Science

The other Homo sapiens

We are just one branch of a diverse human family tree. Aside from Neanderthals, who were they – and why did we replace them?

Nick Longrich

Humanity eradicated smallpox 45 years ago. It’s a story worth remembering

25 minutes

Permission to be ill

It took months for my functional neurological disorder to finally be diagnosed. It’s a condition that must be recognised

Kevin Aho

A stunning visualisation explores the intricate circulatory system of our oceans

5 minutes

Ideas ‘of pure genius’ – how astronomers have measured the Universe across history

29 minutes

The cat that wouldn’t die

The weird paradox of Schrödinger’s cat has found a lasting popularity. What does it mean for the future of quantum physics?

Jim Baggott

Just a pale blue dot

When we see the Earth as ‘a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam’ what do we learn about human significance?

Tim Bayne

Have they been here?

When we look for extraterrestrials, we often peer into the depths of space. But alien life might be closer than you think

Ravi Kopparapu & Jacob Haqq Misra

A future in which ‘artificial scientists’ make discoveries may not be far away

9 minutes

Beanbag genetics

Today a bitter dispute about the nature of biology is underway. A simple bag of beans may be what tips the balance

Zachary B Hancock

Images carved into film form a haunting elegy for a disappearing slice of Earth

3 minutes

Butterflies become unrecognisable landscapes when viewed under electron microscopes

4 minutes

The stagnation of physics

Physicists today need to jettison the all-too-attractive myth that they are uncovering the hidden reality of our Universe

Adrien De Sutter