Drought across the U.S., H5N1 in Canada and Uranus Data Reevaluated

A serious bird flu infection in Canada, a troubling projection of future plastic waste and dispatches from a global climate convention. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 4 days ago

Some Counties Voted for Trump and Approved Climate and Conservation Measures

Four counties in Florida that voted for Trump also voted to conserve open space, reduce flood damage and protect habitat | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

The Arecibo Message, Earth’s First Interstellar Transmission, Turns 50

In 1974 we beamed a radio transmission into space that changed the way we think about our place in the cosmos | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

Fun Facts about Teeth across the Animal Kingdom

Anglerfish have invisible fangs, narwhal tusks are extra-long canines, and more facts from the weird and wonderful study of teeth will astound you | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

Curly-Tailed Cats Communicate with an ‘Accent’

A genetic mutation makes some cats’ tail curl over their back, giving them something akin to an accent when they communicate with other kitties | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

Ending NASA’s Chandra Will Cut Us Out of the High-Resolution X-Ray Universe

The Chandra X-ray Observatory is facing closure. Shutting it down would be a loss to science as a whole | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

What’s the Roundest Object in the Universe?

Finding a perfect sphere is actually pretty difficult | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Arecibo Message

On the 50th anniversary of the “Arecibo message,” we present a reflection on humankind’s first attempt to send a transmission to intelligent life in the cosmos. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 7 days ago

What RFK, Jr.’s Health Cabinet Position under Trump Might Look Like

Federal health scientists voice concern over an anticipated takeover by medical skeptics in Trump’s second administration | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 8 days ago

What Bird Flu in Wastewater Means for California and Beyond

Wastewater in several Californian cities, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, recently tested positive for bird flu. But understanding disease risk and exposure to humans isn’t so straightforward | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 8 days ago

This ‘Human Computer’ Created a System for Measuring Vast Distances in Our Universe

Visual artist Anna Von Mertens looks to astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt and her vision of the universe for inspiration | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 8 days ago

Generative AI Could Generate Millions More Tons of E-Waste by 2030

Generative AI could saddle the planet with heaps more hazardous waste | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 8 days ago

Melting Glaciers Are Causing Billions of Dollars of Damage

Thawing ice, from the high peaks to the poles, is producing extraordinarily expensive floods, infrastructure damage and losses to tourism and fishing | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 8 days ago

AI Analysis of Police Body Camera Videos Reveals What Typically Happens during Traffic Stops

Examining body camera videos at scale reveals racial differences in how police treat drivers during traffic stops—and what corrective programs really work | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 8 days ago

Kristi Noem, Trump’s Nominee for Leader of the Department of Homeland Security, Has Rejected Climate Science

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security and its disaster agency has said people aren’t driving temperature increases and declined to accept federal climate money for disaster preparedness as governor of South Dakota | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 9 days ago

Are Alternate Timelines Real? Quantum Physics Explains

The multiverse offers no escape from our reality—which might be a very good thing | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 9 days ago

How to Overcome Solastalgia, the Feeling of Profound Loss of Your Environment

Damage to your environment can bring a profound sense of loss; that feeling, called solastalgia, can also provide inspiration | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 9 days ago

Developing Expertise Improves the Brain’s Ability to Concentrate

Expertise bulks up the brain’s ability to think deeply, a skill that may generalize across tasks | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 9 days ago

The U.S. Must Lead the Global Fight against Superbugs

Antimicrobial resistance could claim 39 million lives by 2050, yet the pipeline for new antibiotics is drying up. U.S. policy makers can help fix it | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 9 days ago

Insects Played Pivotal Roles in the Evolution of Human Culture

Violins, the ink on the Declaration of Independence and other ways that insects shaped human history | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 9 days ago

We Need to Ensure Legal Cannabis Is Safe

Today’s cannabis plant is highly cultivated and incredibly potent. Treating it like a commodity, and not a testable, regulated medicine, is hurting people | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 10 days ago

Trump Administration Likely to Repeal Methane Leak Penalty

A fee created to push oil and gas companies to plug methane leaks could be axed by the incoming Trump administration, hampering efforts to curb the potent greenhouse gas | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 10 days ago

Jonny Kim’s Third Act: NASA Astronaut

Jonny Kim—a former Navy SEAL and ER doctor—is now a NASA astronaut who will soon launch to the International Space Station as flight engineer for the crew of Expedition 72/73 | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 10 days ago

How Geometry Revealed Quantum Memory

The unexpected discovery of a geometric phase shows how math and physics are tightly intertwined | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 10 days ago

Trump’s Election Threatens Heat Protections for Workers

A Biden administration proposal that would require employers to provide cooling measures under extreme heat conditions may be scuttled by the incoming Trump administration | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 11 days ago

