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A view of the former Woodhouse Colliery site where West Cumbria Mining are seeking approval to once again extract coal

Cumbria coal mine should be a no go for new levelling up secretary

8 July 2022

Greg Clark must think twice before giving the green light to the UK's first new coal mine in decades. It would be indefensible on climate grounds, says Adam Vaughan


Kunming in China, where COP15 is due to take place

China is putting nature at risk with its biodiversity summit delays

10 June 2022

It's time for China to put national pride aside and let another country host the UN COP15 biodiversity conference, for the sake of wildlife, plants and habitats worldwide, says Adam Vaughan


Fireworks display

We need to ban the sale of all fireworks to the public right now

1 November 2019

Fireworks injure thousands and pollute the air. Let's enjoy professional and licensed firework displays, but they shouldn't be sold to the public, says Michael Le Page


It's time to criminalise serious scientific misconduct

It's time to criminalise serious scientific misconduct

10 September 2014

Research misconduct degrades trust in science and causes real-world harm. As such, it should be a crime akin to fraud, argues Richard Smith


Just obeying orders? Rethinking obedience and atrocity

Just obeying orders? Rethinking obedience and atrocity

10 September 2014

Ordinary people can commit atrocities simply by following orders, iconic 1960s experiments concluded – but this notion of the "banality of evil" is wrong


My thinking chip paves the way for brain-like computers

My thinking chip paves the way for brain-like computers

5 November 2014

Computers may be good for cold calculations, but brains are better at interpretation. That's why IBM's Dharmendra Modha is building chips to think like us


Is Earth in a new geological phase thanks to us?

Is Earth in a new geological phase thanks to us?

5 November 2014

It may be time for science to recognise Earth's new era – one shaped by humans. So argues a geologist involved in defining new phases in geological time


Does a surplus of men really mean more violence?

Does a surplus of men really mean more violence?

1 October 2014

Conventional wisdom holds that things get violent when men outnumber women. But the picture is more complicated than that, say three anthropologists


Gun sensors could hold US cops to account

Gun sensors could hold US cops to account

27 November 2014

In the wake of the Ferguson shooting, devices that record how and when a gun is fired could aid inquiries into police actions


Chemical is not a dirty word

Chemical is not a dirty word

26 November 2014

Synthetic chemicals must be safe as well as fit for purpose but they often don't deserve the bad press they receive. Time to reclaim the word