Volume 124 Issue 1 January/February 2009

Editorial: Fine lessons: Funny how atheists enjoying themselves can be so threatening to believers

Cover Story

Power struggle: For decades, it was the scourge of the environmental movement. But now, discovers Angela Saini, the greens are going nuclear

In the burning house: In 2005 Russian artist Anna Alchuk was publicly vilified and put on trial for her involvement in the Caution:Religion! exhibition. Three years later she drowned herself. Her husband, the philosopher Michail Ryklin, reads her diaries to find out why
Bad Faith Awards 2008: Following a tough campaign and a hard-fought election, we can finally announce last year's most scurrilous enemy of reason
Before the dawn: Thirty years after the revolution consumerism and political apathy dominate Iran. But a new generation may change that, says Nasrin Alavi
Days of atonement: Visiting Israel just weeks before the current Gaza conflict, Sally Feldman found that rising religious bigotry is one of the biggest barriers to peace
Unsafe havens: The Government is planning tougher penalties for men who use trafficked prostitutes. But who is helping the women themselves? Rahila Gupta uncovers a distributing trend
True disbelievers: Being faith-less is no excuse for rewriting history, says Theodore Dalrymple

Endgame: One track mind: Laurie Taylor hopes he’s not a running joke
Diary: Trump cards: Our religions game seemed to annoy everyone. Result! says Christina Martin

Darwin's journey: For poet Ruth Padel the 200th anniversary of the birth of the great scientist is more than a historical milestone, it’s a family celebration
Muslim metal: Across the Islamic world young people are flocking to the sounds of hardcore rock and death metal. Mark LeVine reports from Cairo
Space invaders: New towns are often derided as eyesores. But, argues Owen Hatherley, they could transform the future, if we save them from the traditionalists

The Weight of a Mustard Seed by Wendell Steavenson: Nina Power considers complicity in Iraq
Three-Letter Plague by Johnny Steinberg: Andrew Mueller enjoys some journalism with a human touch
The Strangest Man by Graham Farmelo: James Randerson encounters a strange legend of physics
Teenagers: A Natural History by David Bainbridge: Bill Thompson gets down with the kids
Once on a Moonless Night by Dai Sijie: Philip Womack barely survives the tedium of a new Chinese novel
The Artist, the Philosopher and the Warrior by Paul Strathern: Brenda Maddox enjoys some Renaissance history