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Adaptive algorithms have been linked to terrorist attacks and beneficial social movements. Governing them requires new science on collective human–algorithm behaviour.
More political and public awareness of the plight of the world’s crops when it comes to fungal disease is crucial to stave off a major threat to global food security.
Franklin was no victim in how the DNA double helix was solved. An overlooked letter and an unpublished news article, both written in 1953, reveal that she was an equal player.
Demand for lithium for batteries and other green technologies is exploding. The industry must develop sustainable methods to remove and process the element from ores and brines to avoid environmental damage.
Clearly communicating baselines for assessing ocean warming is essential for understanding extreme events and how they will affect marine ecosystems and livelihoods in the future.
The benefits of scientific collaboration are too often skewed towards wealthier countries. Bioethicists and others present guidance on how stakeholders such as researchers can change this.
Anthropogenic pressures and climate change are altering water flows worldwide. Better understanding, new economic thinking and an international governance framework are needed to stave off catastrophe.
Fifty years since the basis of magnetic resonance imaging was published, MRI scanners remain expensive — and impractical in many countries. Here’s how we are making them smaller and less costly.
Shifting weather, changing settlement patterns and a lack of preparedness mean that dryland areas are most at risk from flooding. Researchers need to focus on data collection, early-warning systems, flood protection and more.
Ships and ports are ripe for operation without humans — but only if the maritime industry can work through the practical, legal and economic implications first.
Conflict pressures are pushing the world closer to autonomous weapons that can kill without human control. Researchers and the international community must join forces to prohibit them.
Researchers investigating the impacts of social media on mental health must consider where exactly adolescents are in their cognitive and social development.
Funds for a major genomics programme in Africa will run dry this year. A chance to address global inequity in health-related genomics by building on the success of this initiative must not be missed.
Wordle, Minecraft and Scrabble are played online by millions. Gamifying experiments can make behavioural research more inclusive, rigorous and reproducible — if it’s done right.
Agricultural sciences have for too long ignored traditional and local knowledge about crop plants and how best to grow them. That must change if the world is to ensure future food security.
Wallace, who independently discovered the theory of evolution, relied on local knowledge to craft his seminal work on species ranges in the Amazon. Now, the region’s Indigenous scientists have taken charge of their research using this and other cross-cultural tools.
Born 200 years ago, the evolutionary biologist experienced many setbacks during his career — none more severe than when he headed home with his precious collections from Brazil.