Radar Map Shows Wildfires in Canada Blanketing the US with Smoke
More than 800 wildfires are currently active
The Nautilus Guide to the Best Books on the Science of Art
Inside the brain and aesthetic experience
Drinking Water With Meals May Make You Eat More, Not Less
This common dieting tip might be a myth
The Warrior Life of Ancient Egyptian Princesses
These weren’t your traditional Disney princesses
What Makes Humans Stupid
It takes intelligence to get things spectacularly wrong. An essay on our undoing.
Latest Stories
What Became of the Chimps Who Revolutionized Our Understanding of Animal Behavior?
It’s a harrowing tale of deadly winters in Berlin captivity
How Eating Healthier Could Reshape Agriculture
A Western diet is bad for us and bad for the planet
Some People Are Better at Eavesdropping Than Others
New study shows what happens in our brains as we track multiple conversations
Read Stories from Our Newest Print Issue: Precarious
See moreThe Cephalopods Are Coming
Fossil records reveal Earth’s mass extinctions are followed by a rise of ocean cephalopods. They’re rising again.
Schrödinger’s Kittens Are All Grown Up
Offspring of the most famous thought experiment in physics are now testing the very fabric of the universe
The Most Precarious Day in the Universe
On the same day the world descended into war, physicists saw reality itself unraveling
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Cutting-edge science, unraveled by the brightest living thinkers.
Astronomy
See more AstronomyHow Mariner 4 Rewrote What We Know About Mars
It killed the dreams of science-fiction fans, but kick-started decades of Martian exploration
When Galaxies Clash
Is a new image of star systems colliding a vision of our Milky Way’s future?
The Loving Embrace of the Milky Way
Researchers have discovered that our galaxy’s outermost spiral arms are wide open and farther away than we thought
History
See more HistoryHow Hannibal’s War Elephants Helped to Determine His Route Through the Alps
When you go into battle with nearly 40 gigantic pachyderms, you need to take the shortest path possible
The Rabies Vaccine Debuted Nearly 150 Years Ago Today
Pioneering microbiologist Louis Pasteur helped save the life of a dog-bitten boy
This Was a Big Week for Marie Curie, More Than 120 Years Ago
Despite steep odds, she became the first woman in France to earn a doctorate in science
Psychology
See more PsychologyChildhood Trauma Echoes Through Romantic Relationships
Abuse, neglect, and loss can reverberate in a partner’s behavior
Does Your Chatbot Need a Therapist?
Scientists want to use LLMs to model human emotions and study human mental health
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Environment
See more EnvironmentNASA Satellite Map Shows Stifling Heat Dome Squatting Over the United States
And now it’s come for the East Coast
Can We Geoengineer Our Way Out of a Super El Niño?
A natural experiment in sun-scorched Australia points the way
Zoology
See more ZoologyWhen Monkeys Enter the Uncanny Valley
3-D avatars of macaques fool their flesh-and-blood counterparts—up to point
New, Orange-Lipped Monkey Discovered in Africa
It’s one of only a handful of new monkey species identified on the continent in the last 75 years
The Fight Against Colony Collapse Disorder Started 19 Years Ago Today
So how are beehives in the US faring almost two decades on?
Philosophy
See more PhilosophyWhat a Picture of a Dog Has to Do with Reason and Logic
People who can’t see images in their minds challenge an old philosophical standby
The Inventor of the Thinking Machine Didn’t Worry. Neither Should You
In this age of AI anxiety, listen to your heart
Science Is Political—and Spiritual
Author and physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein on the crisis in American science
Small, Cheap, and Full of Teeth: Baby Tyrannosaurs Were Plentiful and Precocious
Cat-sized tyrannosaur hatchlings had lots and lots of siblings
Read more
See all postsHow This Emerging Tick-borne Virus Escapes Your Immune System
It hijacks a common process present in all cells
The Challenges of Writing in Space
With the recent auction of arguably the most famous pen ever used off-Earth, we take a moment to reflect on the evolution of such cosmic utensils
This Is the Oldest Amber Ever Found
It dripped from a tree in China about 385 million years ago
Do Fossils Belong in Mansions or Museums?
The record sale of a T. rex skeleton begs the question
Can a Preteen’s Reaction to a Face Predict Their Future Social Lives?
The developing brains of boys and girls light up differently when shown a face
How Dinosaur Skeletons Became So Expensive
Today’s T. rex auction could be cause for concern
This Prehistoric Giant Salamander Grew to Almost 4 Feet Long
And it has a living relative






































