Soil samples don't prove who's behind Syria gas attack
Syria's chemical weapons are supposed to be almost gone, yet weapons inspectors are en route to investigate new reports of gas attacks. What is going on?
Jurassic predator had surprisingly sensitive snout
A CT scan of an exceptionally preserved pliosaur skull suggests the extinct marine predator may have used its sensitive snout to hunt its prey
Smartphone sensors could give aircraft accident clues
They measure speed, direction, orientation, position and air pressure: can smartphones help find out what happened to crashed planes like flight MH370?
Why did evolution stall during the 'boring billion'?
About 1.7 billion years ago, evolution seemed to grind to a halt, but a long time later it kicked in with a vengeance – plate tectonics may explain why
God not-botherers: Religious apathy reigns
Across the developed world, people are losing interest in god without becoming atheists. That's a good thing
Zoologger: Deep-freeze maggot feeds on new form of fat
Faced with sub-zero temperatures, maggots of the goldenrod gall fly allow their bodies to freeze solid and sustain themselves with a unique fat
Extreme hygiene: Cleaning a hippo's mighty molars
Open wide, please. Keeping a safe distance, this man is brushing the teeth of a hippopotamus at a wildlife reserve in China
Losing our religion: Your guide to a godless future
The human mind is primed to believe in god, so why are so many people abandoning religion – and should we be worried about living in an atheist world?
A visual time machine into US history
From a turn-of-the-century eclipse to a 100-year-old glimpse of the Seminole people of Florida, a new digital collection reveals the history of a nation
Stem cell revival: The 1990s are back
The technique used to create Dolly the sheep is again the front runner, with ethical baggage in tow
Neanderthals may have been our intellectual equals
There's no evidence that our extinct cousins were less intelligent than modern humans, finds a review of archaeological evidence
Antibiotic-resistant superbugs now a global epidemic
The first global review of antibiotic resistance is devastating – and we may run out of antibiotics before we can measure the full scope of the problem
Execution botched despite lethal-injection warnings
Gruesome reports from the execution of Clayton Lockett add further evidence that the death penalty in the US risks violating the country's constitution
Astrophile: Dizzy exoplanet has a compact 8-hour day
In a first for any world outside the solar system, analysis shows that Beta Pictoris b has the shortest known day – and it is going to get shorter
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