Science & Society
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Science & Society
AI can take the friction out of life, but some effort can be good
Technologies, including chatbots, promise to make life easier. But removing the friction, or effort involved in thinking, has costs.
- Health & Medicine
A low-cost rotavirus test could save childrens’ lives in Nigeria
Nigerian virologist Margaret Oluwatoyin Japhet has designed a rapid test that could diagnose rotavirus at a child’s bedside.
- Health & Medicine
Suicide deaths in U.S. teens and young adults fell after 988 launch
Suicide is a top cause of death for teens and young adults. A study finds a link between the 988 Lifeline and a drop in their suicide mortality.
- Anthropology
How to invent a realistic language for fictional speakers
Linguists can mix, match or even break the rules of real-world languages to create interesting imaginary ones.
- Science & Society
Know the legal age to buy tobacco products in the U.S.? Many parents don’t
A study finds that less than half of surveyed parents know the legal age, 21, to buy cigarettes, vapes, nicotine pouches and other tobacco products.
- Health & Medicine
Fluoride in U.S. drinking water does not reduce IQ, a new study finds
Claims that fluoride in drinking water causes cognitive delays in kids are driving U.S. policy. A new study finds no evidence to back them.
- Life
Talking dogs and chatty cats could one day ‘speak’ in our language
Advances in decoding animal sounds might someday make animal translators a possibility.
- Science & Society
Snippets of hair may expose chronic stress in war refugees
Cortisol in hair shows sharper differences in chronic stress among Ukraine war refugees than standard questionnaires.
- Science & Society
Pronatalists want more babies. Their solutions aren’t rooted in science
Conservative pronatalists want a return to the traditional nuclear family. But that family structure is at odds with how humans evolved.
- Science & Society
Social media can be addictive, a jury finds. Research hints at a link
Instagram and YouTube intentionally designed social media platforms to hook users, a landmark court case found. A pediatrician explains the ruling’s impact.
- Health & Medicine
Amid vaccine policy whiplash, here’s how a pediatrician talks to families
A court ruling that blocks Trump administration vaccine policy is a win for science. But much work remains to rebuild trust in vaccines.
- Earth
To make a ‘Snowball Earth,’ sci-fi moves fast. Geology is far slower
The Day After Tomorrow, Snowpiercer, Snowball Earth: Such end-of-days visions of a frozen Earth are fantastical … but can contain a snowflake of truth.
