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This week's magazine

16 September 2023

Issue 3456

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Editor's picks

Our top articles from the latest magazine

PRP04M Cannabis brain and marijuana neurological effect on thinking as a human organ made of weed leaves as a pot or herbal medicine patient and effects.

Health

Cannabis for medical use is soaring but the research is lagging behind

Leader

Subscriber-only
WAN8RX An illuminated sign in the window of a store in New York advertises the sale of CBD products, seen on Friday, August 16, 2019. CBD is the non-psychoactive component of marijuana as opposed to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which is the stuff that gets you high, not to mention being illegal at this time. (? Richard B. Levine)

Health

Is CBD a wonder drug or waste of money? Here's what the evidence says

Features

Subscriber-only
Disinformation wars: The fight against fake news in the age of AI

Society

Disinformation wars: The fight against fake news in the age of AI

Features

Subscriber-only
Flowers in a prairie field with mountains in the background

Environment

Can massive solar power expansion regenerate the US’s iconic prairies?

Features

Subscriber-only

Table of contents

Leaders

PRP04M Cannabis brain and marijuana neurological effect on thinking as a human organ made of weed leaves as a pot or herbal medicine patient and effects.

Health

Cannabis for medical use is soaring but the research is lagging behind

With more of us turning to cannabis and its compounds for medical reasons than ever before, we need solid research to tell us what it really does to the body and mind

Leader

Subscriber-only

News

3D render modern white porcelain ceramic toilet bowl with stainless steel bidet shower spray and toilet-roll holder in a bathroom. Teal green granite wall tiles, Morning, Sunlight, Clean, Marble floor; Shutterstock ID 2205794535; purchase_order: -; job: -; client: -; other: -

Technology

Smart toilets could leak your medical data, warn security experts

Toilets that collect health data could be hacked to reveal extremely sensitive information and should be regulated as medical devices, say security experts

News

Subscriber-only

Life

Red imported fire ants with painful bites have taken hold in Europe

News

Free

Environment

Risk of mass deaths as heatwaves start to pass survivability threshold

News

Free

A baby wearing a sensor for measuring blood glucose levels

Health

Covid-19 linked to elevated risk of type 1 diabetes in young children

News

Free

The Porc-Epic Cave

Humans

Cave art pigments show how ancient technology changed over 4500 years

News

Free

Mathematics

Mathematicians find 12,000 solutions for fiendish three-body problem

News

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Life

Spotted salamander eggs hatch more easily if nibbled by predators

News

Subscriber-only

Physics

Pumps that beat like the heart could increase energy efficiency

News

Free

The limestone spheroids of 'Ubeidiya

Humans

Mysterious ancient stones were deliberately made into spheres

News

Free

Life

Gannets prefer to roll either right or left when they dive

News

Free

Humans

Terracotta Army shoes reveal secrets of ancient Chinese footwear

News

Subscriber-only

Technology

GPT-4 wins chatbot lawyer contest – but is still not as good as humans

News

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Life

Our ultra-mobile arm joints may have evolved for climbing down trees

News

Free

Future battery concepts

Technology

Quantum batteries that charge wirelessly might never lose efficiency

News

Subscriber-only

Environment

Earth has just seen its hottest three-month spell on record

News

Free

Reconstruction of an ancient marsupial ecosystem

Life

Ancient mini koala may help solve mystery of early marsupial evolution

News

Subscriber-only

Astrocyte brain cells. Fluorescence light micrograph of primary astrocyte cells from the brain of a mouse. Astrocytes have numerous branches of connective tissue that provide support and nutrition to the neurons (nerve cells) of the brain. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is green; cell nuclei are magenta; actin filaments are blue.

Health

New type of brain cell discovered that acts like hybrid of two others

News

Free

Industrial smoke stack

Technology

Electrically charged mist could help capture carbon from power plants

News

Subscriber-only

Health

Human kidneys have been partially grown in pigs for the first time

News

Free

Space

Asteroid hit by NASA spacecraft is behaving unexpectedly

News

Subscriber-only

A woman in bed with a sleep mask on and covering her face with her duvet

Health

Westerners sleep later on weekends than people in Asia

News

Subscriber-only

E9NWFC Dehorned white rhino (Ceratotherium simum) with calf, Mpumalanga, South Africa

Life

Huge rewilding project will release 2000 white rhinos across Africa

News

Free

Earth

Tonga volcano unleashed underwater flows that reshaped the seafloor

News

Free

A note from our editor on New Scientist Live 2023

New Scientist Live

A note from our editor on New Scientist Live 2023

News

Free

Analysis

Society

Can the UK’s new ARIA science agency deliver ‘moonshot’ technologies?

