This week's magazine
11 May 2024
Issue 3490
On the cover
Editor's picks
Health
It’s time to clean up ‘forever chemicals’ and companies should pay
Humans
Who were the enigmatic Sea Peoples blamed for the Bronze Age collapse?
Health
The ‘forever chemicals’ toxic to your health – and how to avoid them
Physics
Why we are finally within reach of a room-temperature superconductor
Table of contents
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Health
Lack of US bird flu tracking in cows may raise risk of human infection
The strategy for tracking bird flu in US dairy cattle falls worryingly short of what is needed to prevent the outbreak from widening and potentially spreading to humans
Technology
How Schrödinger’s cat could make quantum computers work better
Life
Protocells on early Earth may have been formed by squeezing geysers
Space
China is sending its Chang’e 6 spacecraft to the far side of the moon
Environment
Indoor climbing wall users may be breathing in toxic rubber dust
Technology
Most brain monitors sold to consumers don’t keep your data private
Physics
Black holes scramble information – but may not be the best at it
Life
Red squirrels were hosts for leprosy in medieval England
Life
Rising temperatures are cooking bumblebee nests and killing larvae
Health
Being angry for just 8 minutes could increase risk of a heart attack
Space
Mysterious space signals may come from a dead star with a planet
Technology
GPS jamming traced to Russia after flights over Europe suspended
Environment
European summers will be hotter than predicted because of cleaner air
Life
Flies undertake epic migrations that may be vital for pollination
Chemistry
We now know exactly how thick the boundary between water and air is
Technology
Politicians can use social media ads to buy votes for €4 per person
Life
Odd bump on praying mantis chest is actually world’s weirdest tongue
Health
MMR vaccines may not always give lifelong immunity against measles
Life
Orangutan is first non-human seen treating wounds with medicinal plant
Health
Father’s gut microbiome may affect infant health
Space
Running around a ‘wall of death’ could keep moon settlers fit
Analysis
Environment
Is climate change accelerating after a record year of heat?
The record-breaking heat of 2023 has seen a rare disagreement break out between climate scientists, with some saying it shows Earth may have entered a new period of warming
Earth
Why criticisms of the proposed Anthropocene epoch miss the point
Environment
Why carbon offsetting your flight isn’t the answer
Features
Humans
Who were the enigmatic Sea Peoples blamed for the Bronze Age collapse?
Around 3000 years ago, several empires and kingdoms in the Mediterranean collapsed, with a group of sea-faring warriors implicated as the culprit. But new evidence shows that many of our ideas about this turbulent time need completely rethinking
Health
The ‘forever chemicals’ toxic to your health – and how to avoid them
Physics
Why we are finally within reach of a room-temperature superconductor
Culture
Comment
Why eggs should be front and centre in the story of evolution
From large and shell-covered to tiny and jelly-like, the developmental story of eggs offers a way to rethink the story of life, says Jules Howard in his new book Infinite Life
Comment
¿ìè¶ÌÊÓÆµ recommends Child, a podcast on our first stages of life
Comment
The hunt for alien planets and extraterrestrial life
Comment
Sarah Perry’s Enlightenment is a moving story of love and astronomy
More
Chemistry
How science can help you whip up perfect egg whites for your bakes
Egg whites are key to so many baked goods but can be tricky to work with. These tips will help you master the technique, says Catherine de Lange
Tom Gauld on used numbers
Twisteddoodles on hacking your gut microbiome
Regulars
How the discovery of a nest in a Roman museum caused a kerfuffle
On a recent visit to the National Roman Museum, Feedback was an onlooker to the furore that ensued when a sparrow's nest was spotted in the mouth of an ancient stone face