Purple pain: Why grief runs so deep when a pop icon dies young
It is natural to be upset when a music star like Prince dies young, because of the combination of a premature death and loss of talent, says Dianna Kenny
Earth’s core is two-and-a-half years younger than its crust
We have long known that gravity makes the Earth's centre age more slowly than its surface – but the effect is much more pronounced than once thought
Judge gene-edited crops by what they do, not how they are made
Europe’s regulators should focus on food safety, not on whether they meet a ridiculous definition of a genetically modified organism, says Michael Le Page
First direct evidence of ancient Mars’s oxygen-rich atmosphere
Suspicions that Mars once had oxygen-rich air are backed by the NASA Curiosity rover's find of manganese oxide in surface rocks
Huge never-before-seen lake spotted hiding under Antarctic ice
The subglacial lake is second in size only to Lake Vostok, but much nearer to research stations, making it easier to hunt there for new life forms
Vampire vine helps to destroy alien European weeds in Australia
The native devil's twine sucks life out of its victims, and holds promise as a control agent down under - causing most damage to invasive plants
Sleeping away from home? Half your brain is still awake
People often struggle to sleep their first night in an unfamiliar room, which might be because the left brain remains vigilant for threats
The foundations of schizophrenia may be laid down in the womb
People who develop schizophrenia may have been born with structural changes to the brain, caused by lower levels of an important signalling molecule
The buzz of your skull can be used to tell exactly who you are
A biometric system that identifies individuals by the way sound passes through the bone of their skulls could be built into smart glasses
Half a degree extra warming would lead to catastrophic impacts
At the Paris climate summit world leaders agreed to limit global warming to 1.5 or 2°C – now a study shows that half degree may mean a world of difference