1. What history tells us about the refugee crisis
The refugee crisis in Europe has been one of the defining political issues of the year. In this essay from our most recent issue, Lyndsey Stonebridge explains the disturbing historical roots of Europe’s failure to accommodate the refugees on its doorstep.
Philosophers and scientists have long agonised over the question of free will. Kenan Malik surveys new books by Julian Baggini and John Gray, which offer some very different answers.
In this essay, Paul Mason examines how the rise of information technology is transforming the way we think about human character. Taking as his starting point Virginia Woolf's statement that “on or about December 1910, human character changed,” he looks at the ways that fictional character must change to reflect new technology.
4. A deadly battle of ideas: murder in Bangladesh
This year saw a spate of vicious murderers of secularists in Bangladesh. In the cover feature from our autumn issue, assistant editor Samira Shackle investigated the surge of violence against unbelievers, looking at the historical background and speaking to survivors.
5. Charlie Brooker: Tea and empathy
Charlie Brooker is a savagely funny satirist who takes aim at modern irrationality. But in person, he’s a rather more gentle soul. In this interview with Ariane Sherine, he discusses mental health and atheism.
6. What a way to make a living
Today, our sense of identity is intimately linked to our work. In our summer cover feature, Emma Dowling drew on the work of Italian philosopher Bifo to explain why this is a dangerous trend.
In 2010, Angolan citizen Jimmy Mubenga was killed as he was deported from the UK. The three G4S custody officers restraining Mubenga before he died were acquitted of manslaughter. In this article, Lara Pawson examines the ways that the UK's legal system cast a black man beyond justice.
8. What would you see on a journey to the centre of the Earth?
If you could dig a tunnel right through the Earth - and could survive the heat - you could free-fall to the centre of our planet in just eighteen minutes. Here, David Whitehouse guides us on the wonders you would see, including crystals as big as cities and a sea of liquid metal.
9. Forgiveness in a vengeful age
Convicted murderer Erwin James reflects on forgiveness as he interviews Marina Cantacuzino, whose project brings together victims and perpetrators of crime.
10. The strange death of British satire
Watch one of the BBC’s political programmes – such as the Daily Politics and This Week, both fronted by Andrew Neil – and you encounter a particular tone. This, Mark Fisher argues, is because satire today is dominated by a narrow elite. No longer a threat to authority, it is a means for the establishment to protect itself.
