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How the parasite learnt to kill

Bacteria and viruses that cause disease today may not always have done so. Some had virulence thrust upon them, as Phyllida Brown finds out

Trails of destruction

Technology

Beaten in spades

Fish TV presents . . . – If you want to understand the tiny plants and animals of the plankton, you need to zoom in for the close-ups

The big thaw – For years, US Navy scientists have been the envy of their poorer civilian cousins. Now the caring, sharing Pentagon is unlocking some of its most closely guarded secrets

Monster journeys – How does an animal that lives fixed to the spot on one side of the ocean suddenly appear on the other? Can a handbag, a shipwreck and a lab full of monsters give us some clues?

Mission to Marianas – If Mount Everest was dropped into the world’s deepest trench, it would drown. Kaiko hit bottom . . . and came back to tell the tale

A feel for shells – Ever since his fingers first encountered the drab, chalky shells of the North Sea, Geerat Vermeij has had a passion for the natural world

Mud, glorious mud

Deep sea revolution – It’s tough at the bottom. But now, with the help of robot subs, seafaring ecologists can join the 20th century

Who rules the waves? – Viruses might just be bit players in the drama of the seas. Then again, they could be major actors

Software, who needs it?

Mouldering monuments

Dirty secrets