p.7

Systems for assessing scientists’ work must properly account for a lost year of research – especially for female researchers.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00527-9

p.8

Fifty years after its creation, the agency’s member states must agree to be held accountable for their green promises.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00528-8

p.15

Nuclear fusion experiments with deuterium and tritium at the Joint European Torus are a crucial dress rehearsal for the mega-experiment.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00408-1

p.16

Despite the widespread roll-out of several vaccines, it could be months before they can be ranked.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00409-0

p.18

Studies from China suggest that the coronavirus can be transmitted on frozen surfaces — but scientists say that’s unlikely to be how the pandemic started.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00495-0

p.19

Evaluations find apps are useful, but would benefit from better integration into health-care systems.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00451-y

p.20

As Horizon Europe issues its first call for grants, Nature reviews some big changes — from open science to goal-oriented ‘missions’.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00496-z

p.22

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00530-0

p.26

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00531-z

p.35

A self-powered robot inspired by a fish can survive the extreme pressures at the bottom of the ocean’s deepest trench, thanks to its soft body and distributed electronic system — and might enable exploration of the uncharted ocean.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00489-y

p.36

Rupture of the plasma membrane in different forms of cell death was long thought to be a passive process. The finding that it is an active one, mediated by a specific membrane protein, reveals an unexpected feature shared by dying cells.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00297-4

p.37

Defects in the immune defences induced by the protein interferon are associated with some severe cases of COVID-19. An analysis of patients’ blood samples sheds light on how antibodies might contribute to these defects.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00352-0

p.39

An understanding of how quickly biomolecules bind and dissociate in cells is crucial for developing quantitative models of biology, but measurements of these kinetics were possible only using purified proteins in vitro — until now.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00236-3

p.40

A programmable photonic circuit has been developed that can execute various quantum algorithms and is potentially highly scalable. This device could pave the way for large-scale quantum computers based on photonic hardware.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-021-00488-z

p.43

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03339-z

p.54

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03202-1

p.61

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03228-5

p.66

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03153-z

p.72

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03217-8

p.78

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03262-3

p.82

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03238-3

p.87

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03082-x

p.92

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03065-y

p.99

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03169-5

p.105

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03284-x

p.111

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03134-2

p.117

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03129-z

p.124

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03234-7

p.131

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03218-7

p.137

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-03064-z

p.142

doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-2992-3

p.147

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03211-0

p.152

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03222-x

p.157

doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03230-x