Science & the Public
Where scienceand society meet
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Earth
The Case for Very Hot Water
Turning down the thermostat on a home's water heater could foster the growth of toxic bacteria in home plumbing.
- Earth
Big Water Losses
America's ailing water-delivery infrastructure is literally throwing clean water away -- and dirtying some of what it moves toward our taps.
- Tech
Coal Country’s New Foresters
New techniques may be shaving a century or two off the recovery of mined mountain tops.
- Tech
Trading Forests for Coal
Forested mountain peaks have been giving way to grassy planes in Appalachian coal country.
- Archaeology
Really Cool History
Tales of the black band: Clues to a 4,200-year-old mystery lie frozen in icy records stored atop Mt. Kilimanjaro.
- Climate
Eggs, Tea and Mr. IPCC
Even jet-lagged, the world's lead climate negotiator took time out to brief a few reporters.
- Climate
The News Climate
Whether people choose to peruse news — and where — may explain what role science plays in shaping public opinion on global warming.
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- Climate
Glacier melts are erasing climate record
Featured blog: As glaciers continue to dry up, so does any hope of gleaning information from them about the past climate record.
- Astronomy
On that ‘earmark’ for my favorite science center
Featured blog: In the last debate, McCain denounced proposed federal spending on a multimillion dollar "overhead projector."
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- Health & Medicine
Let’s Get Physical
The feds articulate how much exercise we should consider as healthy.
