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Clare Wilson raises crucial points about the importance of formula milk supply for those who can't breastfeed, but I don't think food banks deserve to be a target for this ( 30 January, p 23 ). Under normal circumstances, food banks provide three days' supply of food for emergencies: they aren't meant to be a …

Doubters of the avalanche explanation for the demise of a Russian ski expedition in the 1959 Dyatlov Pass incident point to strange aspects of the tragedy, such as victims having little clothing on in freezing conditions, to support more mysterious ideas about what happened ( 6 February, p 18 ). However, it is well known …

Your recent article on the search for Dyson spheres – theorised structures that encircle a star to use its energy – gets one thinking ( 30 Janaury, p 44 ). A structure that obscures the surface of a star by a few per cent, let alone by as much as 90 per cent, as stated …

If we ever do find a Dyson sphere, it should set alarm bells ringing. That is because there is a good chance that this alien structure was made by an expansionist technological civilisation prone to infesting other planetary systems and ruthlessly harvesting resources in an effort to continue its unrestrained growth.

I find the idea that infrared radiation can be taken as an indication of a Dyson sphere a little odd. Surely if a civilisation was so advanced that it had taken steps to encircle a star to capture its energy, it would have ways of insulating this structure so that no energy was wasted, in …

I read with interest your article on the Denisovans, including the evidence that they occupied the Tibetan plateau ( 30 January, p 34 ). I wonder, given they were probably distinct from us, whether they are a possible candidate for the folk memory of the Yeti and other similarly large, mythic humanoids in the region.

While discussing possible alien explanations for the insterstellar object 'Oumuamua, astrophysicist Avi Loeb agrees that there is greater resistance to considering the existence of advanced life in the universe, as opposed to primitive life, though he thinks it is a "psychological barrier" ( 13 February, p 46 ). Surely it is a real barrier: one …

James Wong is correct when he asks: "What's so great about native anyway?" Here in New Zealand, there is a strong bias toward native species ( 30 January, p 24 ). What is sad is that this emphasis could harm carbon capture efforts, which are trumpeted by politicians at all levels. Our native trees are …

What are we to make of the small study in South Africa that found the Oxford/AstraZeneca covid-19 vaccine doesn't prevent mild or moderate illness from the B.1.351 variant found there? The South African health minister's decision, on 7 February, to put the vaccine's roll-out in the country on hold seems to be based on the …

Artificial intelligence may be great for specific tasks, but teaching your dog to sit isn't one of them ( 23 January, p 17 ). Dogs, like humans, undergo brain maturation at specific time periods during development. If this doesn't happen, they won't be emotionally well-adjusted. If you don't have a bit of spare time each …