Undark

Ozone Is Dropping—Except in the Rural West

Drilling for oil and gas may be to blame.

• Jason Plautz and Undark
• Aug 23, 2018

Colombia’s Long Push to Bring ‘Loaned’ Fossils Home

Latin American countries have larger capacities than ever to house locally discovered specimens, but many are still held abroad.

• Timothy Pratt and Undark
• Aug 15, 2018

Is AI Ready to Prevent School Shootings?

Facing a project with no room for mistakes, companies are striving to ensure the technology is up to the task.

• Jeremy Hsu and Undark
• Aug 8, 2018

China’s Love for Meat Is Threatening Its Green Movement

Even as it champions renewable energy, the country has struggled to curb a rising demand for livestock.

• Marcello Rossi and Undark
• Jul 31, 2018

The Crime-Fighting Power of Dead, Stuffed Animals

Exchanging wildlife specimens with museums and zoos can help law enforcement stop smugglers.

• James Gaines and Undark
• Jul 19, 2018

How Much Pain Should Animals Endure for Science?

Animal suffering is incredibly difficult to measure. So is whether or not it actually benefits research.

• Ingfei Chen
• Jun 8, 2018

The Icelandic Families Tracking Climate Change With Measuring Tape

Volunteers who have been monitoring glaciers for generations are firsthand witnesses to a warming Arctic landscape.

• Gloria Dickie and Undark
• Jun 6, 2018

Color-Changing Lights Could Reset the Body’s Scrambled Clock

Schools and hospitals are using specialized LEDs to combat the damage of indoor living.

• Lynne Peeples
• May 23, 2018

How to Get Away With Scientific Fraud

Researchers who are under investigation can often bounce easily between jobs.

• Alison McCook
• May 17, 2018

Drug Use Is Detectable on Your Fingerprints

Should law enforcement be able to test them?

• Rod McCullom
• Apr 13, 2018

The Cancer Researcher Catching Scientific Fraud at Rapid Speed

New software is helping to quickly identify when the results of an experiment just don’t add up.

• John Power
• Apr 3, 2018

Can AI Stop Shark Attacks?

Surveilling sharks, not killing them, could be the future of safe beaches.

• Jeremy Hsu
• Mar 31, 2018

A Race Against Time to Excavate an Ancient African Civilization

Archaeologists in Nubia are struggling against erosion, desertification, and government plans to develop the land.

• Amy Maxmen
• Feb 23, 2018

Is Bayer's New Magazine Real Journalism?

LeapsMag is supposed to be independent of the pharma giant, but the venture still raises ethical questions.

• Michael Schulson
• Feb 14, 2018

The Link Between Opioid Overdoses and Amnesia Is Only Getting Stronger

As more cases turn up, doctors are concerned about the extent to which memory loss may be undetected.

• Lauren Aguirre
• Jan 30, 2018

Threading a City With Gunfire Sensors Might Not Make It Any Safer

Amid record-breaking gun violence, Chicago’s police are expanding the use of an innovative technology—with little evidence that it helps.

• Rod McCullom
• Dec 14, 2017

Why Is Giving Birth So Hard?

New theories are challenging a long-standing notion that the difficulty of childbirth is simply an evolutionary trade-off.

• Josie Glausiusz
• Dec 4, 2017

South Africa's Success With the Delicate, Difficult Penis Transplant

With its high rates of traditional circumcision—and complications—the country is on the cutting edge of one of the rarest and most challenging surgeries in modern medicine.

• T.L. Andrews
• Dec 1, 2017

Global Warming Might Be Especially Dangerous for Pregnant Women

Scientists are concerned that heat waves could be linked to more premature births and stillbirths.

• Ellie Kincaid
• Nov 21, 2017

Are Face Scans Resurrecting the False Science of Physiognomy?

Many researchers fear the consequences of training computers to identify a person’s sexual orientation and criminality based solely on physical appearance.

• Jesse Emspak
• Nov 10, 2017