The Lucy Fossil’s Extraordinary Journey to Becoming an Icon of Human Evolution

The 3.2-million-year-old human ancestor known as Lucy rose to fame through an incredible combination of circumstances | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 11 days ago

Water under Threat, Wooden Satellites and a Mud Bath for Baseballs

Droughts in 48 of 50 U.S. states, evidence of microplastics mucking up wastewater recycling and the science of a baseball mud bath in this week’s news roundup. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 11 days ago

I Destroyed a Car to Explore Some Music Myths

Two years of experimentation taught a Nashville guitarist not every musical myth makes sense | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 11 days ago

What Trump Can—and Probably Can't—Do to Reverse U.S. Climate Policy

The new president-elect can go beyond just pulling out of the Paris Agreement. But it may be more difficult to roll back clean energy policies | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 14 days ago

Let African Communities Manage Their Climate Adaptation Plans

Outside groups often offer their solutions for climate adaptation in Africa. But the best people to manage the climate crisis are the people in those communities themselves. For climate adaptation to succeed in Africa, let communities and local leaders show the way | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 14 days ago

Happy Martian New Year!

The Martian new year arrives with the Red Planet’s vernal equinox. Explaining why requires a deep dive into celestial mechanics and Earth’s calendrical history | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 14 days ago

Is Weight Really the Problem?

Focusing on size in health care might be doing more harm than good. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 14 days ago

Consciousness Might Hide in Our Brain’s Electric Fields

A mysterious electromagnetic mechanism may be more important than the firing of neurons in our brains to explain our awareness | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 14 days ago

Trump’s Administration Will Attack Health Care from Multiple Angles

The new Trump administration is likely to reduce subsidies for Affordable Care Act insurance plans and roll back Medicaid coverage. Public health authorities worry that antivaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., will be empowered | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 15 days ago

Rainwater Could Help Satisfy AI’s Water Demands

A few dozen ChatGPT queries cost a bottle’s worth of water. Tech firms should consider simpler solutions, like harvesting rainwater, to meet AI’s needs | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 15 days ago

Parents Labeling a Kid’s Friend a Bad Influence Can Backfire

Is your kid in trouble? Blaming their friends is ill advised | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 15 days ago

We Need Scientific Brainstorming about Shared Global Dangers

It is difficult to disentangle Russian and Chinese scientists from international science cooperation. That is a good thing | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 15 days ago

2024 Will Be the First Year to Exceed the 1.5-Degree-Celsius Warming Threshold

This year won’t just be the hottest on record—it could be the first to surpass the 1.5-degree-Celsius threshold laid out in the Paris climate accord | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 15 days ago

Election Grief Is Real. Here’s How to Cope

Understanding the psychology of ambiguous loss can help people struggling with grief and depression in the wake of the 2024 election results | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 16 days ago

Trump Victory Is a ‘Gut Punch’ to U.S. Climate Action

President-elect Trump vowed to promote fossil fuels, weaken pollution regulations and reverse Biden administration climate efforts | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 16 days ago

Misinformation Really Does Spread like a Virus, Epidemiology Shows

“Going viral” appears to be more than just a catchphrase when it comes to the rampant spread of misinformation | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 16 days ago

Astrology Was an Important Science for Medieval People

In medieval times, astrology was considered a serious science, a branch of astronomy. Curator Larisa Grollemond of the Getty Museum, walks us through the medieval zodiac and how someone’s sign decided their day-to-day life. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 16 days ago

Climate Is on State Ballots This Election

Several downballot races in the 2024 presidential election will carry implications for climate policy far beyond state lines | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 17 days ago

These Bird Nests Show Signs of an Architectural ‘Culture’

Culture may play a role in how birds build collectively in the Kalahari Desert | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 17 days ago

The Myth that Musicians Die at 27 Shows How Superstitions Are Made

Famous people who die at 27, such as Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Amy Winehouse, get even more famous because of the mythology surrounding that number—a look at how modern folklore emerges | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 18 days ago

Clean Energy Is Bringing Electricity to Many in the Navajo Nation

Thousands of homes in Navajo and other tribal lands don’t have access to electricity. A $200-million federal funding effort aims to fix that problem with solar power and other clean energy | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 18 days ago

The Law Must Respond when Science Changes

What was once fair under the law may become unfair when science changes. The law must react to uphold due process | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 18 days ago

How the 2024 Election Could Change Access to Education in the U.S. and Influence Global Climate Change Decisions

The outcome of the 2024 U.S. presidential election could set the climate agenda, reshape public education and shift the dynamics of global science collaboration. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 18 days ago