The state supreme courts in Florida and Arizona both recently ruled that strict abortion bans could go into effect. But ballot measures may give voters a chance to weigh in
Many researchers think that Wegovy and Ozempic should be taken for life, but myriad factors can force people off the drugs
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/you-quit-ozempic-or-wegovy-what-happens-next/
Three types of misinformation are being used against transgender people: oversimplifying scientific knowledge, fabricating and misinterpreting research and promoting false equivalences
The telescope's studies could help end a long-standing disagreement over the rate of cosmic expansion. But scientists say more measurements are needed
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/could-jwst-solve-one-of-cosmologys-greatest-mysteries/
Brain size in one Massachusetts community has steadily increased since the 1930s, possibly explaining why dementia is trending lower nationwide
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/human-brains-may-be-getting-bigger/
Plants are just trying to reproduce; immune systems are just trying to keep us safe
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-seasonal-allergies-are-so-miserable/
Perspective and subtle motion allows us to peek over the moon’s edge and into its far side
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-see-the-lunar-far-side-right-here-on-earth/
Cows and at least one person in the U.S. have been sickened by avian influenza. We asked experts about the risk to humans.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/how-big-a-threat-is-bird-flu/
Two medical devices that mechanically pump blood to the heart have caused hundreds of injuries and more than a dozen deaths
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fda-recalls-heart-pumps-linked-to-deaths-and-injuries/
Scientists say extreme temperatures that reached 119 degrees Fahrenheit and killed at least 100 people in parts of West Africa would only occur every 200 years in the absence of climate change
Melba Phillips co-authored a paper with J. Robert Oppenheimer in 1935 that proved important in the development of nuclear physics. Later she became an outspoken critic of nuclear weapons
Fossilized vertebrae that were found in an Indian coal mine belonged to a gigantic and previously unknown snake species
Can you assign a size to every object? The surprising answer is no
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/mathematicians-explain-why-some-lengths-cant-be-measured/
A new report finds that AI matches or outperforms people at tasks such as competitive math and reading comprehension
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/stanford-ai-index-rapid-progress/
Facing budgetary pressure for its Mars Sample Return program, NASA has turned to private industry for ideas—perhaps with one specific company in mind
A philosopher who lived centuries before artificial intelligence might be able to help us understand the field's personhood questions
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-philosopher-ibn-sina-can-teach-us-about-ai/
Mental health recommendations for pilots and air traffic controllers bring new ideas to old problems; the FAA must decide what’s next
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/its-time-to-act-on-pilots-mental-health/
Movies and TV shows frequently depict physical and biological sciences well, but often depict psychological and brain sciences poorly. Here’s why, and what we can do about it
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hollywood-should-give-brain-science-a-star-turn/
“A mass bleaching event is, by definition, a mass mortality event,” a leading coral reef expert says
At least 2.1 million cases of dengue fever have been reported in North and South America, and this year 1,800 people have died from the mosquito-borne disease
This eight-legged probe would scour Mars’s underground lava tubes for places where explorers might camp—or for signs of past life
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/spiderlike-mars-robot-reachbot/
A black hole weighing as much as 33 suns lurks a mere 2,000 light-years away from our solar system
How long can humanity’s artifacts endure on the lunar surface? A new installation from artist Jeff Koons is inadvertently putting this question to the test
When astronauts return to the moon later this decade, they’ll bring along science experiments to study moonquakes, lunar water ice and extraterrestrial agriculture
AI can better education, not threaten it, if we learn some lessons from the adoption of the calculator into the classroom
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ai-can-transform-the-classroom-just-like-the-calculator/
Uncontrollable sobbing is uniquely human, and it may be our emotions running out of our faces, a way to connect us with other people
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-evolution-of-a-big-ugly-cry/
Mixotrophs, which have characteristics of both animals and plants, could help blunt the effects of marine heat waves on ocean ecosystems
Volcano detectives use artificial intelligence to sleuth out ancient secrets in Alaska.
The tale of how the "backfire effect" ultimately, itself, backfired, and what scientists can learn from being wrong
More U.S. states are requiring online ID checks. A proposed French strategy aims to balance child safety with users’ privacy rights
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/online-age-verification-laws-privacy/
Making schools more welcoming for all can make for a fair and just society
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-science-of-reducing-prejudice-in-kids/
Contact with nature improves physical and mental health, but greenery is not easily reached by all
Reducing the need for car travel is better for health, the environment and public safety
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/we-need-to-make-cities-less-car-dependent/
Letters to the editors for the January 2024 issue of Scientific American
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/readers-respond-to-the-january-2024-issue/
Artificial DNA sorts images like a neural network does
In a new book, the wisdom of plants is a balm for our changing planet
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-plant-intelligence-can-soothe-climate-anxiety/
Pavlov’s dogs; Mercury’s dark side
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/may-2024-science-history-from-50-100-and-150-years-ago/
Changing demographics mean shrinking families and more older relatives in future decades
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/everyone-will-have-fewer-relatives-in-the-future/
Experts describe ways to turn down the volume, from earbuds to smartphone apps that detect harmful noise levels
Major discoveries during the past 10 years have transformed prostate cancer treatment, enabling it to proceed even for the most advanced form of the disease
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/treating-prostate-cancer-at-any-stage/
Fossil and living birds reveal the dazzling biology of feathers
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-feathers-are-one-of-evolutions-cleverest-inventions/
What makes a word survive or go extinct?
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-our-thoughts-shape-the-way-spoken-words-evolve/
A rice-grain-size fish screams louder than a jackhammer—and we have a lot to learn from its minuscule brain
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/this-tiny-fish-makes-an-ear-blasting-screech-for-love/
Reducing noise improves health, JWST’s galaxies change astronomy, and there’s new hope for people with prostate cancer
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/feathers-fire-the-strong-force-and-fairness/
Writers, artists, photographers and researchers share the stories behind the stories
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/contributors-to-scientific-americans-may-2024-issue/
A novel about the tensions between nature and modernity, animal social networks, and more books out now
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-dark-side-of-nostalgia-for-wild-untouched-places/
New research examines the molecular machinery behind a beetle’s strange biological cycle
Scientific expertise is typically limited and specific. When evaluating scientific claims, look to the relevant experts
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/in-matters-of-scientific-debate-follow-the-houdini-rule/
Certain brain layers specialize in particular waves—which might aid understanding of neuropsychiatric disorders
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-discover-extensive-brain-wave-patterns/
A high-tech pair of gloves can help make learning instruments and other hands-on activities easier
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/smart-gloves-teach-piano-playing-through-touch/