Essay/Politics & Government The bloodstained leveller Throughout history, plagues and wars have left greater equality in their wake. Can we get there again without violence? Walter Scheidel
Idea/Economics Conspicuous consumption is over. It’s all about intangibles now Elizabeth Currid-Halkett
Essay/Personality First impressions count A judgment of competence is made in a tenth of a second on the basis of facial features. Thus political decisions are made Alexander Todorov
Idea/Computing & Artificial Intelligence Quantum cryptography is unbreakable. So is human ingenuity Joshua Holden
Essay/History The Masada mystery Have archaeologists proven the ancient tale of mass suicide in the Judaean desert or twisted science for political end? Eric H Cline
Idea/Meaning & the Good Life Why the simple life is not just beautiful, it’s necessary Emrys Westacott
Essay/Childhood & Adolescence The end of adolescence In the 20th century it offered a bridge from the innocence of childhood to the responsibilities of adult life. Not any more Paula S Fass
Idea/Fertility, Pregnancy and Childbirth Can surrogacy ever escape the taint of global exploitation? Katharine Dow
Idea/Politics & Government The right to vote should be restricted to those with knowledge Jason Brennan
Idea/Ecology & Environmental Sciences Why we must keep the fires of the magical firefly burning Sara Lewis
Essay/History of Science Hazard lines The Fukushima disaster shows why the line between high and low risk is individual. Can we learn to manage our own safety? Timothy Jorgensen
Idea/Stories & Literature How philosophy came to disdain the wisdom of oral cultures Justin E H Smith
Idea/Political Philosophy How free market ideology perverts the vocabulary of democracy Jason Stanley
Essay/Political Philosophy Burke was no conservative Edmund Burke’s support for the American Revolution, and opposition to the French, have been misunderstood Richard Bourke
Essay/Ecology & Environmental Sciences Splat goes the theory Local and organic is a romantic myth – the future of sustainable agriculture is all about smart technology and scaling up Louise O Fresco
Essay/History of Ideas Can God lie? Until the Scientific Revolution, God’s power included a licence to deceive. How did science make an honest man of Him? Dallas G Denery II
Essay/Ethics Be not brave Cowards have been shamed, beaten and shot, yet their failing has an important social function. Let’s hear it for cowardice Chris Walsh
Essay/Internet & Communication Know thy selfie If Narcissus were here he’d be busy on Instagram. Can we have a virtuous sense of worth without the vanity of self-love? Simon Blackburn
Essay/History of Ideas Reclaiming liberalism Liberalism is not dead – its ideals are more important than ever – but it must change radically to survive in the future Edmund Fawcett
Essay/Economics Growing pains Measure a country purely against its GDP and you neglect the wellbeing of its people. Yet can that be measured? Diane Coyle
Essay/Architecture & Landscape Modern-day flâneur Theories and demographics are all very well, but to know New York City’s inner life you need to walk and talk William Helmreich