An ash and gas plume rises from Hunga volcano, Tonga, on 14 January 2022. Global geophysical observations reveal that the climactic eruption that followed on 15 January produced a broad range of atmospheric waves, with pressure wave amplitudes comparable with those from the 1883 Krakatau eruption. While propagating over the world’s oceans, the remarkable atmospheric waves generated complex fast-traveling tsunamis. See pages 30, 91, and 95.
My forearms are sticking to the desk as I type this month’s letter.It’s an irksome feeling that’s offset by last night’s joy of dancing wildly at a wedding and an afternoon dip in a kind friend’s swimming pool. Summer in Florence is an intoxicating mix of sweat, fun and gelato. While many of us escape to our countries of origin for as long as we can, there’s something undeniably alluring about these sun-streaked months in Tuscany. Just think back to movies such as Stealing Beauty and Under the Tuscan Sun before fast forwarding to recent Netflix films Toscana and Love & Gelato. Stereotypes aside—and there are far too many to mention in these productions (Netflix, we’re here if you fancy delving deeper into our city and region!)—summer in Florence never stops working its inexplicable magic. Yes, the wall of heat and buzz of mosquitoes may be draining during the day, but the night brings boundless pleasures, from movie nights by the Uffizi to exhibitions at just-reopened Forte di Belvedere, refreshing beers beside the Arno and brilliantly oddball cultural moments such as a wheat threshing festival in the hills (find out more about that gem on page 16).
Ukraine won the short war. Now comes the long war, and so far, Russia is winning. But it does not have to be fought on Vladimir Putin’s terms
Ukraine won the short war. Mobile and resourceful, its troops inflicted terrible losses and confounded Russian plans to take Kyiv. Now comes the long war. It will drain weapons, lives and money until one side loses the will to fight on. So far, this is a war that Russia is winning.
In recent days its forces have taken the eastern city of Severodonetsk. They are advancing on Lysychansk and may soon control all of Luhansk province. They also threaten Slovyansk, in the north of next-door Donetsk. Ukrainian leaders say they are outgunned and lack ammunition. Their government reckons as many as 200 of its troops are dying each day.
The cover shows an artistic representation of various cancer cells. The large-scale gains, losses and rearrangements of DNA seen in chromosomal instability are a typical feature of cancer — but there is no comprehensive framework to decode the causes of this genomic variability and their possible links to disease. In this week’s issue, Florian Markowetz, Geoff Macintyre and their colleagues present such a framework with a compendium of 17 signatures of chromosomal instability that can be used to predict how tumours might respond to drugs and that help to identify future therapeutic targets. The team created the compendium by examining 7,880 tumours representing 33 types of cancer. In a separate paper, Nischalan Pillay and colleagues examined 9,873 cancers to generate
The promise of a new diet that can add as much as a decade to your life is certainly tempting – and might well be proven to work – but for now should be swallowed with a pinch of salt
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