Art+Science
Biology + Beyond
Cosmos
Culture
Earth
Life
Mind
Ocean
One Question
Quanta Abstractions
Rewilding
Science at the Ballot Box
Science Philanthropy Alliance
Spark of Science
The Animal Issue
The Climates Issue
The Kinship Issue
The Porthole
The Reality Issue
The Rebel Issue
Women in Science & Engineering
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What’s Wrong with Having an AI Friend?
Psychologist Paul Bloom on why chatbots make good companions. And why they don’t.
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Debunking Dangerous Views of Autism
This psychologist has worked with autistic people for 50 years. Here’s what she wants you to know.
The Porthole
Short sharp looks at science
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Is Life a Form of Computation?
Alan Turing and John von Neumann saw it early: the logic of life and the logic of code may be one and the same.
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Extraterrestrials are People, Too
Should we grant legal rights to extraterrestrial lifeforms before we find them?
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New Eyes on Space Weather
From threats of solar storms to cosmic radiation, new efforts to warn Earthlings are launching
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In the Land of the Eyeless Dragons
The cave-dwelling olm is a canary in the coal mine for environmental change
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Visit the 7 Most Extreme Planets in the Universe
From molten glass rain to oceans of lava, an intergalactic tour of the most terrifying and beautiful climates out there
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Gaia’s Got a Fever
An aging Earth, like an aging body, is increasingly vulnerable to heat’s fatal strikes
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Can Humanity Stem the Plastic Tide?
Plastic pollution is costing the world $1.5 trillion a year in health-related losses
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This Cloud Forest Should Not Exist
The story of an Ecuadorean forest that fought annihilation and won
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The Deep Ocean Is a Global Public Good
This visionary new initiative would do more than save the ocean. It would regenerate it.
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AI Already Knows Us Too Well
Chatbots profile our personalities, which could give them the keys to drive our thoughts—and actions
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What We Misunderstand About Robots
Sci-fi master Adrian Tchaikovsky on evolution, other minds, and the politics of science
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Is It Cake? How Our Brain Deciphers Materials
Neuroscientists are discovering how this basic ability, essential to our survival, works
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Our Dark, Unvaccinated Future
Diseases that cause suffocation, paralysis, and childhood death are poised to come surging back
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Stranger Things in the Universe
New data about dark energy is a reminder that cosmology is a never-ending story
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Neutron Stars Hint at Another Dimension
Are the mysterious stars clues to one of the greatest mysteries in the universe?
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The Sean Carrolls Explain the Universe
Why are we here? Is there life on other planets? The renowned scientists who share a name share their answers to life’s big questions.
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The Soviet Rebel of Music
He composed on a computer in a dangerous time. His echo is still heard today.
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How Whales Could Help Us Speak to Aliens
Learning to decode complex communication on Earth may give us a leg up if intelligent life from space makes contact.
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The Heart of a Haunting Galaxy
This “Phantom Galaxy” is riddled with holes that may be the handiwork of violent stars -
Is Fake Sugar Bad for Brains?
Sweet additives like saccharin and aspartame might fast-track cognitive decline -
The Queer Lives of Frogs
What frogs teach us about sex, science, and the unexpected messiness of biology -
The Lion Versus the Cobra
These snakes are among the few animals that can kill the regal felines -
Chimps Hit the Sauce on the Daily
They seem to prefer fruits with the highest alcohol content -
Some Dogs Can Learn New Linguistic Tricks
These word games spell out canines’ surprising cognitive powers -
What to Know About Mirror Life
Some scientists want to create a biological Bizarro World—is it safe? -
Are Some People Addicted to Revenge?
A new book explores what drives the brain’s sometimes insatiable quest for vengeance -
Has Culture Overtaken Genes in Human Evolution?
How we adapt is shifting -
What Makes an Opera Star Stand Out?
A singular quality unifies favorites -
How Rodents Spread Across the Earth
One little appendage may have played a very large part -
These Aren’t Your Pharoah’s Mummies
Other cultures across Asia were preserving their dead for millennia before the Egyptians -
Long Lives Helped Early Humans Thrive
Michael Gurven on the 3 greatest revelations he had while writing Seven Decades: How We Evolved to Live Longer -
The Dinos’ Demise Gave Rivers Their Shape
Their extinction left an indelible mark on the landscape -
DNA’s Death Notice
See original manuscripts, letters, photos, and jokes from luminaries like Rosalind Franklin, Aaron Klug, and Linus Pauling -
Can I Give You Some Advice?
Probably not -
Does Musical Taste Narrow with Age?
What 450 million song plays tell us about how our listening habits evolve -
Scientists Are People, Too
Can humanizing scientists help win back public trust? -
Shark Teeth Are Crumbling
As ocean acidity grows, it’s eating into their gnashers -
Rogue Wave Mystery Solved
Each leviathan of the deep has a signature that can be used to forecast it
