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The idea that robots can be any shape, so there is no need for them to take a humanoid form, is fine for single-task robots. But to expand on the argument you mention, a driverless car won't be able to vacuum my floors, and my robovac can't wash the dishes. In fact, my robovac can't …

The idea of using AI to read ancient texts raises an intriguing question: how will we know for sure that the AI is actually reading the original text and not simply engaged in its own imaginative version of creative writing( 15 February, p 16 )?

For many people, one of the biggest impacts of improved quantum computers will be the ability of these machines to factor multiples of large prime numbers, the basis of RSA cryptography. This and related cryptography approaches are the bedrock of internet banking and commerce. When a functional quantum computer emerges, this bedrock will turn to …

You ponder the question of when civilisation actually began. I have always viewed a key indicator of this as the advent of drainage. Disposal of human effluent and waste requires organised communities, surplus resources, management structures and a sense that sanitation is important. So, for Britain, civilisation started with the Romans, then departed, returning much …

Such is the power of the nocebo effect, it is arguably a mistake to read a list of possible negative side effects when you have to take a medication. When I had a covid-19 vaccine, I saw a wall poster listing possible side effects and advised the nurses it wasn't necessarily a good idea to …

Inspired by a reader's claim his cat possibly possesses theory of mind, I decided to test my own pet ( Letters, 25 January ). The experiment: I stand in front of a (full-length) mirror with Samson, a highly demanding 5-year-old Siamese cat, comfortably tucked under my arm. To attract his attention in the mirror, I …

"Text neck", the abnormal force on the cervical spine while tilting the head as we scroll on a smartphone, may not be the worst consequence. Normally, while breathing, we do so deeply from the diaphragm, but when holding a device with a bent neck, we tend to breathe shallowly. Over decades, this could damage lungs. …

Ed Regis's piece on outlandish proposals for space travel reminded me of an idea that rarely seems to get a mention. Instead of sending 100,000 people, send 100 million sperm and eggs. Not only do they require few resources on the voyage, which allows for a smaller ship, they would also provide far more genetic …

What can explain atmospheric carbon dioxide at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii increasing by a record-breaking 3.58 parts per million in 2024? As well as forest fires and our failure to stop burning fossil fuels, I suggest the oceans, hitherto a big sink for taking up CO 2 from the atmosphere, have become saturated …

As well as bacteria, archaea, fungi and viruses, any microbiome list should include protists, such as Blastocystis species. Although normally classed as parasites, a 2024 study linked the presence of these in the human gut with improved health outcomes, including fewer metabolic abnormalities ( 8 February, p 30 ).

The male river dolphins urinating high into the air may simply be showing off, like children ( 8 February, p 13 ).