Requiem for the soul
(New Scientist, 9 August 1997)
Composer David Cope has built a computer program that can write music that sounds just like it was written by Bach, Chopin, or Mahler. What does this say about the rich emotional content we think we hear in music? More than 15 years after publication, this remains one of my favorite stories ever.
Starting over: Rebuilding civilisation from scratch
(New Scientist, 28 March 2011)
If we could start from scratch and rebuild civilisation from the ground up in the most rational way possible, what should we do differently?
Olympic start gun gives inside runners an edge
(New Scientist, 23 June 2008)
Sprinters who start closest to the starter’s pistol have a stronger startle response to the loud bang, so they get out of the blocks quicker.