Pandemics of the past can teach us about the current one, says John Troyer, who studies how we use technology to alter the experience of death

Forget the simple out-of-Africa idea of how humans evolved. A huge array of fossils and genome studies has completely rewritten the story of how we came into being.

A prehistoric human species that lived in Europe 1.2 million to 800,000 years ago is emerging as a contender to be our last common ancestor with Neanderthals

This week, listen as the US debates covid-19, play a struggling survivor of an earthquake-torn city and discover how the planet gains from human progress slowing down

Is our love affair with AI really about building a new kind of deity to meet human needs no amount of rationality can fill? Max Barry's disturbing novel Providence lays out the case, says Sally Adee

Boredom can be unpleasant, but we can learn from some of the world's dullest people how to keep ourselves amused, says boredom researcher James Danckert

West Africa's waters are a hotspot for illegal fishing, says conservationist Justine Dossa. She is working to change fishing practices and tackle pollution

All you need to make satisfying plant-based protein is flour and water. Seitan, or wheat gluten, takes a little effort to produce, but the results are worth is, says Sam Wong

A piece of string found in a cave in France is the oldest ever discovered and shows that Neanderthals knew how to twist fibres together to make cords

They Are Already Here: UFO culture and why we see saucers by Sarah Scoles tries to find out what's so appealing about hunting UFOs

In Vivarium, a young couple in need of a starter home meet an estate agent who is very definitely not what he seems, and nor is the estate he shows them, finds Simon Ings

Tom Gauld’s science cartoons appear weekly in New Scientist. He explains how he gets his ideas as his latest collection, Department of Mind-Blowing Theories, hits the shelves

Skeletal markings show that some women who lived on the Mongolian steppe 1850 years ago appear to have been warriors, perhaps providing inspiration for the famous Ballad of Mulan

N. K. Jemisin's latest book sees New York itself come alive to fight off aliens in the first part of a new trilogy with ethnicity at its heart

Thinking of the brain as a machine may be hampering our progress in understanding how it works, says The Idea of the Brain: A history by Matthew Cobb

You don't need eggs to make meringues, pancakes and a host of other baked goods. If you know the science behind it, there are ingredients such as aquafaba that can do the same job

In Altered Carbon’s version of the future, our identities are stored in chips and can be switched between bodies. The first series was a hoot. The second, however, is a bit too earnest, says Emily Wilson

There's been a surge in people wanting to grow fruit and vegetables, but the path to self-sufficiency isn't as easy as some may have you think, writes James Wong

Building muscle reduces the risk of cancer and stroke, boosts brainpower, burns through calories and more – it might even be better for you than cardio

Archaeologists can learn a lot about ancient people by analysing their faeces, but only if they can be sure the remains weren’t left by a dog. Now AI can help

Coronavirus will overshadow Earth Day's golden anniversary, but the movement's successes are worth celebrating, says Gary Paul Nabhan

Our brains influence all aspects of our lives, including our sexual desires. This means brain injuries can have some surprising effects, says Amee Baird

How to use the Maillard reaction to make delicious dulce de leche – the ultimate comfort food when you are stuck indoors, says Sam Wong

Srinivisa Ramanujan’s ideas seemed to come from a parallel universe and mathematicians are still getting to grips with them today, say Ken Ono and Robert Schneider

A podcast called Science Diction looks at the stories behind scientific terms and phrases. Each episode is short and nicely put together, says David Silverberg

Getting your wok scorching hot and preparing your ingredients in advance is the best way to make a tasty stir-fry, says Sam Wong

Hyperconsumption adds to environmental destruction that brings people into contact with animal viruses that can spark pandemics. We have to avoid the temptation to rely on it to get us out, writes Graham Lawton

Mark O'Connell's book Notes from an Apocalypse is an exploration of doomsday preparation from Mars colonists to fallout shelter estate agents

A fresh look at the world’s oldest religious texts suggests ancient Egyptians saw the sky as a water-filled iron container from which chunks fell to Earth as meteorites

With social media, newspapers and politicians all espousing unverified covid-19 findings, use these seven signs to tell if a study should be treated with caution

Finland’s two-year test of universal basic income has concluded that it doesn't seem to disincentivise working, and improves recipients’ mental and financial well-being

Many ancient monuments are claimed to be aligned to celestial phenomena, but we now have the first statistical evidence this is the case for the Egyptian pyramids

Four decades ago, we introduced a standard way of encoding digital sound. Its first ever upgrade could lead to new genres of music and ways of experiencing sound

It's only 'Rock and Roll,' but one of the world's preeminent museums likes it; New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art will display instruments from Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones, Kurt Cobain, Lady Gaga and more until October 1. Rough Cut. (No Reporter Narration.)

An in-depth study of Leonardo da Vinci's earliest-known drawing has proved definitively that the great Renaissance artist was in fact comfortable working with either hand. Dan Fastenberg reports.

The Lucky Devil Lounge in Portland, Oregon has found an unusual way to stay afloat in uncertain times - home food delivery courtesy of its exotic dancers.

Opera singer Victoria Robertson is accustomed to performing on stages much bigger than the five-foot wide front porch of her San Diego home. But with concert venues closed and work at a standstill due to the coronavirus pandemic, she decided to make the most of it.

A town in southern Sweden has turned to a traditional source to try to prevent the coronavirus spreading during an annual festive event on Thursday: Chicken manure. Emer McCarthy reports.

U.S. coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx is best-known for her calm, authoritative briefings at the daily White House press conferences. But she has also become a pop culture phenomenon for her scarves.

Russell Howard, Nish Kumar, Jon Richardson and others help 'landlady' Kiri Pritchard-Mclean host 'The Big Comedy Quiz at The Covid Arms' and break a Guinness World Record.

Thousands of pink-plumed flamingos were spotted in a lake in India's western Maharashtra state on Friday.

Gowns 4 Good, a charity started by frontline physician assistant Nathaniel Moore, is asking graduates to donate their gowns to more than 77,000 frontline responders on Gowns4Good.net.

Ryanair Group CEO Michael O’Leary sits down with Reuters Tim Hepher to discuss challenges including industry-wide consolidation, environmental taxes, Brexit, the grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX and his 5-year, 100 million euro bonus package. Watch here the full event.

Reuters Breakingviews examines how Washington’s new paradigm on China is affecting Silicon Valley, from overseas investments to intellectual property protection to trade.

Former British Primer Minister Tony Blair cast doubt on that timetable for Brexit negotiations and said there was still a risk that Britain could exit the EU in a year's time without having struck a deal with its biggest trading partner.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said his party was now controlled by its "Marxist-Leninist wing" and that its leader Jeremy Corbyn was promising a revolution, but warned 'revolutions always end badly'.

Tony Blair Reuters Newsmaker event on 'The challenging state of British politics’.

Loose seats. Disrupted flights. Damning headlines. It’s been a terrible week for American Airlines. Reuters’ blogger Felix Salmon explains why flying American and other big carriers has become such a drag. (October 4, 2012)

The Goldman Sachs board of directors is supposed to keep management in check, but Reuters' blogger Felix Salmon says it is stacked with company insiders, conflicting interests and inexperience. (October 15, 2012)

People craving the best ingredients and flavors are changing the economics of chocolate, making it possible for chocolate makers such as Madecasse and Cacao Prieto to produce expensive chocolates, support farmers in the developing world and turn the simple candy bar into an artisanal experience. (November 27, 2012)