A Volcano, a Fishing Boat, and a Narrow Escape
Two government biologists barely made it off a remote Alaskan island alive. No one had known it was ready to erupt.
Life Up Close
Detective Fiction Has Nothing on This Victorian-Science Murder Mystery
William Saville-Kent was a pioneering coral photographer. Was he also hiding a grisly secret?
One of the Ocean’s Biggest Threats Is Still Mostly a Mystery
There are major gaps in our understanding of invasive species.
Masks Are Back, Maybe for the Long Term
Some people can’t help but feel that masking while vaccinated is a regression—especially because this time, there’s no obvious off-ramp.
You’ve Never Seen Legs Like These
Harvestmen boast limbs that can taste, smell, breathe, seduce, and even coil themselves around twigs two or three times over.
The Infrastructure Deal Is Not Not a Climate Bill
Here are five ways of looking at the Senate’s bipartisan proposal.
Congress Is Slashing a $30 Billion Plan to Fight the Next Pandemic
The proposal would overhaul America’s approach to tackling outbreaks, allowing scientists to develop vaccines in advance. But for now, Democrats are cutting it down.
The Day the Space Station Lurched
A recent arrival at the International Space Station created a little too much excitement.
A Major Climate Idea Is Based on Some Shaky Science
At least for now, we can’t just trap carbon in the soil.
This Picture Has Major Moon Potential
A newly discovered disk of cosmic dust around a faraway exoplanet could one day become something more.
Vaccines Are Great. Masks Make Them Even Better.
Why not both?
Unfortunately, I Care About Power Lines Now
If America wants to fight climate change—or enjoy the benefits of a modern economy—it must get much better at building electricity transmission. Yikes.
One More Thing We Have in Common With Cats
Feline genomes are surprisingly similar to humans’, and could help us treat disease in both species.
Do Not Read This at Lunch
Scientists teased out a new dimension of disgust by showing people gross videos of rotting meat, bugs, and other very unappetizing prospects.
Your Vaccinated Immune System Is Ready for Breakthroughs
Getting COVID-19 when you’re vaccinated isn’t the same as getting COVID-19 when you’re unvaccinated.
The Turtle Poachers Say They Have No Choice
During the pandemic, hungry Costa Ricans have been resorting to an illegal practice that was once on the decline.
How Do We Know What Ancient People Ate? Their Dirty Dishes.
New scientific techniques have turned ancient food into less of a mystery.
The Trash Parrots of Australia Are Very Annoying but Very Clever
Parrots in the suburbs of Sydney are learning how to open trash cans from one another.
Are Wind Turbines a Danger to Wildlife? Ask the Dogs.
Humans are terrible at finding bats and birds killed by wind turbines. Dogs are great at it.
We’re Zeroing In On the ‘Holy Grail’ of COVID-19 Immunity
There’s no good way of measuring whether your vaccine worked—yet.
Why Do Mammals Kill Each Other?
A grisly census hints at a few reasons some of our closest kin might take each other’s lives
Carbon Tax, Beloved Policy to Fix Climate Change, Is Dead at 47
It reshaped how the world thought about climate change. But its prized trait—bloodless economic efficiency—won it few friends on the right or left.