Busy Old Foolery
With advances in technology, we are learning more and more about the way the Sun is developing
Politics, Ideas and the Arts
Did the Earth Move for Galileo?
New books on the great Italian reveal him to have been wiser than many modern scientists
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
The Bletchley Park cryptographers were a rum bunch. Their successors are keeping up the good work
Life, Synthia, But Not as we Know It
The latest work on synthetic cell creation by Craig Venter raises serious questions about bioethics
Evolution can be Religion’s Friend
Science and faith need not contradict each other because they concern different matters
The Ascent of Man
Are humans just the most complex of molecular machines or something qualitatively different?
Desperately Needing Susan
The Royal Institution has made a huge mistake by sacking its media-friendly director
Powerful Attraction
A new British-pioneered nuclear reactor can help cut our reliance on fossil fuels
‘Living Wills’ Leave Patients to Die
“When in doubt, treat” used to be the rule for doctors. Not any more A young woman arrives by ambulance at A&E, having taken an overdose. It’s a routine event, with what —
Maths Moves in Mysterious Ways
The shapes and patterns of Nature have some surprising explanations
Upwardly Immobile
The best way to give working-class children a better chance in life is to offer education vouchers
Demons in the Details
Hollywood and physics should be kept apart — pretty much like matter and anti-matter