-
These Physicists Want to Ditch Dark Energy
The idea that mysterious stuff speeds up the acceleration of the universe could be a big mistake
The Porthole
Short sharp looks at science
-
Pico Iyer’s Wide-Awake Silence
The author on losing his home to wildfire, finding strength in solitude, and his new book Aflame
-
The Trouble with the Swamp
Wetlands in film are overwhelmingly associated with discomfort, misery, and death
Get the best of Nautilus. Become a member today.
Join now
-
Medicine Is Going Viral
Once lost in scientific obscurity, bacteriophage therapy is making a comeback.
-
Lucy at 50
Donald Johanson reflects on his fossil discovery that shook the human family tree a half century ago.
-
Making Friends with Your Past and Future Selves
It’s what psychologists call self-continuity, and can improve your health and well-being.
-
Feeling Gravity’s Pull
Two theoretical physicists have a lively conversation about how abstract concepts can feel down-to-Earth.
-
How We Solved the Hole in the Ozone
A scientist’s first-hand account shows the world can tackle a global environmental crisis.
-
The Soviet Rebel of Music
He composed on a computer in a dangerous time. His echo is still heard today.
-
How Whales Could Help Us Speak to Aliens
Learning to decode complex communication on Earth may give us a leg up if intelligent life from space makes contact.
-
You Are What Your Ancestors Didn’t Eat
The impact of famine may be written in the bodies of future generations -
Breaking a Cycle of Apocalypse
John Larison’s new novel The Ancients suggests some societies are built for cataclysm -
Why Do Some People Look Like Their Dogs?
The resemblance isn’t just a comical coincidence -
The Genius of Benjamin Franklin
Richard Munson’s 3 greatest revelations while writing Ingenious, his biography of Franklin, the scientist. -
Does Life’s Happiness Have a Shape?
How we feel about life as we age is not as universal as we thought. -
Finding Beauty in the Struggle Between Light and Darkness
A conversation with artist Deena So’Oteh. -
Meet My Pal, the Ancient Philosopher
How friendship with long-dead thinkers can help us live better. -
Reviving Mayan Blue
A Mexican artist rediscovers a lost color sacred to his ancestors. -
AI Is the Black Mirror
Why the kinship between artificial intelligence and the human mind is terrifying. -
The Kinship Issue
Connection is primal. -
How Big Is Your Family?
Living with a Papua New Guinea tribe in the ’80s presented this anthropologist with a question for today. -
Star Siblings Tell Tales of Galactic Chaos
Stellar bodies from other galaxies are all around us. -
Why Do Animals Adopt?
Taking responsibility for another’s young reveals the deep evolutionary roots of care. -
When Songbird Couples Split
A warming climate may cause more bird couples to break up. -
Is Technology Worthy of Our Faith?
Harvard and MIT humanist chaplain Greg M. Epstein on his 3 greatest revelations while writing Tech Agnostic. -
An Archaeological Reckoning
Jennifer Raff is on a mission to rewrite the history of human origins in the Americas. -
Voyagers Ready to Go Dark
Earth’s most distant space probes prepare for their inevitable long night. -
An Artful Seduction
Bowerbirds arrange flowers, dung, and shotgun shells to create elaborate love shacks. -
That Healing Sound
When music is medicine. -
The New Climate Math on Hurricanes
For the first time, we can calculate how much climate change impacts a single storm’s severity.