Originally dreamed up by Dominic Cummings, the UK's Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA) has been tasked with a high-risk, high-reward approach to research funding

Analysis

Free

Developing the 'sharenting' habit prenatally has consequences

Technology

Developing the 'sharenting' habit prenatally has consequences

Comment

Subscriber-only

Editorial use only Mandatory Credit: Photo by ITV/Shutterstock (14061651br) Emmerdale - Ep 9774 & Ep 9775 Tuesday 5th September 2023 Despite their past hostility, it seems that Cain Dingle, as played by Jeff Hordley, and Caleb, as played by Will Ash, are finally headed in the right direction. Caleb makes his entry into the family official with a drink from the Dingle welly. 'Emmerdale' TV Show, Episodes Ep 9761-9778 UK - Aug 2023 Emmerdale, is a British ITV long running soap opera, known as Emmerdale Farm until 1989, set in Emmerdale, a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. It was created by Kevin Laffan and was first broadcast on 16 October 1972. It was originally produced by ITV Yorkshire and is still filmed in their Leeds studios.

Physics

How soap operas can help us understand special relativity

Comment

Subscriber-only

Aperture

cf. Mycena (???) Reserva Los Cedros, Cotacachi, Ecuador

Life

Fascinating photos of fungi show their diversity

Mycologists Danny Newman and Roo Vandegrift spent more than a decade scouting for fungi in the threatened Los Cedros reserve in Ecuador. See some of their finds here

Regulars

Free

Features

WAN8RX An illuminated sign in the window of a store in New York advertises the sale of CBD products, seen on Friday, August 16, 2019. CBD is the non-psychoactive component of marijuana as opposed to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which is the stuff that gets you high, not to mention being illegal at this time. (? Richard B. Levine)

Health

Is CBD a wonder drug or waste of money? Here's what the evidence says

Claims about the health benefits of cannabidiol have outpaced credible research, but CBD does show some real promise

Features

Subscriber-only

Disinformation wars: The fight against fake news in the age of AI

Society

Disinformation wars: The fight against fake news in the age of AI

Features

Subscriber-only

Flowers in a prairie field with mountains in the background

Environment

Can massive solar power expansion regenerate the US’s iconic prairies?

Features

Subscriber-only

Culture

You're Wrong About art - podcast

Comment

New Scientist recommends You're Wrong About and Monolithic Undertow

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week

Culture

Subscriber-only

Close up of digital eye with layered graphics

Comment

The Coming Wave review: How AI reshapes our world

Culture

Subscriber-only

Men preparing the root and the leaves to be cooked together for the preparation of Ayahuasca tea. (Photo by: Giulio Paletta/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Comment

Ten Trips review: What tripping taught an academic about psychedelics

Culture

Subscriber-only

cat manager in a suit sitting in the office; Shutterstock ID 368566592; purchase_order: -; job: -; client: -; other: -

Comment

Starter Villain review: Big questions laced with absurdist humour

Culture

Subscriber-only

More

E036X7 Constellation Cygnus (Cyg), one of the modern constellations from "Constellations" serie

Space

It's a great time to see the Cygnus constellation – here's how

You can currently see Cygnus and its lovely stars, including stunning double star Albireo, from almost anywhere in the world, says Abigail Beall

Regulars

Subscriber-only

Puzzle #239: What is the quickest way to break up this chocolate bar?

Puzzle #239: What is the quickest way to break up this chocolate bar?

Regulars

Subscriber-only

Tom Gauld on taking time to smell the roses

Tom Gauld on taking time to smell the roses

Regulars

Free

Twisteddoodles on AI taking our jobs

Twisteddoodles on AI taking our jobs

Regulars

Free

Regulars

Can the dead use phones? Scientists explore this unanswered question

Can the dead use phones? Scientists explore this unanswered question

Feedback is intrigued to learn that a grant has been awarded for study into "After-death communication with cell phones", but has a number of questions to ask - not least where the dead get their service from

Regulars

Free

Regulars

Letters

Regulars

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