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Many Western nations have experienced significant declines in crime in recent decades, but could the removal of lead from petrol explain that?

It's an inconvenient truth of aging: In our 30s and up, it gets increasingly harder for most of us to recall names, faces, and details from the past. Scientists have long debated whether this gradual decline is an early form of Alzheimer's disease-a neurodegenerative condition that leads to severe dementia-or a distinct neurological process. Now, researchers have found a protein that distinguishes typical forgetfulness from Alzheimer's and could lead to potential treatments for age-related memory loss.

Research published in the Journal of Neuroscience Tuesday claims that chronic sleep loss can lead to a permanent loss of brain cells - nullifying any hope to "make up" for lost sleep.

"Reductionism!" is a charge often flung at geneticists, from accusers in the popular press and also, not infrequently, from many fellow scientists. What is it that leads so many people to so fundamentally misunderstand what genetics is about?

David Spiegelhalter's background is in medical statistics, particularly the use of Bayesian methods in clinical trials, health technology assessment and drug safety. In his post as Winton Professor for the Public Understanding of Risk he leads a small team (UnderstandingUncertainty.org) that attempts to improve the way in which the quantitative aspects of risk and uncertainty are discussed in society. He gives many presentations to schools and others, advises organisations on risk communication, and is a regular newspaper columnist on current risk issues. He has also appeared on Winter Wipeout. He was elected FRS in 2005 and awarded an OBE in 2006 for services to medical statistics

Psychology is a relatively new science which gained popularity in the early 20th century with Wilhelm Wundt. In the zeal to learn about the human thought process and behavior, many early psychiatrists went too far with their experimentations, leading to stringent ethics codes and standards. Though these are highly unethical experiments, it should be mentioned that they did pave the way to induct our current ethical standards of experiments, and that should be seen as a positive

What is a Hikikomori and what can cause this social condition? What is the answer for those who have retreated into their family homes for months or years on end? Can a life without hope or meaning be turned around even leading other sufferers to freedom?

Historically we've enjoyed arguing that women are inherently different to men, not only in our physical lady-bits but in our temperament, abilities and behaviours. Testosterone and other hormones, different brain structures, they all lead to certain inevitable "hard-wired" gender-based differences and, even, inequalities.

The human brain is puzzling - it is curiously large given the size of our bodies, uses a tremendous amount of energy for its weight and has a bizarrely dense cerebral cortex. But: why? Neuroscientist Suzana Herculano-Houzel puts on her detective's cap and leads us through this mystery. By making "brain soup," she arrives at a startling conclusion.

By leading the Americans in his audience step by step through the thought process, sociologist Sam Richards sets an extraordinary challenge: can they understand - not approve of, but understand - the motivations of an Iraqi insurgent? And by extension, can anyone truly understand and empathize with another?