Science

How Real Is Smoke Brain?

Researchers are only just starting to ask how wildfire smoke affects cognition.

The People Who Use Their Parents’ First Name

“Morning, Carol! Morning, Mike!”

French People Are Fighting Over Giant Pools of Water

The underground reserves that fill mega-basins are not an infinite resource.

Sterilizing Cats, No Surgery Required

A single shot might someday replace spaying as a tool for cat-population control.

Super-Rare Angel Sharks Are Thriving in a Fake Beach Full of Tourists

The Canary Islands have somehow become a major nursery for a critically endangered species.

Dark Extinctions Are Popping Up Everywhere

Scientists keep discovering species in museum collections long after they’ve died out. What else have we missed?

NASA Learns the Ugly Truth About UFOs

Talking about mysterious sightings in the sky can be a nasty business.

The One Thing Holding Back Electric Vehicles in America

The biggest hurdle to mass adoption of electric cars is not the cars themselves.

These Animals Shouldn’t Be Alive, Much Less Sprinting

Snow flies have adapted to keep running in subzero temperatures, but their time is running out.

Some Animals Have No Choice but to Live at Airports Now

Vulnerable birds, snakes, and frogs are clinging to survival in the lawns next to taxiways and runways.

The Blue-Strawberry Problem

A family in the Netherlands has a rare and perplexing brain condition that helps explain how we recognize color.

The Uphill Battle to Save the West’s Kelp

The large brown algae is uniquely hard to preserve. It's also uniquely important.

Even 90-Degree Heat Could Be Devastating

The Pacific Northwest’s early heat wave is a warning for the world.

Fall’s COVID Shots May Be Different in One Key Way

This year’s might include XBB.1 and … perhaps no other strain.

The Fight Over Animal Names Has Reached a New Extreme

Forget changing only the names that honor the horrors of the past. Some biologists now argue no species should ever be named after a single individual.

There Is No Evidence Strong Enough to End the Pandemic-Origins Debate

The recent fight over wet-market raccoon dogs underscores just how much prior beliefs can affect interpretation.

Hawaii’s Feral Chickens Are Out of Control

Polynesians brought chickens’ wild ancestors to the islands. Europeans brought domestic chickens. Now they’ve mixed, and are everywhere.

Eating Fast Is Bad for You—Right?

The widespread advice to go slow is neither definitive nor universal.

The Great Chinchilla Mystery

The fluffy rodents belong high on the mountains—so how are they thriving by the sea?

American Food Will Never Look Natural Again

Health concerns keep shrinking the roster of approved artificial dyes. But Americans still can’t seem to go cold turkey on ultra-colorful foods.