Space Crewed missions to the moon and Mars need dreamers and doers IN THE early 1600s, astronomer Johannes Kepler began to write what is now considered to be the first science fiction story. Somnium , published posthumously by his son in 1634, imagines "daemons" that help travellers journey to the moon and observe Earth from its surface. More than three centuries later, this flight of fancy became … News
Technology How can you tell if a video is a deepfake? Just look at the eyes Researchers put words in Barack Obama's mouth Blink twice if you are a fake. Sophisticated fake videos created by artificial intelligence are getting better and better, so tools to identify the genuine article are needed. One solution is to look at the way fake faces blink. In recent months, eerily-realistic fake videos have been created … News
Humans What can game theory tell us about Trump's threats of trade war? Theories of conflict and cooperation say the US risks self-harm if it sparks a big trade war. So what is Trump's real aim, wonders Petros Sekeris News
Space Giant rocket simulator helps engineers tweak before first launch IT TAKES a lot of wiring to control the most powerful rocket ever built. The rocket in question, the Space Launch System (SLS), is designed to help send robots – and maybe one day people – to Mars and beyond (for more on the changing road map, see “ Team moon vs team Mars: the … Regulars
Life Consciousness: How we’re solving a mystery bigger than our minds What is being in love, feeling pain or seeing colour made of? How our brains make conscious experience has long been a riddle – but we’re uncovering clues Features
Technology Game on: Picks from the latest video games at E3 From cyberpunk and hypnotic patterns to warfare in ancient Greece, here’s the highlights from the latest crop of video games released at this year’s E3 Culture
Technology Tired of tea rounds? Dial a drink with this desktop barista Trouble keeping track of which colleagues need caffeination? This push-button solution will suit you to a T Regulars
Feedback: How a rare axolotl found salvation among Mexican nuns Feedback is our weekly column of bizarre stories, implausible advertising claims, confusing instructions and more Regulars