Letters archive

Annalee Newitz highlights the threat of AI for the creative industry and those whose livelihoods depend on it, but surely I am not the only one who can see that their personality, interests and opinions shine through in every column? It is this personal flair, also seen in features with phrases and anecdotes written in …

I doubt I am the only one alarmed by the idea of prescribing weight-loss drugs to children, as discussed by Clare Wilson. It comes amid studies showing that a rise in consumption of ultra-processed food is linked with a decline in physical and mental health ( 15 July, p 32 ). Manufacturers create ultra-processed foods …

Having visited Bolivia on several occasions, I found it spectacular. Moreover, as a scientist, I well understand the consequences of destroying its forests. However, I still have to question the nature of the commentary in your recent picture story on this. How can people living in higher-income countries suggest that Bolivians don't have the right …

You write that "until we know what consciousness is, there is no solid way of testing for it" in an artificial intelligence. There is, in fact, a simple way of testing for it, provided the AI is incapable of lying about itself, has colour vision and hasn't been trained on the concept of "subjective experience" …

You state: "Perhaps the relevant question isn't whether or not AIs can become conscious, but why we would want them to be conscious." If you see conscious awareness as the ability to express feelings, thoughts and intentions, then the importance of consciousness in robots that are to be useful assistants, carers or interesting companions is …

I couldn't agree more with Madeleine Cuff's report regarding the carbon taxation of luxuries. However, defining a luxury is no simple matter. She mentions two examples, air travel and SUVs. Imagine three people – A, B and C – are all on the same plane travelling from a small rural town to the big city. …

The James Webb Space Telescope was pricey at $10 billion, but the game-changing science that it is producing really makes it great value for money ( Letters, 22 July ). Your correspondent needs to see it in context and should save her ire for the oil companies that make huge profits by drilling for the …

When built in the 1930s, no houses in my neighbourhood had rainwater pipes connected directly into the main sewer. Instead, their gutter downpipes fed into rubble-packed underground soakaways. While this doesn't reduce rainwater running into the public sewer network from the street, it must considerably minimise the total volume hitting it.

Philip Ball writes of physicists puzzled over when a simulation of a physical entity, such as a wormhole, in a quantum computer is actually real ( 12 August, p 40 ). In my mind, I imagine an animal that is half horse and half lion. No real-world equivalent exists; I have made it in my …

Your review of author Marjolijn van Heemstra's book includes the quote: "Begin your day with what you truly are – deeply improbable. If we appreciated this fully, wouldn't we take better care of each other and the planet?" I appreciate the optimism, but remain sceptical ( 29 July, p 29 ). Many people believe that …