Why it’s So Hard to Measure the Depth of the Ocean
There are a lot of variables
Are Our Antidepressants Harming Fish?
It’s hard to say, but we’re definitely exposing them to our monoamine drugs
Could AI Have Consciousness That Isn’t Human-Like?
Philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith on AI consciousness and existential risk
The Oldest Evidence of Drug Use is Also a Story About Addiction
A 25,000-year-old cautionary tale
“Ferritin Face” Is Trending—But Can Your Skin Really Reveal Low Iron?
There’s a kernel of truth to it, but it’s not the whole story
Latest Stories
This Dolphin Steals from Fish for Its Meals
Putting a dent in dolphins’ reputation as the “good guys of the sea”
The Moon has a New Once-in-a-Century Crater
The lunar surface is more dynamic than you might think
Read Stories from Our Newest Print Issue: The Stupid Issue
See moreThe Elegance of a Stupid Question
Are computers in mathematics rewriting the definitions of stupid and smart?
The Resistance Is Here
They didn’t plan to be activists. But scientists have united to overturn Trump’s drastic cuts to science.
The Return of a Discredited Pseudoscience
Eugenics is rearing its ugly head again in today’s crucible of politics and culture
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Cutting-edge science, unraveled by the brightest living thinkers.
Astronomy
See more AstronomyThe Crescent Nebula: A Gas Bubble Surrounding a Violently Dying Star
A light show that will get even more dramatic in time
Why Elon Musk’s “Self-Growing” Moon Cities Are Tragically Flawed
There’s simply not enough water
Mercury Has Gotten Smaller Than We Thought
The first planet from the sun has been hiding its wrinkles
History
See more HistoryHow Do You Read Ancient Charred Scrolls? Make Your Own
A new technique could unlock the secrets of the Herculaneum scrolls
The Brutal Origins of Bear-Baiting
The practice exploded in popularity following the Norman Conquest
Psychology
See more PsychologyEnvy at the Ballot Box
Majority voting may make us less willing to tolerate advantages for others
I’m Part of the Team Writing the Next Bible of Psychiatry—For the First Time, the DSM Will Use Biology to Understand Mental Disorders
Part of the challenge of finding a biomarker for mental illness is the environment’s significant influence
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Environment
See more EnvironmentThis New “Devil Flower” Species Doesn’t Photosynthesize
It’s a rare plant with an “enigmatic and devil-like essence”
This Is What Happens When 1,000 People Bury Their Underwear for Science
Talk about getting to the bottom of things
Zoology
See more ZoologyThis Stray Cat Turned Out to Be the First New Cat Species Discovered in Over a Century
It was living on a diet of rice, noodles, and eggs
Humpback Whales Grieve for Lost Offspring, Video Evidence Shows
Behavior we’ve never seen before
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
What Makes Humans Stupid
It takes intelligence to get things spectacularly wrong. An essay on our undoing.
The Inventor of the Thinking Machine Didn’t Worry. Neither Should You
In this age of AI anxiety, listen to your heart
Muscle Loss is a Big Warning Sign of Dementia
But obesity has a more complicated relationship with the disease
Read more
See all postsIs This Massive New Study on the Benefits of Whole Grains Part of the “War on Protein” RFK Jr. is Ending?
When it comes to whole grains and health, a new analysis suggests the more the better
Dinosaur Eggs Have Never Been Discovered This Far South Before
Researchers are hypothesizing how a clutch was kept warm
Seeking a Trippy Placebo
Blinding clinical trials for psychedelic medicines has been notoriously difficult
The Story of Walking Upright is Written in the Bones of Our Ancestors
How we learned to stand on our own two feet
Cold Weather Could Predict an Increase in Heart Attacks Three Days in Advance
And the holidays are especially bad
What Grok and Claude Have to Say about the AI Apocalypse
A maniacal villain and a polite librarian on the risk that AI could end humanity
