Editorials in 2005

An interim US rule on safeguards may not, on its own, be enough to contain the 1918 flu virus.

Governments must not turn a blind eye to intimidation and violence by animal-rights activists. A more resilient approach is needed.

Plagiarism is on the rise, thanks to the Internet. Universities and journals need to take action.

Admission to the European Union can benefit Turkish science.

The National Academies offers guidance to keep the United States internationally competitive.

The Environmental Protection Agency is ducking a frank assessment of New Orleans after Katrina.

A growing chasm separates the growing scientific understanding of sleep, and the widespread public assumption that it just doesn't matter.

Prescription guidelines should not be written by people with financial conflicts of interest.

Novel techniques that could help to make human embryonic stem-cell research morally acceptable will not immediately defuse the ethical debate over the work.

Germany's coalition government is well placed to reform the country's scientific system.

The merger of two White House advisory panels sends out the wrong message.

Naive or not, NASA's next shot at landing on the Moon can succeed only if it is launched as a genuinely international collaboration.

The reputation of one of the world's most respected regulatory agencies is on the wane.

The launch of a new Nature journal comes at an exciting time for physics.

The 2005 Nobel Peace Prize is a timely reminder of the good work done by the International Atomic Energy Agency and its director, Mohamed ElBaradei.

President Bush's acknowledgement of the threat of pandemic flu is welcome, if belated.

Ecologists and conservationists need to work more closely with economists and policy-makers if they are to make things happen on the ground.

A critical court case is addressing the teaching of ‘intelligent design’ in American schools.

Japan's prime minister has a valuable chance to reform his nation's tired scientific institutions.

Investigations that involve human subjects always require a close relationship between the researchers and those being studied.