The Dangerous Promise Of Designer Babies
byScience may give us the power to correct the accidents of biology, but not the wisdom to define the ideal human.
Environment
Bundibugyo: The Ebola Epidemic On The Move
byAn expanding Ebola outbreak has killed five thousand people in Congo, crossed borders, and exposed dangerous gaps in detection.
Optogenetics: From Mapping Neurons To Controlling Them
byAdvances in imaging, electrical recording and optogenetics are giving scientists new ways to understand and influence brain activity.
Plague in Russia? Here’s What You Need To Know
byAfter a Russian lab worker’s death, possibly due to Plague, nearly 200 people are quarantined. Here’s what you need to know.
Orangutans, Komodos And A Vanishing Wild
byFrom orangutans to Komodo dragons, Indonesia’s extraordinary wildlife reveals the vulnerability of a changing natural world.
What Volcanoes Taught Me About Diplomacy
byA diplomat’s travels among volcanoes reveal enduring lessons about uncertainty, resilience, beauty, destruction and the unpredictability of nature.
A Strong El Niño Is Coming. What Does It Mean for the World?
byEl Niño is natural, but the vulnerability it exposes is increasingly man-made.
What Nepal’s Glacier Collapse Reveals About A Warming Himalaya
byNepal’s deadly flood shows why warming mountain landscapes demand better warnings, monitoring and preparedness.
Eleven Days at Sea: Fraggle, The Bat, And The Limits Of Knowing Another Mind
byFraggle carried her dead calf through the water for eleven days. Whatever that was like for her, it was like something. That fact does not require our understanding to be true.
The Hidden Science Of Predicting Pandemics
byNew viruses are discovered every year, but only a tiny fraction threaten humanity. The challenge is identifying the dangerous few before they spread.
The Curious Connection Between Asthma And Brain Tumours
byLatest research suggests that asthma-like immune responses activate a subset of T cells, making it less favourable for brain cancer to develop.
Microplastics & Gutbiome
byPlastic pollution has extended beyond landscapes and oceans into the human body. Understanding what that means may prove to be one of the defining scientific questions of the coming decade.
AI Data Centres & Water Governance: Is India Prepared?
byIndia’s ambition to become a global AI hub need not come at the expense of water security.
The Problem With Electric Cars
byThe rise of electric SUVs reveals why cleaner vehicles alone cannot deliver sustainable transport.
The New Geography Of Food
byClimate change is redrawing the map of global agriculture. Here’s how.