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This week's magazine

16 October 2021

Issue 3356

New Scientist issue 3356 cover
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Editor's picks

Covid-19 RNA vaccine, illustration. The vaccine consists of strands of mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid) encased in a lipid nanoparticle sphere. The mRNA codes for a mutated version of the viral spike protein found on the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes Covid-19. When injected into the body the mRNA is taken up by the body's cells, which manufacture copies of the protein. The proteins stimulate an immune response, causing the body to produce antibodies against the spike protein. This means that the body is primed to attack the virus should it be encountered after vaccination, preventing disease. The first RNA vaccine approved for human use, developed against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus by Pfizer/BioNTech, was approved in the UK on 2nd December 2020. 2DYDTXH Covid-19 RNA vaccine, illustration.

The mRNA technology behind covid-19 vaccines can transform medicine

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How mRNA is transforming the way we treat illnesses from flu to cancer

Health

How mRNA is transforming the way we treat illnesses from flu to cancer

Features
T. rex with feathers: China’s fossils are rewriting the dinosaur story

Life

T. rex with feathers: China’s fossils are rewriting the dinosaur story

Features
Can Einstein’s forgotten theory of space solve the cosmology crisis?

Physics

Can Einstein’s forgotten theory of space solve the cosmology crisis?

Features

Table of contents

Leaders

Covid-19 RNA vaccine, illustration. The vaccine consists of strands of mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid) encased in a lipid nanoparticle sphere. The mRNA codes for a mutated version of the viral spike protein found on the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes Covid-19. When injected into the body the mRNA is taken up by the body's cells, which manufacture copies of the protein. The proteins stimulate an immune response, causing the body to produce antibodies against the spike protein. This means that the body is primed to attack the virus should it be encountered after vaccination, preventing disease. The first RNA vaccine approved for human use, developed against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus by Pfizer/BioNTech, was approved in the UK on 2nd December 2020. 2DYDTXH Covid-19 RNA vaccine, illustration.

The mRNA technology behind covid-19 vaccines can transform medicine

AMID the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic, there has at least been one piece of undeniably good news: the success of mRNA vaccines. The Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines were developed in record time and they have proved extremely effective. They are saving many lives, but this is just the start of something huge. Using the …

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honeybee

Environment

Waggle dances show city bees have shorter commutes than country bees

A honeybee on Hampstead Heath, London A study of the waggle dances of honeybees shows that bees in central London don't have to fly as far to find food as those living in farmland outside the city. "We knew that big cities were good for bees, but our study is contributing to showing why," says …

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Life

Chicken-sized dinosaur found in Wales is UK's earliest known theropod

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Life

Gifted dogs can learn 12 words in a week and remember them for months

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Health

Drug treatment for Lyme disease could lead to its eradication

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Technology

Flying robot can also ride a skateboard and balance on a rope

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Life

Some ancient giant ground sloths dined on meat

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Space

Rocks gathered by Chang'e 5 rover show magma once spewed from the moon

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Space

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has found two odd pairs of asteroids

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Life

Hares with failed snow camouflage still manage to avoid predators

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Environment

UK National Grid in talks to build an energy island in the North Sea

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Technology

Team of underground rescue robots wins $2 million DARPA prize

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Life

Circadian clock made from scratch to probe how biological rhythms work

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Health

Sydney comes out of 4-month lockdown after reaching vaccination target

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Technology

AI-generated deepfake voices can fool both humans and smart assistants

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Health

Living sensors in our guts could provide early warnings of cancer

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Life

Lava-munching microbes were the earliest life on land

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Environment

Breadfruit could be the food of the future as the climate warms

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Health

UK's slow response to covid-19 was a 'serious' error, say MPs

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Environment

Decaying oil tanker near Yemen could trigger humanitarian disaster

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Environment

Toxic oak moth threatens UK trees after failure to control its spread

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Health

Women are less likely to get pregnant for two years after a concussion

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Life

Sea cucumber has modified genes to help it live on hydrothermal vents

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Technology

Spies may be storing data to decrypt with a future quantum computer

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Technology

Artificial insect-inspired ‘brain’ can guide robotic dog through maze

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Analysis

Shadow of a girl on a swing

Health

How will the UK’s Universal Credit cut affect the health of children?

Poverty is known to have wide-reaching effects on children's health Cuts to benefits this week in the UK are expected to push hundreds of thousands of children into poverty, and the effect this will have on their health is still unknown. While there is substantial evidence that poverty has long-lasting effects on health, we are …

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Technology

EU votes to restrict AI use in law enforcement while UK rolls it out

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Space

How the Hubble Telescope opened a new window on the cosmos

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Humans

Why psychologists can't decide if moral disgust is even a thing

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Aperture

WINNER Creation, that captures camouflage groupers exiting their milky cloud of eggs and sperm in Fakarava, French Polynesia.

Life

Cloud of eggs and sperm image wins Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition THIS remarkable underwater shot of a cluster of camouflage groupers (Epinephelus polyphekadion) in Fakarava, French Polynesia, has won photographer and biologist Laurent Ballesta the 2021 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition , organised by the Natural History Museum in London. Titled Creation , the image captures a moment in …

Regulars

Features

T. rex with feathers: China’s fossils are rewriting the dinosaur story

Life

T. rex with feathers: China’s fossils are rewriting the dinosaur story

Twenty-five years ago, Chinese scientists revealed the first feathered dinosaur. Since then, they have unearthed a treasure trove of exquisitely preserved specimens that put dinosaurs in a whole new light

Features

Physics

Can Einstein’s forgotten theory of space solve the cosmology crisis?

Features

Health

How mRNA is transforming the way we treat illnesses from flu to cancer

Features

Culture

ADA TWIST, SCIENTIST (L to R) NICHOLAS CROVETTI as IGGY PECK, AMANDA CHRISTINE as ADA TWIST, and CANDACE KOZAK as ROSIE REVERE in episode 103 of ADA TWIST, SCIENTIST. Cr. COURTESY OF NETFLIX ?? 2021

Physics

Ada Twist, 51¶¯Âþ review: Brilliant children's TV for the curious

Ada Twist (middle) wants to figure out how the world works Based on Andrea Beaty and illustrator David Roberts’s bestselling picture book series, the creatives behind Ada Twist, 51¶¯Âþ always knew that their Netflix adaptation would have a lot to live up to. Thankfully, a brilliant team has been amassed to bring the animated show …

Culture

Humans

Why the ancestors of dogs were our colleagues not friends

Culture

Escape from Extinction review: How crucial are zoos for conservation?

Culture

Technology

Don't Miss: Sonic Ray lights up London’s only lighthouse

Culture

More

Look at fossils on your phone to help researchers uncover Earth’s past

Look at fossils on your phone to help researchers uncover Earth’s past

Fossilised plants tell stories of Earth’s capricious past. By participating in the Fossil Atmospheres project, you can help researchers uncover them, find Layal Liverpool

Regulars

Puzzle #135: How do you hit the jackpot on this machine?

Regulars

Tom Gauld: Will Linda get the lead researcher job?

Regulars

Twisteddoodles: Up next on the tour is this traffic light

Regulars

Regulars

The race to make the first feature film in space is heating up

The race to make the first feature film in space is heating up

Feedback is our weekly column of bizarre stories, implausible advertising claims, confusing instructions and more

Regulars

Regulars

Letters

Regulars

The last word

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