Issue 3087 | Magazine cover date: 20 August 2016

20 August 2016

Issue 3087

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On the cover

Features

How winning at cards can help you win at life

Life may have emerged not once, but many times on Earth

News

Mystery of déjà vu explained – it's how we check our memories

Analysis

Shock therapy to make a comeback as evidence grows that it works

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Health

Shock therapy to make a comeback as evidence grows that it works

News

Health

Inspired by the Olympic vibe? Get moving to save your life

News

Life

Life may have emerged not once, but many times on Earth

Features

Technology

How winning at cards can help you win at life

Features

Space

No-fly zone: Exploring the uncharted layers of our atmosphere

Features

Physics

President Perón, I'll give you fusion in a bottle

Features

Leaders

Health

We must understand electroshock therapy's unwanted side effects

Electroconvulsive shock treatment is in line for a renaissance. But before that happens, we need to know more about the cognitive impairments it causes

News

Health

Inspired by the Olympic vibe? Get moving to save your life

News

Life

Wasps stitch up spiders in silk nests where they are eaten alive

Zoologger is our weekly column highlighting extraordinary animals – and occasionally other organisms – from around the world

News

Space

Mystery object in weird orbit beyond Neptune cannot be explained

News

Health

First real-time look at genes switching off in live human brains

News

Life

Selfish dogs would rather play with a toy than help a human

News

Health

Virtual reality helps eight paralysed people feel their legs

News

Earth

Lead in Australia's drinking water is leaching from brass taps

News

Earth

World’s oldest vertebrate is a shark that may live for 500 years

News

Physics

How big is a proton? No one knows exactly, and that's a problem

News

Life

Cherry or rhubarb? Orangutan mixes tasty cocktails in its mind

News

Space

Canadian meteorite may be first visitor from the Kuiper belt

News

Health

Polio back in Nigeria two years after being wiped out in Africa

News

Technology

Expensive drones take flying lessons from cheaper stunt doubles

News

Life

First wearable brain scanner to probe people with amazing gifts

News

Health

104-year-old cyclist named world's greatest centenarian athlete

News

Space

Black hole made in the lab shows signs of quantum entanglement

News

Space

NASA urged to rejoin the hunt for gravitational waves

News

Space

China launches world's first quantum communications satellite

News

Technology

Autonomous AI guards to stalk the internet fighting hackers

News

Technology

US Air Force wants to plasma bomb the sky using tiny satellites

News

One Per Cent

News

Technology

Australian AI spots dodgy deals that look like money laundering

News

Earth

Scorchio! Earth's surface is the hottest it has been in history

News

Life

Decline of wild bee species in England linked to pesticide use

News

Newborn baby opioid addiction quadruples in US in 15 years

News

Life

60 Seconds

News

Earth

Plunging deep beneath the sea in a tiny sub to map the ocean

News

Mystery of déjà vu explained – it's how we check our memories

News

Does eating more salt prevent migraines and severe headaches?

News

Analysis

Health

Gluten-free water: surely that's not a real thing is it?

Free from common sense A friend on Twitter recently shared a link and declared that "civilisation is over". It appeared that she might be correct: the site was marketing gluten-free bottled water with the strapline, “because you can never be too sure”. The link had been shared with a number of commentators, and for a large …

News

Life

Human-animal chimeras may be key to us living healthier lives

News

LHC-style supercolliders are entering a make or break phase

News

Health

Shock therapy to make a comeback as evidence grows that it works

News

Aperture

Life

See the creepy-crawly stowaways in a 3000-year-old loaf of bread

This New Scientist article, usually accessible only to subscribers, is made available for free by the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences in Sydney, Australia MUMMIES weren't the only bodies preserved in the tombs of ancient Egypt. These biscuit beetles were discovered inside a loaf of funerary bread collected in the early 1800s, possibly from …

Regulars

Features

Technology

How winning at cards can help you win at life

Life, like poker, is full of risk, chance and hidden information - which is why the most accomplished poker bots can teach us how to succeed

Features

Life

Life may have emerged not once, but many times on Earth

Features

Space

No-fly zone: Exploring the uncharted layers of our atmosphere

Features

Physics

President Perón, I'll give you fusion in a bottle

Features

Culture

Vertical screen with various mobile devices scattered in front it

Technology

Mall tales: an artist's take on modern retail psychology

Shopping malls are hot property in the Arab Gulf states, but Sophia Al-Maria doesn't exactly warm to them in her new video installation

Culture

Life

The kids are alright – if you leave them alone

Culture

Technology

How the cyber age gave peace a chance

Culture

Regulars

Feedback: Male scientists' preference for self reference

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

Regulars

This week's magazine

20 August 2016

On the cover

Health

Shock therapy to make a comeback as evidence grows that it works

Health

Inspired by the Olympic vibe? Get moving to save your life

Life

Life may have emerged not once, but many times on Earth

Technology

How winning at cards can help you win at life

Space

No-fly zone: Exploring the uncharted layers of our atmosphere

Physics

President Perón, I'll give you fusion in a bottle

Table of contents

Leaders

Health

We must understand electroshock therapy's unwanted side effects

Health

Inspired by the Olympic vibe? Get moving to save your life

News

Life

Wasps stitch up spiders in silk nests where they are eaten alive

Space

Mystery object in weird orbit beyond Neptune cannot be explained

Health

First real-time look at genes switching off in live human brains

Life

Selfish dogs would rather play with a toy than help a human

Health

Virtual reality helps eight paralysed people feel their legs

Earth

Lead in Australia's drinking water is leaching from brass taps

Earth

World’s oldest vertebrate is a shark that may live for 500 years

Physics

How big is a proton? No one knows exactly, and that's a problem

Life

Cherry or rhubarb? Orangutan mixes tasty cocktails in its mind

Space

Canadian meteorite may be first visitor from the Kuiper belt

Health

Polio back in Nigeria two years after being wiped out in Africa

Technology

Expensive drones take flying lessons from cheaper stunt doubles

Life

First wearable brain scanner to probe people with amazing gifts

Health

104-year-old cyclist named world's greatest centenarian athlete

Space

Black hole made in the lab shows signs of quantum entanglement

Space

NASA urged to rejoin the hunt for gravitational waves

Space

China launches world's first quantum communications satellite

Technology

Autonomous AI guards to stalk the internet fighting hackers

Technology

US Air Force wants to plasma bomb the sky using tiny satellites

One Per Cent

Technology

Australian AI spots dodgy deals that look like money laundering

Earth

Scorchio! Earth's surface is the hottest it has been in history

Life

Decline of wild bee species in England linked to pesticide use

Newborn baby opioid addiction quadruples in US in 15 years

Life

60 Seconds

Earth

Plunging deep beneath the sea in a tiny sub to map the ocean

Mystery of déjà vu explained – it's how we check our memories

Does eating more salt prevent migraines and severe headaches?

Analysis

Health

Gluten-free water: surely that's not a real thing is it?

Life

Human-animal chimeras may be key to us living healthier lives

LHC-style supercolliders are entering a make or break phase