RIP David Perlman, the Dean of American Science Writing

Among other things, he covered the Apollo moon landings, the rise of recombinant DNA technology and the emergence of AIDS | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Highlights from the July 2020 Issue from a New Editor in Chief

Neutrinos, weather forecasts, the trouble with weight-centric medicine, a coronavirus close-up, and more | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Bad Medicine Is Worse than No Medicine

History shows that advocating for a "cure" without evidence can be deadly—and it’s happening again | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Religion and Science in a Time of COVID-19: Allies or Adversaries?

Despite what some believe, they can work effectively together | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Good News and Bad News about COVID-19 Misinformation

The good news is that people don’t necessarily believe it; the bad news is that they don’t necessarily believe valid news about the pandemic either | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Beware of 'Theories of Everything'

Nature is under no obligation to conform to even our mathematical ideas—even the most brilliant ones | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Beware of 'Theories of Everything'

Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Which Experts Should You Listen to during the Pandemic?

It should be a no-brainer: your best bet is to follow those who have actual expertise | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

To Save the Climate, Look to the Oceans

They can be a source of clean, renewable energy, sustainable food, and more | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

To Save the Climate, Look to the Oceans

They can be a source of clean, renewable energy; sustainable food; and more | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Racism, Not Genetics, Explains Why Black Americans Are Dying Of COVID-19

Some scientists and politicians have invoked baseless ideas about unknown genes, ignoring systemic inequality and oppression | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Why Would Anyone Distrust Anthony Fauci?

It's because Americans tend to believe in science, but they don’t always think scientists share their values | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Coronavirus News Roundup, May 30-June 5

Here are pandemic highlights for the week | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

George Floyd's Autopsy and the Structural Gaslighting of America

The weaponization of medical language emboldened white supremacy with the authority of the white coat. How will we stop it from happening again? | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Silence Is Never Neutral; Neither Is Science

Ignoring science's legacy of racism or a wider culture shaped by white supremacy doesn't make scientists "objective" | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

What Social Distancing Reveals about East-West Differences

The pandemic could spur psychological changes in both the U.S. and China | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Humanities aren't a science. Stop treating them like one

Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

The New Science of Lockdowns

Alternating intervals at home and at work provide the best means of balancing safety while preserving the economy | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

So How Deadly Is COVID-19?

We still don’t know, and it doesn’t really matter right now; it’s plenty deadly | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Will COVID-19 Kill the Routine Physical Exam?

A longstanding staple of conventional medical practice looks increasingly outdated | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Rethinking Humanity's Ties to Nature

The lesson from the pandemic is not to retreat from the natural world, but to become better stewards | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Building Kids' Resilience through Play Is More Crucial than Ever

It helps with social, emotional, physical and cognitive skills—and with schools closed, it’s more important than ever | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Decoding the Universe

An insider’s look at the history and sociology of modern cosmology | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

The Inflated Promise of Genomic Medicine

COVID-19 has laid bare the need to reconsider the hope and money we invest in genetics research. | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

How it Felt to Give My First Pelvic Exam

As a medical student, I found it surprisingly comfortable, because my “patient” was also my very patient instructor | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Social Distancing at the Zoo

The public  can’t come visit for now, but staff still have to care for and interact with the animals without infecting them with the coronavirus | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

At an HIV Clinic in Queens, N.Y., a Sense of Home Hangs in the Balance

Health care workers at the city hospital hit hardest by the pandemic go beyond their job description in tending to a vulnerable population | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

At an HIV Clinic in Queens, New York, a Sense of Home Hangs in the Balance

Health care workers at the city hospital hit hardest by the pandemic go beyond their job description in tending to a vulnerable population | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Partisan Differences over the Pandemic Response Are Growing

Polling finds public trust in medical scientists has increased, but only among Democrats—while optimism about a vaccine is broadly shared | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

'Cognitive' Tech Can Prevent a Food Crisis

The pandemic is threatening the food supply chain, but automation can fill crucial gaps | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

How 'Cognitive' Tech Can Prevent a Food Crisis

The pandemic is threatening the food supply chain, but automation can fill crucial gaps | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Coronavirus Roundup, May 23-May 29

Pandemic news highlights for the week | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Nobody Wants to Have End-of-Life Conversations, but...

It’s more important than ever in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Missing Memories of the Universe

With observatories shut down due to the pandemic, the photons that reveal the secrets of the cosmos can’t be recorded or decoded | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

A Day in the Life of a COVID-19 Physician

The pandemic challenges a young critical care doctor in ways he could never have imagined | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Precision Mobile Testing Is Key to Opening the Economy Safely

Fighting COVID-19 with our antiquated paradigm of centralized health care delivery is like fighting World War III with a musket | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

A Passion for Beetles (and Spiders) in the Time of Coronavirus

Although schools are closed for now, nature is still open for exploration and learning | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Robert May (1936-2020) and the Future of Scientific Research

He was utterly unpretentious, without guile or dissimulation and candid to the point of tactlessness—qualities in unfortunately short supply today | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

One Key Factor in whether COVID-19 Will Wane This Summer

Seasonal respite from the pandemic will depend on what happens indoors, not just outdoors | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

The Tragedy of the Compost

Most food waste gets thrown into in landfills rather than being recycled—but one abandoned dump is getting a makeover | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

The Special Challenge of Fighting COVID-19 in Africa

Western governments and NGOs are grappling with their own outbreaks, leaving African nations largely on their own | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Visionary Science Takes More Than Just Technical Skills

The ability to come up with truly revolutionary ideas is crucial—and extremely rare | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Visionary Science Takes More than Just Technical Skills

The ability to come up with truly revolutionary ideas is crucial—and extremely rare | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Forced Social Isolation Causes Neural Craving Similar to Hunger

New research highlights the profound effect of severe social isolation on the brain | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Forced Social Isolation Causes Neural Craving Similar to Hunger

New research highlights the profound effect of severe social isolation on the brain | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

How to Protect Both Wolves and Livestock

New research reveals clear guidance for reducing human-wildlife conflict and restoring wolf populations. | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Europa: Three More Clues

We have alien worlds right here in our solar system | Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago

Heritable Traits vs. Inherited Traits

Continue reading


@blogs.scientificamerican.com | 3 years ago