New Scientist 2018 sep

8 September 2018 | NewScientist | 1

CONTENTS

newscientist.com/issue/

Leader 3 We should be open to the idea that human intelligence isn’t as special as we like to think

News 4 THIS WEEK Crunch time for Ebola. Brazil National Museum fire. Race to save Opportunity. Find your heart age. The reality of the American dream

6 NEWS & TECHNOLOGY Mummified penguins. Dark matter blasted. Laser-powered drones. DNA editing before birth. Europa’s mystery cold spot. How you type could reveal Parkinson’s. Do AIs know what we are thinking? Corals fight the heat. Pram design can cut air pollution risk. Overworked brains. CRISPR helps dogs’ muscle disease. Fish pass the mirror test

17 IN BRIEF Elk antler gamble. Non-addictive opioid. Warm water threatens Arctic. AI tracks cancer. Print with sound and honey

Analysis 20 INSIGHT Why your next car could run on hydrogen 22 COMMENT The lunar gateway is a terrible idea. Why Americans should vote for a scientist 23 ANALYSIS Is self-harm in UK teens rising?

Features 28 The you delusion Why your sense of self is just a trick of the mind 32 The briny deep Ocean desalination could provide drinking water for all – if only we knew what to do with the waste salt 36 The surgeon fixing a scandal We could have avoided the worst consequences of vaginal mesh, says Sohier Elneil 38 Earth’s alien past Our deepest history may hold the key to the search for life on other planets

Culture 42 Apocalypse never China’s sci-fi genius Cixin Liu on why our future is bright. PLUS: This week’s cultural picks 44 A fantastical experiment Ceramic art acts as a foil for a collection of scientific curios

Regulars 24 APERTURE Eye to eye with a hawkmoth 52 LETTERS Polluter pays - but to whom? 55 CROSSWORD 56 FEEDBACK The politics of alien abduction 57 THE LAST WORD Eggstraordinary claim

On the cover 38 Earth’s alien past Our planet’s hidden clues to life elsewhere

7 Two decades more Embryo gene tweaks to vastly extend lifespan

42 Apocalypse never Sci-fi genius Cixin Liu predicts the future

28 The you delusion Why your sense of self is just a trick of the mind

20 Hydrogen resurgence The battle for the future of clean cars

Anti-pollution prams (13). Mummified penguins (6). Europa’s mystery cold spot (8). Desalination’s dirty secret (32)

Volume 239 No 3194 News Critical moment for Ebola outbreak in the DRC 5

KIM ROSELIER JOHN WESSELS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Plus

Management
Executive chairman Bernard Gray
Finance director Jenni Prince
Chief technology officer Chris Corderoy
Marketing director Jo Adams
Human resources Shirley Spencer
Non-executive director Louise Rogers

Publishing and commercial
Customer services manager Gavin Power
HR co-ordinator Serena Robinson
Facilities manager Ricci Welch
Executive assistant Sarah Gauld
Receptionist Alice Catling

Display advertising
Te l +1 617 283 3213
Email [email protected]
Commercial director Chris Martin
Richard Holliman, Justin Viljoen,
Henry Vowden, Helen Williams

Recruitment advertising
Te l +1 617 283 3213
Recruitment sales manager Mike Black
Key account managers
Martin Cheng, Reiss Higgins, Viren Vadgama
US sales manager Jeanne Shapiro

Marketing
Head of marketing Lucy Dunwell
David Hunt, Chloe Thompson, Andrew Wilkinson

Web development
Maria Moreno Garrido, Tom McQuillan,
Amardeep Sian

New Scientist Live
Te l +44 (0)20 7611 1206
Creative director Valerie Jamieson
Sales director Jacqui McCarron
Exhibition Sales Manager Charles Mostyn
Event manager Henry Gomm
Conference producer Natalie Gorohova
Head of marketing Sonia Morjaria-Shann
Marketing executive Sasha Marks

US Newsstand
Te l +1 212 237 7987
Distributed by Time/Warner Retail,
Sales and Marketing, 260 Cherry Hill Road,
Parsippany, NJ 07054

Syndication
Tribune Content Agency
Te l 1 800 637 4082

Subscriptions
newscientist.com/subscribe
Tel 1 888 822 3242 or +1 636 736 4901
Post New Scientist, PO Box 3806,
Chesterfield MO 63006-

New Scientist 2018 sep

Get our desktop app

Company

Features

Documentation

Resources