Science

Science of happiness courses are attracting thousands of students. But there’s still a lot to learn about whether these lessons stick.

Finding therapy and support can be confusing. Here are some tips on how to get help, from understanding insurance websites to keeping track of the bills.

Sanctions and boycotts following the invasion of Ukraine have curtailed the export of nearly every product—except medicines. That's up to drugmakers.

Russia's invasion is making it harder to deliver babies and provide birth control, abortion services, and other essential care.

The agency’s Innovative Advanced Concepts program provides seed funding for ideas that sound like sci-fi—but just might work.

Observatories require electricity and computing power to process data from deep space. Is there a way to make them run greener?

The agency’s long-awaited, costly Space Launch System is finally ready for a practice countdown before the first Artemis mission this spring.

Scientists think the diminutive planet’s surface could be covered with space gems, thanks to an abundance of carbon and pressure from colliding asteroids.

Barriers are going up rapidly as border projects and livestock farming increase, but they impede wildlife migrations and genetically isolate threatened species.

For the first time, scientists get a look at what's going on under the park's geysers. It may even help them better understand the origin of life on Earth.

Later this year, the agency will decide whether to allow four chemicals, which have been banned in Europe, to continue being used on US farms. 

Satellites spot troubling signals that may portend a transformation from rainforest to savanna, with profound implications for the planet.

Changing the genetic makeup of trees could supercharge their ability to suck up carbon dioxide. But are forests of frankentrees really a good idea?

A 1970 storm that killed half a million people became a flashpoint for political upheaval in Pakistan—and ultimately brought America and Russia to the brink of war.

You’ve probably heard of permafrost, the frozen carbon-rich land. But it’s also thawing under the sea, burping up planet-warming gases.

Extreme weather, from floods to wildfires, is increasingly hammering ports, highways, and factories. It’s expected to get worse.

Europe's efforts to avoid Russian energy imports will likely trigger a short-term spike in coal, and environmentalists are concerned.

Next-generation nuclear plants could be safer and more efficient, but first the US has to figure out how to fuel them up—without relying on Russia.

Using a furnace is so 1922. In 2022, humanity has to massively ramp up adoption of clean ways to heat buildings.

Gas prices are up, commutes are back, and Russian oil is under sanction. Too bad the electric vehicle industry isn’t ready to seize the moment.

A new proof significantly strengthens a decades-old result about the ubiquity of ways to represent whole numbers as sums of fractions.

Theoretically, yes. But it’s not terribly practical. And it might mean you’re a supervillain.

NASA plans to deorbit the International Space Station in 2031 by crashing it into the ocean. But is there another way?

In computer simulations, researchers have discovered that a neural network can infer the amount of matter in a whole universe by studying just one galaxy.

Growing organoids in dishes and xenografts in mice lets scientists recreate a living person’s tumor—and test dozens of drugs against them at the same time.

A 3D digital model of a “minimal cell” leads scientists closer to understanding the barest requirements for life.

A controversial California case has raised questions about police use of DNA databases and the need for better genetic privacy laws.

Cell grafts can help people fighting leukemia—but they risk a dangerous immune reaction. An experimental way to filter donors’ cells might offer a solution.

Researchers got the machine to run nearly 13 feet per second. It ain't graceful, but this powerful technique is preparing robots for the chaos of the world.

Can a scrappy team of robotics undergrads play to win against the best-funded labs in the world? At the Darpa Challenge, it’s anyone’s game.

The bizarre robots look like cobbled-together Tetris pieces. A new system "evolves" them to run, climb, and throw stuff better.

What do you get when you slap 3D-printed raptor legs on a quadcopter? A robot that can land like a falcon to keep an eye on the forest.

While observing fearful memories take shape in the brains of fish, neuroscientists saw an unexpected level of synaptic rewiring.

Researchers observed chimps in Gabon applying insects to wounds—and it’s raising big questions about animal altruism and self-medication.

The electrical chatter of our working memories reflects our lack of confidence about their contents.

Scientist and writer Camilla Pang explains what the rationality of science showed her about making better decisions, processing feedback, and feeling like an outlier.