Giant, Fruit-Eating Bats Are Shrinking
Leaving Madagascar with smaller pollinators
A Chemical Fingerprint in Ancient Rocks Suggests Plate Tectonics Began 2.5 Billion Years Ago
There was a time when Earth didn’t have plate tectonics
The World’s Largest Marine Turtle Makes a Move South
Nesting leatherbacks chase cooler waters to Ecuador’s beaches
Why Sleep Might Not be as Restorative as We Get Older
Our brains need a nightly scrubbing
What Public Health Initiatives Looked Like in the Middle Ages
The road to hell is paved in good intentions, the roads in Trondheim were paved in something else
Latest Stories
When Envy is a Virtue
Can this “deadly sin” help cultivate a constructive drive to better ourselves?
Some Antidepressants May Work Better Than Others Long Term
But does that mean these are the best antidepressants?
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 AstronomyHere’s Why It’s So Hard to Boost a Satellite
NASA’s Swift telescope has burned up, months after a robot sent to save it failed
A Look Back at the Most Breathtaking Photos of Saturn From Voyager 1
It visited the ringed planet 46 years ago this month
7,500 Light-Years From Earth, A Cat’s Head Appears
A beautiful new NASA image of the Carina Nebula
History
See more HistoryInside King Tutankhamun’s Tomb, 104 Years After Its Discovery
An unprecedented find in the Valley of Kings
Oldest Evidence of Human Cannabis Use Has a Ghoulish Twist
Take a ride with the spectral cavalcade
The Iron Age Queen Who Helped Bring Britain to its Knees
New scholarship reveals an exiled Roman client king was a woman
Psychology
See more Psychology
What Can We Learn About Happiness From the People Who Study It?
Happiness pioneers recently gathered to discuss the good life
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Environment
See more EnvironmentTrail Cameras Show Coyotes Using the World’s Largest Wildlife Crossing
It officially opens next month
“Medium Roast, Cream, No Plastic”: New Coffee Cup Coating Protects Against Microplastics
And makes recycling a breeze
Zoology
See more ZoologyScientists Catch a Rare Glimpse of a Fish With a See-Through Head
A barreleye’s peepers watch from inside its head
The Temperamental Nature of Alligator Gender-Reveal Parties
With just a degree or two determining gator sex ratios
Descendants of Chornobyl’s Pets Run Wild
And their genomes suggest they’ve adapted to the toxic conditions
Philosophy
See more PhilosophyThe Quest for Wisdom in Turbulent Times
A conversation with three Harvard professors about the practice of wisdom in everyday living
Could AI Have Consciousness That Isn’t Human-Like?
Philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith on AI consciousness and existential risk
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
You May be Able to Get 43 More Minutes of Work Done if You Change Your Desk
It’s time for workers to stand up
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Was Einstein Seduced by a Russian Honeypot Operation?
The physicist had a steamy romance with Margarita Konenkova
How the Brain’s Failing Trash Compactor Can Contribute to Alzheimer’s Disease
Boring jobs are important jobs
This 150-Million-Year-Old Bird Had a Body Built for the Land
The find indicates that flight may have evolved multiple times
Famous Fossil Could be Rosetta Stone for Hidden Hominin Diversity
What would the Taung child grow up to be?
