Humans

Blue emblem of the US Public Health Service showing a caduceus crossed with a fouled anchor and chain, encircled by the text “U.S. Public Health Service 1798.”

Version Drift

In early 2025, US agencies quietly changed public health data, replacing ‘gender’ with ‘sex’ without record.

A person in heavy cold-weather gear holds up a handmade sign at a temporary research camp on the Arctic ice near the North Pole. The snow-covered scene includes several pitched tents, icy ridges in the background, scientific instruments in the foreground, and clear blue skies.

Tilt

During the 20th century, human activity changed not only the surface of the planet but also its physical balance.

Pure lead nodules and a small lead cube on a white surface, showing the difference between raw and refined lead shapes.

Below the Threshold

Low lead levels are linked to lower school performance, suggesting current safety limits may be too high and earlier intervention is needed.

Several golfers play on the 10th fairway and green of Canmore Golf Club in Dunfermline, Scotland, with a row of terraced houses visible in the background and a line of trees separating the golf course from the residential area.

Overspill

Living within 1–3 miles of a golf course is associated with higher Parkinson’s disease risk, likely linked to pesticide use and groundwater contamination.

Large stainless steel beer brewing tanks and a tangle of hoses are visible behind a black-paned glass wall inside Parker County Brewing Company. The equipment is brightly lit, contrasting with the darker dining area in the foreground, where a wooden table with glasses, menus, and a red sauce bottle sits empty.

Brewer’s Trace

Beers brewed across the US contain PFAS, with some exceeding EPA limits.

A tightly stacked wall of yellow metal ballot boxes from the 2007 Philippine Barangay Elections in Davao. Each box is labelled either “VALID BALLOTS” or “SPOILED BALLOTS” in embossed capital letters. One box near the centre features a glass window, standing out among the otherwise solid fronts. The boxes are weathered, with some showing signs of rust, dents, and faded paint.

Disposition

Democratic countries are linked to kinder personalities and greater wellbeing than autocratic regimes.

Close-up photo of a vial labelled "M-M-RvaxPro," a measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine. The vial has a blue cap and white label with blue text, placed on a dark textured surface. The vaccine is intended for injection via intramuscular (IM) or subcutaneous (SC) use.

Refusal Archive

Falling childhood vaccination rates in the US risk widespread disease resurgence, hospitalisations, and deaths.

A war-damaged street in the Christian quarter of Aleppo, Syria, showing collapsed buildings with shattered facades and debris filling the roadway. Rubble, broken furniture, and twisted metal are strewn across the scene. Survivors navigate the destruction, some standing on the wreckage, while others move cautiously through the ruins. Sunlight filters through the open space where buildings once stood, casting long shadows over the devastation.

Held in the Blood

Violence alters DNA across generations, with trauma-linked genetic changes in Syrian refugees showing inherited effects and prenatal exposure accelerating ageing.

Small Debris on the Ground Beside Curiosity: This image from the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows a small bright object on the ground beside the rover at the "Rocknest" site (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS).

The Bones of Mars

Mars exploration has created an archaeological record, with researchers advocating to preserve humanity’s cultural and technological legacy.