Science & technology
Worth its salt
As wellness trends take off, iodine deficiency makes a quiet comeback
Levels of the vital nutrient are falling rapidly in America
Out for blood
How blood-sucking vampire bats get their energy
They pull off a trick previously thought unique to a few insects
Crash course
China plans to crash a spacecraft into a distant asteroid
It will be only the second country to conduct such a planetary defence experiment
Into focus
Researchers are questioning if ADHD should be seen as a disorder
It should, instead, be seen as a different way of being normal
Blue-sky thinking
Airships may finally prove useful for transporting cargo
The problem of variable buoyancy is being overcome
Bivalve broadband
Heart-cockle shells may work like fibre-optic cables
Inbuilt lenses transmit sunlight to symbiotic algae
Robocrop
Winemakers are building grape-picking robots
Automating this delicate task is harder than it seems
Buzzing without being buzzed
Why Oriental hornets can’t get drunk
They can guzzle extreme amounts for their size, without suffering ill effects
Old case files
The study of ancient DNA is helping to solve modern crimes
Such techniques have helped secure two convictions this year
Sunny side up
Perovskite crystals may represent the future of solar power
Their efficiency rates far exceed those of conventional silicon panels
The new Moon race
SpaceX is NASA’s biggest lunar rival
The company’s successes are also showing up the agency’s failings