A report by the UK's Health and Social Care Committee and Science and Technology Committee says the government made a "serious" error in not responding faster to the coronavirus pandemic

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02810-1

The race to apply mRNA technology, which has been so successful in COVID-19 jabs, to influenza vaccines. Plus, the economics Nobel prizewinners, and an abandoned oil tanker that threatens millions of lives.

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02784-0

A derelict oil tanker in the waters of the Middle Eastern nation is at high risk of rupturing, which would imperil millions of people already in crisis.

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02803-0

Tax heavy cars and shrink batteries to make electric vehicles cleaner and safer, say three energy-policy researchers. Plus, nanotechnology antiviral drugs that target SARS-CoV-2, and career tips from Nobel laureates.

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02722-0

Nature’s pages feature a look at British wild flowers, and examine the construction of an aquarium at Crystal Palace.

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02750-w

Recognize 727 UNESCO Biosphere Reserves for biodiversity COP15

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02753-7

Anthropocene event idea is empowering

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02751-9

Why no mention of overpopulation in talk of food systems?

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02752-8

Keep online option at conferences — it makes them more inclusive

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/s41586-021-04023-y

Publisher Correction: Demonstration of reduced neoclassical energy transport in Wendelstein 7-X

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02758-2

When governments assume that people will panic, that exacerbates the pandemic.

Nature, Published online: 12 October 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-02760-8

Tax heavy cars and shrink batteries to consolidate the gains from electrifying transport.

A sea cucumber called Chiridota heheva lives on deep-sea vents and cold seeps where there is little oxygen, and has evolved to survive in these toxic environments

Women with concussion are less likely to conceive in the two years after their head injury than women who injured another part of their body

Safer, an oil tanker in the Red Sea, has been abandoned and could unleash a catastrophic oil spill that would leave millions of people without food or clean water

Tobacco seeds discovered in the remains of an ancient fire suggest people have been using the plant for much longer than we thought

Football fans cheering on their team can influence match results, as a lack of spectators during lockdowns saw a dip in home advantage

The latest coronavirus news updated every day including coronavirus cases, the latest news, features and interviews from New Scientist and essential information about the covid-19 pandemic

About 3.2 billion years ago, microbes began to colonise land for the first time, and geological evidence suggests they fed on energy-rich chemicals in volcanic lava

Fish faeces plays an important role in the carbon cycle of the ocean, but industrial fishing has lead to a lack of defecation