A Journey Into the Animal Mind
This story examines research into animal cognition suggesting that many animals have far richer inner lives than previously thought.
A World Without Pain
A remarkable story about a woman who doesn’t feel either physical pain or negative emotions, and how humans process pain more broadly.
The Histories Hidden in the Periodic Table
The stories behind the discoveries that built the periodic table.
20,000 Feet Under the Sea
A story about deep-sea mining efforts that are starting to coalesce into action at scale from multinational mineral mining organisations. As one oceanographer puts it – “We’re about to make one of the biggest transformations that humans have ever made to the surface of the planet. We’re going to strip-mine a massive habitat, and once it’s gone, it isn’t coming back.”
Icebound: The climate-change secrets of 19th century ship’s logbooks
A story looking at what we can learn from historical climate records, in this case the log books of 19th-century vessels.
The Woman Who Can Smell Parkinson’s
A story about a nurse with an incredibly acute sense of smell that scientists believe allow her to identify diseases before they would be otherwise diagnosed.
I have no desire to open up this man’s skull. I do it because I have to
This story of a working day for a forensic pathologist – responsible for autopsies, in this case on the body of a murder victim.
The Message of Measles
Measles is making a comeback in the era of anti-vaxxers. This story finds that “Vaccination has been the victim of its own success.”
The Anthropocene Is a Joke
A questioning of the theory of the anthropocene, a newly minted geological age based on the level of human intervention in the planet’s geology.
The business of sleep
A piece looking at the science of sleep, and how this essential human need is in conflict with the new attention economy.