The New Scientist Book Club read Tim Winton’s novel Juice in February The New Scientist Book Club moved from reading about the emancipation of a sex robot in January, with Sierra Greer’s Annie Bot, to a scorching vision of Australia many generations from now in February, with Tim Winton’s Juice. Winton’s story follows an unnamed…
A screen image of Doom being played by human neurons on a chip Cortical Labs A clump of human brain cells can play the classic computer game Doom. While its performance is not up to par with humans, experts say it brings biological computers a step closer to useful real-world applications, like controlling robot arms….
NASA’s Space Launch System has had a tricky start NASA/Cory Huston NASA is shaking up the plan for its Artemis moon missions. In a press conference on 27 February, NASA administrator Jared Isaacman announced significant changes to the agency’s plans to send humans to the moon for the first time since the Apollo programme ended…
Slow walking speed is a common feature of frailty Gordon Scammell/Loop Images/Universal Images/Getty Images An experimental stem cell therapy could treat frailty by targeting the condition at its biological roots. Frailty – which raises the risk of falls and infections – is typically only mitigated through lifestyle changes, like doing strength training and balance exercises….
Could this dramatic image ever happen for real? angel_nt/Getty Images Somewhere, out in the cold depths of space, there is a space rock that could destroy a large chunk of life on Earth. Is this fate inevitable? Could we find a way to stop it, or will we eventually suffer the same fate as the…
Alkaline sodium hydroxide was dumped into the Gulf of Maine to test its effect on carbon uptake and marine life Daniel Cojanu, Undercurrent Productions, ©Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Can we safely remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by counteracting ocean acidification? Maybe, suggests a trial in which ships poured 65,000 litres of alkaline sodium hydroxide…
Psst! Can you keep a secret? Yana Iskayeva/Getty Images The average person is keeping nine types of secrets, ranging from having told a lie to covert romantic desires. This can be a major burden, because secrets have the troubling habit of flashing into the mind unbidden. Confessing them can sometimes bring relief, but some secrets…
Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, with the giant planet behind it in a view from the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft ZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy The story of Saturn, its rings and moons, may have started with its largest moon, Titan. A collision between an early proto-Titan and a smaller object about 400 million years ago could have set into…
Our solar system, shown in this composite image, has had a big effect on humanity NASA/Bettmann Archive/Getty Images Ripples on the Cosmic OceanDagomar DegrootViking, UK; Belknap Press, US If you pay attention to news from beyond Earth – and, as a New Scientist reader, the chances are you do – then you may have heard…
It’s time to rethink our relationship with AI Flavio Coelho/Getty Images It is undeniable that the launch of ChatGPT was a historically significant event, but is that because it was the first glorious step towards a superintelligent future or because it was the start of a world filled with AI snake-oil salespeople? I’ve long thought…
