In this issue

REALITY CHECK
The science behind the headlines. Can China really build a mega spaceship? What do Facebook’s new smart glasses mean for our privacy? Why do celebrities love pseudoscientific wellness fads?

YOUR MYSTERIOUS BRAIN
The human brain is as beguiling as it is brilliant. While there are many things that have yet to be explained by science, we’ve asked six experts to answer the biggest questions we could think of.

Stone Age humans hatched and raised cassowary chicks in New Guinea

Thousands of years before the domestication of the chicken, humans were collecting cassowary eggs before they hatched

3 mins

Volcanoes may have given dinosaur evolution a helping hand

The rise of the dinosaurs seems to be connected to a period of violent volcanic activity more than 230 million years ago

2 mins

Mega Spaceship: Is It Possible for China To build a Kilometre-Long Spacecraft?

Buoyed on by its successful Moon missions, China has launched a five-year study to investigate the possibility of building the biggest-ever spacecraft

4 mins

Privacy: What Issues Do Facebook's New Smart Glasses Raise?

The specs enable users to take pictures and record video using cameras embedded in the frames

3 mins

Celebrities : Why Do They Love Bizarre Fads?

Why are famous stars so drawn to the allure of questionable health products and trends?

4 mins

OCTOPUSES ON PARADE

WITH THREE HEARTS, BLUE BLOOD, EIGHT BENDY ARMS AND INTELLIGENCE THAT OUTSMARTS OTHER SPINELESS ANIMALS, THERE'S NOTHING QUITE LIKE AN OCTOPUS. JOIN US ON A DIVE INTO THEIR WEIRD WORLD...

5 mins

YOUR MYSTERIOUS BRAIN

Science has mapped the surface of Mars and translated the code for life. By comparison, we know next to nothing about what’s between our ears. Over the next few pages, we ask leading scientists to answer some of the most important questions about our brains…

10+ mins

IN THE BEGINNING…

Brian Cox’s new show, Universe, is a scientific creation story. He tells Sara Rigby why the series doesn’t shy away from the unknown, why he sees the stars as gods, and why he wants to launch Boris Johnson into space.

7 mins

Read all stories from BBC Science Focus

BBC Science Focus Magazine Description:

BBC Focus Magazine is the magazine of popular science and technology that explains the wonders of the Universe through stunning photography and accessible articles. Contributors include the very best writers and science experts, with columns every issue from renowned science writer Robert Matthews, TV presenter and scientist Helen Czerski, and science fiction author Stephen Baxter. From archaeology to neuroscience, climate change and particle physics, BBC Focus Magazine keeps you up to speed with the cutting-edge science and gadgets that will change our world.