Science News

Feminism gives us the analysis, tools and movement to create a better climate future for everyone. It’s time to embrace it

3D models of Australopithecus afarensis hint at the muscular adaptations that made modern humans better runners

The moon may have melted 4.35 billion years ago—explaining a lunar age mystery

As the bird flu virus moved into cows and people, sluggish federal action, deference to industry and neglect for worker safety put the country at risk

Early cultural exposure can influence kids’ ideas about gender and STEM in significant ways

Learn which molecules are responsible for giving Christmas trees their distinct, crisp-yet-spicy scent

The winter solstice is the culmination of a period every year when each cell in our body literally craves more light

The centennial of the discovery of brain waves in humans exposes a chilling tale involving Nazis, war between Russia and Ukraine, suicide and the vicissitudes of history

With billions of stars in the Milky Way, some nomenclature standardization is necessary

There are so many species facing extinction—but today we’re telling stories about the animals making a comeback and the conservationists working hard to help.

Unless we pursue AI carefully, the Nobel committee will one day give a Peace Prize to the people cleaning up its terrible consequences, just as it did with nuclear physics

I am a trauma surgeon and gunshot survivor who has experienced byzantine health insurance coverage firsthand. I understand why people are furious

President Biden strengthened the U.S.’s commitment to slash climate pollution under the Paris Agreement knowing that President-elect Donald Trump could abandon it, but states and cities could still use it as a guide

With a possible bird flu outbreak looming, Donald Trump’s choice of Jay Bhattacharya, a scientist critical of COVID policies, for the NIH is the wrong move for science and public health

In 2017, a group of students at Dartmouth College filed a lawsuit that revealed an entrenched culture of power and abuse, and in doing so, they sparked a wider conversation about sexual violence in science.

The huge Stegosaurus fossil Apex, bought at auction for $44.6 million, has debuted on loan at the American Museum of Natural History

Material from asteroid Ryugu riddled with earthly microbes provides a cautionary tale for scientists seeking signs of alien life

The proof that the Apéry constant is irrational remains one of the most bizarre events in the history of mathematics

Think Twice before Giving Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing Kits to Friends and Loved Ones

See the year’s most striking images from the Hubble and James Webb space telescopes, NASA’s Mars rover and the best sky watching on offer

Louisiana reported a person hospitalized with a severe case of H5N1, and the USDA has begun bulk milk testing

The fusion power plant would go live in the next decade and produce 400 megawatts of electricity, says Commonwealth Fusion Systems

A collection of nonfiction and fiction books Scientific American editorial staff and contributors read and recommend in 2024

The scientists behind a popular study on the health effects of flame retardants in black plastic cooking utensils and toys made a calculation error but still say their revised findings are alarming

This year scientists found universal language for pain, tracked why some words go extinct, developed mind-reading brain-to-speech technology, and more

As wildfires grow in severity and frequency, they’re not only threatening lives but also our visual connection to the cosmos

Before turning to a large language model for ethical counsel, consider what makes for good advice

The holidays can be a difficult time for people who are grieving. Here’s how to get through it or support a loved one

Reaction to a recent Pew survey on the public’s trust in science shows that the scientific community is not ready to address the real problem

Modern conservationists are finding new ways to protect wildlife.

The burps, barks and snorts humpback whales make when asking their mother for milk are the first recorded instances of begginglike behavior in a baleen whale

The brain is sometimes called the most complex machine in the known universe. But the thoughts that it outputs putter along at a trifling 10 bits per second, the pace of a conversation

United Airlines is partnering with NOAA as part of a wider federal strategy to better keep tabs on the country’s greenhouse gas emissions

The nose knows more than we thought

Some foods, no matter how simply prepared, contain many substances linked to disease

Studies of great apes hint at why and when clowning behavior evolved

The searches for Planet Nine, bat viruses, life on Jupiter’s moon Europa and lucid dreams

If there’s a hidden world in the solar system, a new telescope should find it

Earth’s deadliest mass extinctions have important commonalities—and significant differences

The healing potential of the brain’s most interconnected nerve intrigues researchers

A new combo of climate and habitat crises, along with immune system stress, is driving more bat-borne viruses to afflict us

Transport the disks in this math puzzle

Writers, artists, photographers and researchers share the stories behind the stories

The J particle; a nitroglycerin engine

In the often-gloomy genre of climate fiction, a new novel hits a high-water mark for its empathy

The connection between queer love and the power to imagine a more sustainable future

Play this crossword inspired by the January 2025 issue of Scientific American

“Engineering” sleeping consciousness could reduce nightmares, treat insomnia—and even be induce specific dreams just for fun

Letters to the editors for the September 2024 issue of Scientific American

Astronomy is a bright spot amid turbulence on Earth