October 1950

The highest French court tried a cow in 1546. On the assumption that animals possessed a moral sense, capital punishment was the verdict.
Picks from the Past

Beasts Before the Bar

Quaint court scenes of yesteryear show that ignorance of the law was once no excuse even for an animal.

Recent Stories

The way they live, the food they eat, and the effect on us

A true but unlikely tale

Story and Photographs by William Rowan

Increasing day length on the early Earth boosted oxygen released by photosynthetic cyanobacteria.

Genomic evidence shows that Denisovans and modern humans may have overlapped in Wallacea.