‘I was lacking deeper connection’: can online friends be the answer to loneliness?
People you don’t see face to face can still provide a community, says Yasmina Floyer
Scientists try to teach robot to laugh at the right time
Research team hopes system could improve natural conversations between humans and AI systems
The Cancer Conflict review – poignant documentary on alternative cancer therapies
Two patients take sharply differing approaches as they attempt to beat life-threatening tumours on their own terms
‘We’ve experienced an anomaly’: Bezos’s latest Blue Origin launch fails
New Shepard rocket fails shortly after launch, but uncrewed capsule jettisons successfully
Cloud labs and remote research aren’t the future of science – they’re here
At high-end labs in the US and UK, anybody, anywhere, can conduct experiments by remote control. Is the rise of the robot researcher now inevitable?
Intelligent toaster and a ‘nappy fullness sensor’ among UK inventions in 2021
Other inventions include a humane insect remover, a gas-flushing toilet and a collar that stops dogs fighting
The Lost King review – Frears and Coogan’s Richard III excavation story rewrites its own history
Sally Hawkins is amiable enough as the amateur historian who locates the long-dead monarch – but the uneven script digs its own grave
‘It’s the way the industry is going’: how YouTube is transforming podcasting
Video podcasts are booming, giving creators access to new audiences. But does this risk ruining what made the audio format so satisfying?
Crab and lobster shells could be used to make renewable batteries
Prototype designed using chemical in crustacean shells remains 99.7% efficient after about 400 hours
Children more candid about mental health when talking to robot, study finds
Cambridge research finds 60cm-tall humanoid called Nao helped children open up about feelings
Eureka science prizes: Justin Yerbury wins research honour for work on motor neurone disease
Biosecurity expert, recycling pioneer and nanomaterials engineer among other Australian scientists recognised with awards
Royal row erupts over Steve Coogan film about Richard III
Archaeologists fear they are ‘villains of the piece’ in movie, co-written by Coogan and directed by Stephen Frears, about search for British monarch
US firm behind Tasmanian tiger ‘de-extinction’ plan uses influencers to promote research
Promotional content for Colossal Biosciences has been posted on Instagram and TikTok using the hashtag #ColossalPartner
Peter Tanner obituary
Other lives: Research physicist who worked on a number of inventions that went on to make key contributions to British life
William MacAskill: ‘There are 80 trillion people yet to come. They need us to start protecting them’
The moral philosopher gives most of his earnings to charity, says we need more not less economic growth to tackle global heating, and in a striking new book argues that it’s our duty to ensure the wellbeing of our distant descendants