Essay/ Politics & Government How nations stay together Nations come with a vast array of peoples, languages and histories, but the strong ones share three simple things Andreas Wimmer
Essay/ Art Is it really a Leonardo? Forensics can't be sure. Provenance can be fudged. This is why the expert eye still rules the game of art authentication Noah Charney
Essay/ Poverty & Development What good is religion? International development has focussed on material goods, but religion has an important role to play in human flourishing Manini Sheker
Essay/ Astronomy Our aquatic universe We know that the universe is awash with watery moons and planets. How can we pinpoint which of them could support life? Tim Folger
Essay/ History of Science Behold: science as seeing One astronomer’s dimpled pie is another’s cratered moon. How can our mind’s eye learn to see the new and unexpected? Gene Tracy
Essay/ Mood & Emotion The myth of ‘mad’ genius The Romantic stereotype that creativity is enhanced by a mood disorder is dangerous, and dissolves under careful scrutiny Christa L Taylor
Essay/ Old Age & Death Die like a dog Pet dogs often have a peaceful death that forestalls protracted suffering and pain. Why can’t we do the same for humans? Joseph Pierre
Essay/ Cognition & Intelligence Gesture talks Across vast cultural divides people can understand one another through gesture. Does that make it a universal language? Kensy Cooperrider
Essay/ Philosophy of Religion What is nirvana? Liberating oneself from rebirths might seem irrelevant to the non-believer. But nirvana is also a profound psychological goal Robert Wright
Essay/ Cultures & Languages Black Achilles The Greeks didn’t have modern ideas of race. Did they see themselves as white, black – or as something else altogether? Tim Whitmarsh
Essay/ Neuroscience The cerebral mystique Neuroscience gives us invaluable, wondrous knowledge about the brain – including an awareness of its limitations Alan Jasanoff
Essay/ Beauty & Aesthetics The puzzle of beauty Rather than a golden ratio or a moral judgment, beauty is more like a radical jolt that awakens us to the world Shahidha Bari
Essay/ History The forgotten prophet Radical Quaker Benjamin Lay was a pioneer of abolitionism, who lived what he preached. So why was he erased from history? Marcus Rediker
Essay/ Anthropology Envy’s hidden hand Namibian hunter-gatherers deride those who stand out. What does this tell us about why, and how, we care about fairness? James Suzman
Essay/ Knowledge Out of the armchair A growing number of philosophers are conducting experiments to test their arguments. Is this the future for philosophy? Stephanie Wykstra
Essay/ Work Utopia now In 1890 William Morris imagined a world free from wage slavery. Thanks to technology, his vision is finally within reach Vasilis Kostakis & Wolfgang Drechsler
Essay/ Stories & Literature Communist robot dreams Tech flourished in communist Bulgaria and so did a body of science fiction asking vital philosophical questions Victor Petrov
Essay/ Values & Beliefs Human nature matters The only way to construct a robust philosophy for life is to have a clear and realistic picture of what makes humans tick Skye C Cleary & Massimo Pigliucci
Essay/ Cities A metropolitan world Urbanisation might be the most profound change to human society in a century, more telling than colour, class or continent Michael Goebel
Essay/ Mental Health Temperamentally blessed Just one in five people will be lucky enough to avoid mental health problems throughout their life. How do they do it? Elizabeth Svoboda
Essay/ Religion Not your Tibetan Buddhism Behind the beatific image of Tibetan Buddhism lies a dark, complicated reality. But is it one the Western gaze wants to see? Mark Hay
Essay/ Evolution Evolving street-smarts Living among humans favours fearless problem-solvers interested in new things. That's how city birds get smarter Menno Schilthuizen
Essay/ Political Philosophy Against marriage Marriage is what happens when the state gets involved in endorsing and regulating personal relationships. It’s a bad idea Clare Chambers
Essay/ Genetics Haunted by history War, famine and persecution inflict profound changes on bodies and brains. Could these changes persist over generations? Pam Weintraub
Essay/ Medical Research Viral rescue When antibiotics fail, could phage therapy succeed? The germ’s-eye view of infection might open up revolutionary treatments Emily Monosson
Essay/ Politics & Government Everyday politics Imperial Chinese conscription shows how ordinary people exercise influential political skills, even in a repressive state Michael Szonyi
Essay/ History of Ideas Philosophy’s first steps Science asks and answers its big questions, so why is philosophy taking its time? Because it’s only just getting started J L Schellenberg
Essay/ Knowledge Escape the echo chamber First you don’t hear other views. Then you can’t trust them. Your personal information network entraps you just like a cult C Thi Nguyen
Essay/ History of Science What is good science? Demanding that a theory is falsifiable or observable, without any subtlety, will hold science back. We need madcap ideas Adam Becker
Essay/ History Phantasmic Phoenicia The British, Irish and Lebanese have all claimed descent from the ancient Phoenicians. But ancient Phoenicia never existed Josephine Quinn