Sound performance
Best known for medical imaging, ultrasound is finding application in other areas of research – from boosting chemical reactions to characterising material properties. Lou Reade reports
Fire in the hole
Climate scientists warn there will be at least one big volcanic eruption before the end of the century – with potentially dramatic consequences. So how well prepared are we? Asks Katrina Megget
Disorderly behaviour
High-entropy materials are poised to transform everything from metallic alloys to catalysts to battery materials. But only if scientists can harness their inherent disorder, reports Jon Evans
Lactose diet
Analytical chemistry tools are helping to unravel one of the most remarkable feats of recent human evolution, Maria Burke reports – the development of lactose tolerance, which allows people to digest lactose, the main sugar in milk.