LATEST NEWS
Asteroid belt may bear scars of planets' migration
19:12 25 February 2009 | 6 comments
The giant planets are thought to have moved out of their original orbits billions of years ago – the shifts may be recorded in the asteroid belt
How to survive the coming century
COVER STORY: 18:00 25 February 2009 | 90 comments
If the planet warms by 4 °C – as it might by 2099 – it will change beyond all recognition. A radical new world order may be our only hope, says Gaia Vince
Salt solution: Cheap power from the river's mouth
FEATURE: 18:00 25 February 2009 | 7 comments
Forget barrages, dams or tidal turbines – "salinity power" offers the hope of generating electricity from rivers and estuaries without damaging the environment
Why do some people kill themselves?
FEATURE: 18:00 25 February 2009 | 12 comments
A grand theory of suicide promises to answer this question once and for all, says Robert Pool
Hacking the planet: The only climate solution left?
SPECIAL REPORT: 18:00 25 February 2009 | 27 comments
We may soon have no choice but to fiddle more directly with the climate – but are we ready, asks Catherine Brahic
Time to acknowledge science's debt to Islam?
BOOKS & ARTS: 17:00 25 February 2009 | 33 comments
Two new books argue that Islam had more to contribute to science than history usually suggests
Rare syndrome points to sociability gene
IN BRIEF: 14:58 25 February 2009 | 2 comments
A study of people with Williams syndrome – a condition that can cause children to be over-friendly with strangers – singles out a gene that may govern social behaviour
CSI New Scientist: Test your bloodstain analysis skills
14:25 25 February 2009 | 11 comments
Try out your forensic detecting skills with our bloodstain analysis exam, as used by professional crime scene investigators
King of the swingers has no use for mirrors
12:41 25 February 2009 | 24 comments
Gibbons do not recognise their own reflection, even when a treat could be on offer – a finding that implies they are not self-aware
Exposing the links between doctors and Big Pharma
INTERVIEW: 11:38 25 February 2009 | 13 comments
Republican senator Chuck Grassley believes it is time to shake up the cosy financial relationship between doctors, researchers and the pharmaceutical industry
FAVOURITE COMMENT
Do gravity holes harbour planetary assassins?
"Rather than blow it up, wouldn't this be an ideal place to build a space mine?" Chris Simmons
LEGENDS
For the vampire buffs, here's an origin story
Vampire legends might have emerged from observations of decaying bodies. Linda Geddes learns of a gruesome case of "slaying" in Romania
SHORT SHARP SCIENCE BLOG
Make yourself scarily see-through
17:40 25 February 2009 - updated 17:43 25 February 2009
Tom Simonite, online technology editorProjecting an image of the scene behind you onto yourself can make for an impressive invisibility effect (with video), but the Japanese researchers pioneering that technology use a lot of custom-built kit.This enterprising Halloween party goer...
Obama: 'It begins with energy'
13:21 25 February 2009 - updated 15:51 25 February 2009
President Obama pledges to double America's supply of renewable energy in the next three years. Catherine Brahic reports
Did launcher's history foreshadow satellite crash?
02:40 25 February 2009 - updated 02:53 25 February 2009
The Taurus launcher that failed to deliver a climate satellite to orbit has flown seven times before, with one previous failure
BOOKS & ARTS
Time to acknowledge science's debt to Islam?
Two new books argue that Islam had more to contribute to science than history usually suggests
TECHNOLOGY
When computing becomes child's play
We are used to sitting in front of a PC screen while tapping away at a keyboard. But simple and fun new devices may make the whole process more intuitive
