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The Trouble with Cancer Screening

Tests for cancer often lead to more confusion than clarity. Here’s how to understand them.

An Astrobiologist’s Guide to the Best Sci-Fi Reads

Cosmic lesbian necromancers, cyberpunk Canterbury Tales, and so much more

Latest Stories

Massive Prehistoric Crocodylians Took a Brutal Approach to Hunting

You wouldn’t want to see these eyes peering out of the swamp

What Bird Song Can Tell Us About the Nature of Dreams

Clues to the evolution of sleep and dreaming may be hiding in avian reveries

How Coffee Affects Your Sex Hormone Levels

And I’ve just been drinking it for the caffeine


Read Stories from Our Newest Print Issue: The Stupid Issue

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AI Made Me Look Foolish. Then I Learned

Ancient alchemy has a lot to teach us about chatbots

The Virtue of Being Simple

A surprising number of creatures don’t benefit from greater intelligence

Extreme Space Weather Could Delay Your Next Flight

Researchers say surges in solar activity can wreak havoc on aircraft

Awe-Inspiring Images from This Year’s Solar Eclipse

When the moon blocks out the sun, it creates something a lot like magic

When Stupid Was a Diagnosis

A dark history that is in danger of returning as support for people with disabilities withers

How 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

The Conditions on a US Aircraft Carrier Sound Concerning

Can science point the way toward designing environments to maximize mental health in such situations?

Extraordinary Experiences Are More Common Than You Think

How you make sense of the experience shapes its impact your well-being

Is It Better to Have a Lot of Casual Friends or a Few Close Ones?

Friendships are integral to human health and well being, yet researchers know very little about how people make friends. A new study investigated what people prioritize for new friendships.

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How Vipers Got Their Venom

Although it serves as a defense, it’s really all about securing a meal

Watch: Australian Dolphin Filmed Catching Fish with Shells

Yet another example of dolphins’ exceptional cognitive abilities

What 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

What Makes Humans Stupid

It takes intelligence to get things spectacularly wrong. An essay on our undoing.

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Is This the World’s Oldest Image of a Mind‑altering Plant?

A painted panel deep in a Spanish cave may push the human relationship with mind-altering plants back thousands of years, earlier than anything previously known

The Real “Mummy’s Curse” Lurks Online

A booming market for mummified remains poses health risks

Where Human Sleep Went Wrong

A conversation with David Samson, evolutionary anthropologist and author of The Sleepless Ape, about how to sleep

The Extraterrestrial Rings of Bronze Age Greece

Meteorites were hot fashion accessories back then

The Quest to Understand the Forgotten Psychedelic

One of the first scans of mescaline in the brain suggests it travels a different path

Is Cannabis Good for Your Heart?

You might be surprised. (Scientists were.)