-aroma-measuring scientists
A new piece of research finally manages to find a way of measuring the aroma in beer foam - and discovers it is delicious