All Stories
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Near-Earth Objects: Finding Them Before They Find Us by Donald K. Yeomans
The head of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office describes the planet’s risk of being smacked by a comet or asteroid and what can be done to prevent such a fate. Princeton Univ., 2012, 172 p., $24.95
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A Little History of Science by William Bynum
This abridged version of the human search for knowledge covers major discoveries in medicine, astronomy and other fields. Yale Univ., 2012, 263 p., $25
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Thirst: Water and Power in the Ancient World by Steven Mithen
Learn how humans have managed water throughout history and how shortages have driven conflict and social change. Harvard Univ., 2012, 347 p., $25.95
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The Science of Consequences: How They Affect Genes, Change the Brain, and Impact Our World by Susan M. Schneider
A biopsychologist examines how the brain shapes behavior by learning from the consequences of actions. Prometheus, 2012, 383 p., $21
- Humans
A Cancer Patient’s Best Friend
Similarities between tumors in people and dogs mean canine studies can inform human disease.
- Tech
The 3-D Printing Revolution
Using a technique known as 3-D printing, regular people can now make goods typically produced in huge quantities in factories overseas.
- Chemistry
Synthetic nanomaterial can recognize viruses
The new method may have advantages over antibody-based technologies.
- Humans
Radial routes ran outside Mesopotamia
Cold War–era imagery reveals transportation networks extended throughout Middle East.
- Health & Medicine
Surgery shows promise in treating persistent heartburn
Ring-shaped device around esophagus prevents acid reflux so that patients can stop taking drugs.
- Space
Smallest planet found orbiting distant star
NASA’s Kepler space telescope snags an exoplanet tinier than Mercury.
- Math
A mathematician puts Fermat’s Last Theorem on an axiomatic diet
Fermat’s Last Theorem is so simple to state, but so hard to prove. Though the 350-year-old claim is a straightforward one about integers, the proof that University of Oxford mathematician Andrew Wiles finally created for it nearly two decades ago required almost unimaginably complex theoretical machinery. The proof was a dazzling demonstration of that machinery’s […]
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