Letters archive

You report concerns that skyglow – light spilling from cities into rural habitats at night – may affect wildlife ( 2 March, p 8 ). You mention solutions: turning off street lights in the small hours of the morning as well as limiting the brightness of signs and ensuring that the light is directed only …

Amazing band name: transient anus, or warty comb jelly – either would do Vanessa Peters is one of many with this reaction to the news that Mnemiopsis leidyi has an anus that comes and goes ( 9 March, p 8 )

I was taken aback by Natalie Smith's insistence that surrogate mothers shouldn't be paid ( 5 January, p 20 ). It should actually be one of the highest-paying jobs there is. That is because a woman is sacrificing her body and risking her health in order to help create a family for those who can't. …

Debora MacKenzie reports on gum disease as a possible contributory factor in Alzheimer's disease ( 2 February, p 6 ). My mother-in-law is as sharp as a pin, although her short-term memory is fading. She is 96. When she was in her teens it was decided to remove all her teeth. On what grounds we …

Gina Rippon's article on the myth of male and female brains is long overdue and a very balanced reassessment of bias in the science of human brains ( 2 March, p 28 ). But the omission of the role of hormones in neurological processing is glaring. And Rippon didn't mention the fact that men commit …

There is much to welcome in Rippon's article . However, a couple of caveats seem necessary. There is little evolutionary reason to expect genetically influenced sex differences in such things as skills at reading, writing, mathematics and computer programming, because these cultural inventions are very recent in evolutionary terms. In contrast, there is good reason …

I agree with David Titley that it would be unwise for the US, or any government, to rule out the use of any form of low-carbon energy generation we already have available, including nuclear power ( 2 March, p 24 ). The German government's switch-off of its nuclear plants was premature and led to increased …

Titley says nuclear electricity generation should be considered . But the costs of decommissioning power stations and dealing with waste are immense, and there is no known safe long-term solution for the disposal of nuclear waste. Back-up systems for keeping nuclear cores safe can fail in the event of damage to the reactor, as was …

Keep up the good work with your coverage of climate change, for example your report describing what a world warmed by 1.5°C looks like ( 19 January, p 34 ). That prompts me to wonder: how much more heat does burning a kilogram of petrol generate later via the greenhouse effect than via its combustion? …

Laura Spinney reports Matt Pope's view on where to look for Neanderthal habitation: a third of the way up a slope with a good vista and solid rock behind ( 9 February, p 28 ). Studying wildfire risk factors , we found "thermal belts" in exactly these places on spurs of high ground, with higher …