Year in Review
- Health & Medicine
E-cigarettes caught fire among teens
High schoolers’ use of e-cigarettes shot up from 2017 to 2018, and public health officials are concerned that a new generation is at risk for nicotine addiction.
- Climate
Half a degree stole the climate spotlight in 2018
Climate attribution studies and new data on global warming targets put climate change in the spotlight this year.
- Genetics
News of the first gene-edited babies ignited a firestorm
A researcher in China announced he created two babies using CRISPR. Many scientists questioned the study’s ethics and medical necessity.
- Genetics
Crime solvers embraced genetic genealogy
DNA searches of a public genealogy database are closing cases and opening privacy concerns.
- Particle Physics
Neutrino discovery launched a new type of astronomy
Particles associated with a blazar kick-start the field of neutrino astronomy.
- Earth
Greenland crater renewed the debate over an ancient climate mystery
Scientists disagree on what a possible crater found under Greenland’s ice means for the Younger Dryas impact hypothesis.
- Animals
Humans wiped out mosquitoes (in one small lab test)
An early lab test of exterminating a much-hated mosquito raises hopes, but is it really such a great idea?
By Susan Milius - Health & Medicine
Drinking studies muddied the waters around the safety of alcohol use
Studies claiming that alcohol in even small amounts is dangerous weren’t designed to address risks of moderate drinking.
- Planetary Science
A buried lake on Mars excited and baffled scientists
Planetary scientists are still trying to explain how a lake could have formed beneath a kilometer and a half of Martian ice.
- Neuroscience
Zapping the spinal cord helped paralyzed people learn to move again
A handful of people paralyzed from spinal cord injuries have learned to walk again.
- Anthropology
Human smarts got a surprisingly early start
Human ingenuity began on treks across Asia and in fluctuating African habitats.
By Bruce Bower - Science & Society
Watch our most-viewed videos of 2017
Cassini’s demise, cuttlefish and the Curiosity rover topped our list of most popular videos of 2017.