Politics
How can you tell when a politician is lying? Their lips are moving, or at least, that's what the old joke says. There's a lot more to politics than lying, though. You can use rhetoric to engineer your speeches to be convincing and back your arguments up with statistics. Then once you've been elected (provided the election wasn't hacked), you can subtly encourage the public to change their behaviour through 'nudge theory'.
Scientists analysed 8 million US speeches – and uncovered a surprising trend
Machine learning has revealed how US political rhetoric shifted from evidence to emotion over the past 140 years
Anemoia: Why am I nostalgic for a time I didn’t know or a place I’ve never been?
Do you find yourself longing for the magic of yesteryear, even when you’ve not been there yourself? You’re not alone - a psychologist explains why.
Are we too late to stop climate change?
It can be hard not to be despondent.
John Troyer | "Death is part of life, and there is a lot we can learn from it"
There are moments when disease and political protest suddenly make dead bodies far more visible, here are five lessons they can teach us.
Sandro Galea | What is the difference between health and medicine?
Sandro Galea explains the surprising factors that influence public health and which countries are doing it well.
Why a carbon tax could be the answer to climate change
This extract from A Better Planet: 40 Big Ideas for a Sustainable explains how taxing carbon and creating a 'climate club' could pressure nations to take action on climate change.
Marcel Danesi | Why do we want to believe lies?
Linguist Marcel Danesi reveals the shocking truth about liars, why we lie and what we can do to protect ourselves from them.
Chris Packham on overpopulation | "The first thing I’d do is globally emancipate and educate women"
Chris Packham, host of the BBC’s Chris Packham: 7.7 Billion People and Counting tells us about his fight to fix the planet, his kinship with Alan Turing, and dissecting Donald Trump.
The perils of unequal internet access | How a lack of access to affordable information helped to radicalise Brazil
How a lack of access to affordable information helped to radicalise Brazil.
Smart cities | A smart city does not have to become a surveillance city, but it requires a strong public commitment to privacy rights
With little protection afforded in legal systems throughout the world, urbanites have to rely on the commitments of governments and companies conducting the surveillance.
Earth’s ancient geography 'directed the course of human evolution'
In his book, Origins, astrobiologist Lewis Dartnell shows us how the Earth’s ancient geography has influenced the development of human civilisations, and how it still affects our behaviour today.
If a long history of unconscious bias can teach us anything, it's that faulty thinking can be fatal
David Robert Grimes explores the curious reality that an action poorly considered can often lead to unintended consequences.
Deepfakes | The fight against this dangerous use of AI
Next-generation artificial intelligence is threatening to take internet fakery to a dangerous new level. We meet the experts who are fighting back.
The real value of Greenland is in the ice, rather than the minerals
Whoever's flag flies above Greenland, as the ice sheet on world's largest island moves closer to a catastrophic point of no return, we might instead pause to ask whether it really matters who owns it.
Robert Elliott Smith | Are algorithms inherently biased?
Algorithms are everywhere, but are they coded in such a way that makes them racist bigots that are easily manipulated, without us even knowing?
Space exploration | The unintended consequences of privatising space
If the quest to become an interplanetary species becomes entirely propelled by profits, we risk losing sight of the values that make space exploration so important.
Dean Burnett | You could forgive a teenager for looking at the wider adult world, and saying '…it’s really up to us now'
We speak to neuroscientist Dean Burnett about A-Level results day, and how activists like Greta Thunberg are handling the pressure put on them by society.
Shake it off | Handshakes lasting over 3 seconds can trigger anxiety and 'affect relationships'
Dr Emese Nagy who led the study at the University of Dundee said the findings highlight the importance of introducing ourselves appropriately.
John Higgs | Are Generation Z our only hope for the future?
If you think the future looks bleak, you’re not alone, but the next generation might have just the mentality we need for a rosier outlook on life.
Alien contact: Brits pick scientists over politicians for first contact
Survey also finds men are more likely than women to reach out to aliens, while 11 per cent want a global referendum on the issue.
Space exploration | Where will we be in 50 years?
Sci-fi author Stephen Baxter speculates about what might be achieved in the next five decades.
Nazis, magic and McCarthyism | The dark history of early American space exploration
Frank J. Malina is a forgotten name in the history of the USA's quest for space - his story is just a part of the deeply political story of American space exploration.
Sarah Harper | What does a world with an ageing population look like?
We can’t reverse the slow march of time, but as people live longer and the birth rate declines, how can we manage a world with an ageing population?
Five signs that someone is trying to mislead you with statistics
Before you cry “fake news!”, it’s a good idea to know how to backup your case.