Even at the height of his popularity, Boris Johnson routinely avoided close questioning – to the extent of once hiding in a fridge to dodge a TV inquisitor. The former UK prime minister is likely to be dreading next week’s appearance at the Covid inquiry. And ... More »
Fossil fuel production emits a majority of human-caused methaneEvgenii Panov/Shutterstock Carbon dioxide is not the only greenhouse gas under fire at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. On 2 December, the UAE, the US and China are convenin... More »
Earlier today I set you this puzzle by one of the world’s leading logicians about a group of five power-hungry philosophers. Here it is again with the solution.The philosopher’s ruling councilIn the ancient land of Philosophia there is a ruling council of five... More »
The OpenAI farce has moved at such speed in the past week that it is easy to forget that nobody has yet said in clear terms why Sam Altman – the returning chief executive and all-round genius, according to his vocal fanclub – was fired in the first place. Sinc... More »
I’ve always known I was donor-conceived. As an adult, it is something I take joy in – knowing the unique way I came to be born. Long gone are the days of being afraid that a schoolboy would tease me that the sperm donor my parents used only wanted a couple of ... More »
Another day, a fresh chapter in the Covid inquiry – and another public servant having their diary read back to them in a public forum that looks like the world’s most under-embellished anxiety dream. Sir Patrick Vallance’s contemporaneous notes reveal a man de... More »
Rishi Sunak would almost certainly have known scientists were worried about his “eat out to help out” scheme during the pandemic, Sir Patrick Vallance has said, directly contradicting the prime minister’s evidence to the Covid inquiry.In potentially damaging t... More »
The relationship between the government and scientists is under the microscope as never before. The former chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, gave evidence to the Covid inquiry on Monday, and Prof Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer for Englan... More »
Britain’s drugs regulator has approved a groundbreaking treatment for two painful and debilitating lifelong blood disorders, which works by “editing” the gene that causes them.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has given the green l... More »
Sometimes it pays to approach a problem sideways. Each of today’s puzzles requires some lateral thinking, in that the first step of the solution is perhaps not the obvious one.1. Three cloves on an orangeGiven three points on the surface of a sphere, what is t... More »
Automated floating factories that manufacture green versions of petrol or diesel could soon be in operation thanks to pioneering work at the University of Cambridge. The revolutionary system would produce a net-zero fuel that would burn without creating fossil... More »
In verse and in color, a Nobel physicist and a visual artist collaborate to portray black holes, gravitational waves and other preposterous features of Einstein’s universe.If you have ever wondered what it might feel like to be sucked into a black hole — twist... More »