Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
As the busiest year in the history of artificial intelligence (AI) comes to a close, Prof Mike Wooldridge prepares to deliver the Royal Institution’s first Christmas Lecture on the subject. BBC Science Focus news editor Noa Leach sat down with him to get a preview of the demonstrations his talks will include and an insight into how he thinks AI is going to change the world for children.
A billionaire's Christmas list
If we were all billionaires, Christmas would look very different. While we would love to buy our loved ones diamond chess sets and trips to the Moon, our sights are set on more modest gifts. But who says we can’t dream? So this year we’ve picked our favourite ‘money is no object’ gifts… and some more realistic alternatives
Natural hazards: Earthquakes
Earth-shattering seismic events can occur away from the fault lines between tectonic plates. And there’s no easy way to predict when or where they’ll hit (unless you're at a Taylor Swift concert).
Plus
- Science in 2023, wrapped: Whether it’s unexpected discoveries or answers to questions we didn’t know were even being asked, science news is always breaking. We've rounded up some of the most interesting science stories that made headlines over the last 12 months.
- Planet Earth III: Join the BBC’s Planet Earth III film crew and go behind the scenes in the city farm that’s transforming fields into towers and running almost everything with robots.
- The future of law enforcement: Sometimes witnesses identify the wrong suspect and an innocent person is convicted of a crime they didn't commit. But new interactive images could help witnesses recall memories with greater accuracy, revolutionise police line-ups and reduce the number of wrongful convictions.
Issue 399 on sale 7 December 2023
Subscribe to BBC Science Focus Magazine
Don’t forget that BBC Science Focus is also available on all major digital platforms. We have versions for Android, Kindle Fire and Kindle e-reader, as well as an iOS app for the iPad and iPhone.