Mind
Making autism into a partisan issue can only be harmful
Comment
This week's magazine
10 January 2026
Issue 3577
On the cover
Editor's picks
Table of contents
快猫短视频
Environment
Californian highway flooded by the king tide
High tides caused by an alignment between Earth, the sun and the moon have brought flooding to coastal areas of California
News
Humans
Was our earliest ancestor a knuckle-dragger, or did it walk upright?
News
Life
Jellyfish sleep about as much as humans do 鈥� and nap like us too
News
Space
Gargantuan black hole may be a remnant from the dawn of the universe
News
Health
CAR T-cell therapy makes ageing guts heal themselves
News
Space
Rare Saturn-sized rogue planet is first to have its mass measured
News
Physics
Ghostly particles might just break our understanding of the universe
News
Health
Murder victim discovered to have two sets of DNA due to rare condition
News
Environment
US will need both carrots and sticks to reach net zero
News
Space
Star that seemed to vanish more than 130 years ago is found again
News
Life
Human-plant hybrid cells reveal truth about dark DNA in our genome
News
Mathematics
Chess can be made fairer by rearranging the pieces
News
Environment
El Ni帽o was linked to famines in Europe in the early modern period
News
Health
Benefits of mRNA cancer vaccines could exceed $75 billion in US alone
News
Physics
Inside world’s ultimate X-ray machine before it becomes more powerful
News
Environment
The duo kite-skiing 4000 kilometres across Antarctica for science
News
Technology
A strange kind of quantumness may be key to quantum computers’ success
News
Space
Three supermassive black holes have been spotted merging into one
News
Features
Mind
What if the idea of the autism spectrum is completely wrong?
For years, we've thought of autism as lying on a spectrum, but emerging evidence suggests that it comes in several distinct types. The implications for how we support autistic people could be profound
Features
Environment
The secret weapon that could finally force climate action
Features
Mind
How rethinking your relationship with time could give you more of it
Features
Culture
Comment
The best new science-fiction shows of 2026
From Fallout and Gen Z Star Trek to the classic Neuromancer, you will be glued to the TV this year, says TV columnist Bethan Ackerley
Culture
Comment
The best new science documentaries of 2026
Culture
Comment
The science-fiction films to look forward to in 2026
Culture
More
Life
Why connecting with nature shouldn’t mean disconnecting from science
There is a growing trend to see our relationship with nature as a spiritual thing. This is a mistake, argues Richard Smyth
Comment
Space
I’m calling it 鈥� 2026 is going to be the year of the galaxy
Comment
Health
Why my 2026 fitness resolution is all about getting mobile
Regulars
Tom Gauld: Professor Monroe has all the luck…
Regulars
Twisteddoodles has some good news and some bad news
Regulars
Regulars
Three goats headbutt each other 1218 times in 12 hours
Feedback is delighted to discover the work of functional morphologist Nicole Ackermans, who has been watching a lengthy livestream of goats and counting how many times they butt heads
This Week鈥檚 Letters
Letters
What is the evolutionary basis for greed?
Last Word
Do black holes look doughnut-shaped when viewed in all directions?
Last Word
This week鈥檚 new questions
Last Word
