Nicotine as a Cognitive Enhancer (2014)

On a quest to make his brain work better, a writer delves into the evidence for why the world’s most notorious alkaloid may be the best bet for a true cognitive enhancer | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Amazon Workers Win Climate Dispute, But It Is "Not Enough"

The global retailer has pledged reduce its emissions and fund reforestation efforts | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

How Christiana Figueres Saved the Planet

By harnessing “female energy,” Christiana Figueres convinced humanity to take on climate change | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

As Major Summit Convenes, U.N. Secretary-General Has Hope on Averting Warming

The summit begins just as new data shows 2014-19 was the warmest five-year period on record | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Scientists Tripped People for Science  

An elaborate setup allowed researchers to study how people stumble and recover  | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Prehistoric Suckers, Slapping Robots and Three Billion Birds Gone: Science GIFs to Start Your Week

Enjoy and loop on | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Are We at a Climate Change Turning Point? Obama's EPA Chief Thinks So

Gina McCarthy talks about the intersection of climate and health and the Trump administration’s environmental rollbacks | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

New York's Plans to Tackle Climate Change May Leave Some Residents Behind

The city is taking action to protect lower Manhattan’s waterfront while low-income residents in other boroughs fend for themselves | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

How to Quit Opioids

Dr. Ellen Hendriksen dives into the history of the epidemic and asks behavior coach Eric Zimmer for his most vital advice on addiction recovery | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Lunar Geology in 1969; Heaven "Located" in 1869

Innovation and discovery as chronicled in Scientific American | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Hawaii Wants to Lead the Renewable Revolution

The state has positioned itself as a pioneer in the quest for a fossil fuel-free future, but there are plenty of obstacles in the way | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Cancer Cells Have "Unsettling" Ability to Hijack the Brain's Nerves

Startling discovery could open up avenues for treating some aggressive tumors | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Immediate Climate Action Is Needed to Avoid "Grim" Future, Scientists Warn

Global warming is already taking a higher toll than researchers projected, a new study says | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Real-Life Zombies

A zombie takeover is science fiction, right? Well, it turns out some zombies already exist in nature and “life” after brain death might not be so far-fetched | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Migrating Birds Provide Surprising Snacks for Sharks  

Meticulous work reveals the identity of sharks’ feathered prey  | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Suicide Data Reveal New Intervention Spots, Such as Motels and Animal Shelters

Patterns show places where people who intend to kill themselves go—and give health workers better chances to stop them | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Possible Carcinogen Found in a Common Heartburn Medication Is Present in Some Foods

Some forms of the drug ranitidine—including Zantac—have been shown to contain low levels of NDMA, which causes cancer in rats | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

As Land Degrades, India Struggles to Save Its Farms

The impacts of development and climate change on arable land are posing major threats to India's economy and farmers | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

4 Things to Watch at Next Week's Climate Summit

U.N. chief António Guterres hopes to harness public opinion to push for more aggressive carbon reductions | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Silent Skies: Billions of North American Birds Have Vanished

Though waterfowl and raptor populations have made recoveries, bird populations have declined since 1970 across nearly all habitats | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Are virtual particles constantly popping in and out of existence?[2006]

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@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Asteroid Dust Triggered an Explosion of Life on Ancient Earth

466 million years ago, the break-up of a large space rock may have led to major changes in our planet’s biodiversity | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Heat Loss To Night Sky Powers Off-Grid Lights

A slight temperature difference at night between a surface losing heat and the surrounding air can be harnessed to generate electricity to power lights. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

New Measurement Aims to Solve Neutrino Mystery

A new finding limits how much the bizarre particle can weigh, shedding light on a physics quandary | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

A Planetary Computer to Avert Environmental Disaster

We need a worldwide network that could harness computing power to provide actionable solutions for climate change [or something…] | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Global Warming May Dwindle the Supply of a Key Brain Nutrient

Diminishing levels of an omega-3 fatty acid may have health consequences, including a higher risk for depression, ADHD and early dementia | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Humanity's Journey

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@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Why Our Disabilities Make Us Better Scientists Despite the Odds Against Us

But the research world raises barriers to our full participation | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

A Simple Test Predicts What Kindergartners Will Earn as Adults

Psychologists zero in on the skills that predict future success | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

C-Section Babies Are Missing Key Microbes

UK study provides the best evidence yet that the way infants are born can alter their microbiomes—but the health effects are unclear | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

How Extreme Weather Threatens People with Disabilities

Those with disabilities can experience more physical impacts and can be more socially isolated than the able-bodied | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Is There a Link Between Creativity and Addiction?

Addiction starts with genetics and the environment, but is triggered by stress | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

California Promises to Fight EPA Plan on Car Standards

The Trump Administration has said it will revoke the state’s ability to set its own air pollution limits | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Early Butchers Used Small Stone Scalpels

Homo erectus used hand axes to butcher elephants and other game. But a new study suggests they also used finer, more sophisticated blades. Christopher Intagliata reports. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Frogs Make Their Homes in Elephant Footprints

The massive herbivores shape the environment for living creatures around them—including some of the smallest animals  | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

A Nobel Economist Cites Growth as Innovation

Paul Romer, an expert in what’s known as endogenous growth theory and winner of the 2018 Nobel prize in economics, speaks to Scientific American about seeing economic growth as increased value, akin to when ingredients in a recipe are used to create a dish worth m … | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Deforestation Intensifies Warming in the Amazon Rain Forest

Slash-and-burn farming may actually harm local crops as a result of increased temperatures | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Saturn's Rings May Be Ancient After All

Against earlier studies estimating an age of just 100 million years, new research suggests the planet’s rings could be as old as the solar system itself | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

The Silenced: Meet the Climate Whistleblowers Muzzled by the Trump Administration

Six whistleblowers and ex-government scientists describe how the Trump administration made them bury climate science—and why they won’t stay quiet | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

A New Kind of Climate Leadership

Climate change is an opportunity to envision a new world—but in whose image? | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

A Newly Identified Protein May Be the Key to Vanquishing the Common Cold

Inactivating this protein in human cells and mice provided immunity to a range of viruses, but an effective treatment is still a long way off | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Hunt for the Cause of a Mysterious Vaping Illness Suggests Multiple Mechanisms of Damage

The leading hypothesis for the lung problems that have killed half a dozen people does not fit with all presentations of the illness | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Kids Are Not Hurt by Screen Time

A study finds no deleterious effects on mental health when kids spend their leisure time texting and engaging in other online activities. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Floodwaters Diverted from New Orleans Killed Off Marine Life

Water from the swollen Mississippi River fueled algae blooms and reduced salinity in the Gulf of Mexico | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Mapping HIV Prevalence in Sub-Saharan Africa  

Having more localized data on infection rates within countries could help health authorities better target treatment  | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Microplastics in Fresh Water Mostly Laundry Lint

Microplastic particles are everywhere, but in freshwater systems 60 percent of particles are clothing lint from laundry. | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Pterosaurs Were Monsters of the Mesozoic Skies

Fossils and mathematical modeling are helping to answer long-standing questions about these bizarre animals  | Continue reading


@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago

Dragon Up

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@scientificamerican.com | 5 years ago