All Stories
- Science & Society
10 early-career scientists tackling some of the biggest problems of today
For the ninth year, Science News honors researchers in its SN 10: Scientists to Watch list.
- Environment
A biogeochemist is tracking the movements of toxic mercury pollution
Exposing the hidden movements of mercury through the environment can help reduce human exposure.
By Nikk Ogasa - Health & Medicine
HIV and illicit drugs are a bad mix. This scientist found an unexpected reason why
The neuroscientist considers themself an outsider, which allows them to embrace people who have been marginalized, including people who have HIV.
- Neuroscience
By studying the eyes, a researcher explores how the brain sorts information
Freek van Ede seeks to understand how the brain selects information to plan for the future. He’s finding clues in the tiny movements people make with their eyes.
- Cosmology
How did dark matter shape the universe? This physicist has ideas
Theoretical physicist Tracy Slatyer proposes new scenarios for dark matter and helped discover the Fermi bubbles.
By Adam Mann - Neuroscience
A cell biologist is investigating the balance of brain flexibility, stability
Andrea Gomez, a Berkeley molecular and cell biologist, applies her wide-ranging curiosity to brains’ mysteries ranging from synapses to psychedelics.
- Computing
This engineer’s light-based computers take inspiration from the brain
Physicist and engineer Bhavin Shastri is working to create the first photonic computer modeled after the human brain.
By Claire Yuan - Quantum Physics
Why this physicist is bringing thermodynamics to the quantum age
Like a steampunk fantasy-world, which pairs high-tech with an old-timey setting, Nicole Yunger Halpern melds old and new science.
- Materials Science
A materials scientist seeks to extract lithium from untapped sources
Lithium is an essential ingredient for batteries in electric vehicles but getting enough will become a problem.
By Anna Gibbs - Climate
Climate change could double U.S. temperature-linked deaths by mid-century
Each year, roughly 8,000 deaths in the United States are associated with extreme temperatures. And as temperatures rise, this number could swell.
- Animals
Scientists have just turned giant panda skin cells into stem cells
If the pluripotent stem cells can be turned into precursors to egg and sperm cells, the feat could potentially be a big deal for giant panda conservation.
By Jason Bittel - Microbes
Some bacteria in your mouth can divide into as many as 14 cells at once
The filamentous bacterium Corynebacterium matruchotii has a unique reproductive strategy that might allow it to claim territory quickly.