Seeing the world in new ways
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute examines the exciting potential of the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory and muses on the mesmerizing world of fractals.
Category: Science
Epic Research Can Help Mars Missions
The parachute of the Enhancing Parachutes by Instrumenting the Canopy test experiment deploys following an air launch from an Alta X drone on June 4
Busy Beaver Hunters Reach Numbers That Overwhelm Ordinary Math
Imagine that someone gives you a list of five numbers: 1, 6, 21, 107 and — wait for it — 47,176,870. Can you guess what
Science news this week: Storms rage on Earth and the sun, and a new moon is spotted around Uranus
Aug. 23, 2025: Our weekly roundup of the latest science in the news, as well as a few fascinating articles to keep you entertained over
If ‘pregnancy robots’ were real, would you use one?
A viral story raised the idea of using robots outfitted with artificial wombs to incubate human babies from conception to birth. If such technology existed
‘Pregnancy robot from China’ is fake, but is the technology behind it possible?
A story circulating on social media this week featured a seemingly made-up scientist who is developing an equally imaginary “pregnancy robot.” Virality ensued.
The EV tax credit ends soon — but there’s a little bit of wiggle room for car buyers
A federal EV tax credit worth up to $7,500 ends Sept. 30. But the IRS has just clarified that shoppers don’t need to actually have
A ‘black moon’ will appear in the sky this weekend, but you won’t see it. Here’s why
A black moon is a type of new moon, when the moon is nearly between Earth and the sun. (Image credit: William West)
A discovery sheds new light on how different types of early humans coexisted long ago
Researchers say recently discovered teeth come from a previously undiscovered species of Australopithecus, adding to our understanding of human evolution.
Shifting vaccine guidelines inject uncertainty into getting fall COVID shots
Respiratory viruses often surge in the fall. We asked an infectious diseases expert how best to protect ourselves given a shifting vaccine landscape.
The phoenix isn’t the only critter to survive the flames
There are no real phoenixes hiding anywhere. But science has revealed that some living things can take quite a bit of heat.
Mysterious 300,000-year-old Greek cave skull was neither human nor Neanderthal, study finds
Researchers have dated the mysterious skull from Petralona Cave in Greece to 300,000 years ago and concluded that the fossil belonged to an ancient human
James Webb telescope pinpoints origin of brightest flash of radio light ever detected
Astronomers using the James Webb telescope alongside Canada’s CHIME telescope have pinpointed the origin of one of the brightest blasts of radio energy ever detected
Earth’s early primates evolved in the cold — not the tropics
Fossil spore and pollen data reveal our early ancestors evolved in cold, dry environments, with some even colonizing Arctic regions.