Apple's new MacBook Air is a huge leap forward

PLUS: Nuclear weapons, Microsoft's secure PC chip, and noise-canceling headphones. View this email in your browser  |  Manage newsletter subscriptions  11.17.20   STAY HOME How to Reduce (but Not Eliminate) Covid Risk at Holiday Gatherings BY CHELSEA CIRRUZZO With a surge in cases, there is no safe way to travel or gather for Thanksgiving or Christmas. But if you must, here are some ways to lower your risk.   SPECIAL DELIVERY These Rare Seeds Escaped Syria's War—to Help Feed the World BY MATT SIMON Conflict forced scientists to abandon a gene bank, but not before duplicating their last remnants of essential crops in the Svalbard vault on a remote Arctic island.   FIRE POWER Donald Trump Could Still Launch Nuclear Weapons at Any Time BY GARRETT M. GRAFF The president's responsibility for the US nuclear arsenal is a Cold War anachronism. The Trump era shows why it needs reform.   PRODUCT REVIEW Apple's New MacBook Air With M1 Is a Huge Leap Forward BY JULIAN CHOKKATTU Ditching Intel has removed the shackles from the $999 laptop, unleashing a force to be reckoned with.   SPONSORED CONTENT The Perfect Gift for Friends and Family Who Need a Good Laugh (Don't We All?) A Wealth of Pigeons is the new cartoon collection written by Steve Martin and illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist Harry Bliss. This holiday, give your loved ones a necessary dose of laughter that they can return to again and again. GET WIRED Get 1 year of WIRED access for less than $1 a month. Tech news and analysis you won't find anywhere else. Subscribe now.   ROOT OF TRUST Microsoft Is Making a Secure PC Chip—With Intel and AMD's Help BY LILY HAY NEWMAN The Pluton security processor will give the software giant an even more prominent role in locking down Windows hardware.   SILENCE! The Best Noise-Canceling Headphones to Escape Reality BY PARKER HALL These over-ears and earbuds will add some serenity to your day.   CHINA 'One Person's Apocalypse Is Another Person's Day-to-Day' BY LING MA Ling Ma talks to Xiaowei Wang, the author of Blockchain Chicken Farm—a mind-boggling survey of how technology is shaping economies across China.   BREATHE EASY Pathologic Hits Different During a Real Pandemic BY ERIC RAVENSCRAFT One of the first quests in the 2005 survival game is to prove to the people in charge that a pandemic is real, so that they'll do something about it.     This e-mail was sent to you by WIRED. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, wired@newsletters.wired.com, to your address book.   View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe or Manage your newsletter subscriptions