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Table of contents

Leaders

Health

Why the sleep industry has got us worrying about the wrong things

Many of us obsess over how much sleep we get each night, and the dangers to our health of not getting enough, but really, there is another way

Comment

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News

Physics

The mystery of nuclear 'magic numbers' has finally been resolved

A mathematical equivalent of a microscope with variable resolution has shed light on why some atoms are exceptionally stable, a riddle that has persisted in nuclear physics for decades

News

Mind

Dream hacking helps people solve complex problems in their sleep

News

Space

Scientists want to put a super laser on the moon

News

Mind

Why some people cannot move on from the death of a loved one

News

Life

Giant viruses may be more alive than we thought

News

Technology

Data centres could store information in glass for thousands of years

News

Life

More dog breeds found to have high risk of breathing condition

News

Health

How baby microbiomes in the West differ from those everywhere else

News

Life

Microbe with the smallest genome yet pushes the boundaries of life

News

Health

Ultramarathons could be bad for your blood

News

Space

Search for radio signals finds no hint of alien civilisation on K2-18b

News

Life

New fossils may settle debate over mysterious sail-backed spinosaurs

News

Environment

Atmospheric pollution caused by space junk could be a huge problem

News

Health

Fresh understanding of the causes of migraine reveals new drug targets

News

Life

A horse's whinny is unlike any other sound in nature

News

Humans

Stone Age symbols may push back the earliest form of writing

News

Environment

Giant tortoises return home

News

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Analysis

Space

Is our galaxy’s black hole actually made of dark matter?

An exotic type of dark matter could explain some of the characteristics of our galaxy’s central supermassive black hole, but many cosmologists are leery of the idea

News

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Aperture

Space

Amazing sneak peek of NASA's spacesuit tests as moon mission nears

NASA crew members practise emergency rescue drills in a 40-foot-deep pool simulating the lunar surface, as part of tests on a new generation of spacesuit, the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit

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Features

Chemistry

The world’s most elusive colour is worth billions – if we can find it

The discovery of bright yet stable pigments is vanishingly rare, making them hugely valuable. Now chemist Mas Subramanian is unpicking the atomic code of colour and homing in on our most-wanted hue

Features

Technology

How Ukraine became a drone factory and invented the future of war

Features

Mind

It’s your perception of sleep that’s making you feel tired all day

Features

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Culture

Space

What to read this week: Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean by Dagomar Degroot

From ice ages to asteroid strikes, an epic book shows how important it has been for humans to look outwards. Alex Wilkins surveys a climate historian's cosmic sweep

Culture

Comment

91av recommends the quantum soundscape of Liminals

Culture

Comment

Return of Fallout, Paradise and Silo fuels passion for bunker sci-fi

Culture

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More

Space

Can we ever know the shape of the universe?

The shape of the cosmos depends on a balance of two competing forces: the pull of gravity and the expansion driven by dark energy. Columnist Leah Crane explores what observations tell us about how much universe is out there and whether it’s shaped like a sheet, a saddle or something else entirely

Comment

Health

Ultra-processed foods could be making you age faster

Comment

Tom Gauld on whether to disturb the professor

Regulars

Twisteddoodles: Is the sun your boss?

Regulars

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Regulars

Health

The Human Flatus Atlas plans to measure the explosivity of farts

Feedback is excited to learn that University of Maryland researchers are measuring farts in a bid to build a Human Flatus Atlas, a project that seems destined for an Ig Nobel

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Letters

Regulars

The last word