Specials

Welcome to Nature's specials, where we shine a spotlight on news events from the sequencing of the chimp genome to the relaunch of the space shuttle. Explore each topic in depth through news, features and interactive graphics.

Most recent

• 2008: Review of the Year

  It was a big year for science. In our review of the year, we look back over the biggest science stories of 2008, from the creation of the first synthetic genome to the exploration of Mars. You can also read our round-up of the hottest research published in Nature and elsewhere this year; learn about the most exciting scientific method of the year; and meet some of 2008's top prizewinners.

  17 December 2008

• Darwin 200

  Darwin was arguably the most influential scientist of modern times. No single researcher has since matched his collective impact on the natural and social sciences; on politics, religions, and philosophy; on art and cultural relations, and in ways that the man himself would never have imagined.

  19 November 2008

• Recession Watch

  As the world faces its biggest financial crisis in decades, Nature keeps you updated on what it all means for science. Will your research funding be cut? How secure is your company or research institution? And can the meltdown actually create opportunities for science?

  15 October 2008

We recommend

Here's a sampling of our previous specials. See the chronological and alphabetical listings below for the full archive.

• Big Data

  Coping with floods of data is now one of science's biggest challenges. In this Nature Special, we assess the need to complement smart science with smart searching; look at what the next Google will be; talk to the pioneering biologists who are trying to use wiki-type web pages to manage and interpret data; and recall that the first mass data crunchers were not computers, but the remarkable women of Harvard's Observatory.

  03 September 2008

• Future Transport

  In a series of special reports, Nature's news team looks at ways to cut the environmental impact of different forms of transport. We reveal how new materials can reduce the carbon wing-print of aircraft, the alternative fuels that are transforming cars, and ask whether ships could be about to embark on a new age of sail.

  20 August 2008

• China

  By almost every measure, China's growth is extraordinary. But behind the astonishing statistics is a more complex reality.

  23 July 2008