Science & Society
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Astronomy
To boldly go where no robot explorer has gone before
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute discusses the importance of robotic space missions for scientific research.
- Astronomy
‘Accessory to War’ probes the uneasy alliance between space science and the military
Neil deGrasse Tyson and Avis Lang’s ‘Accessory to War’ grapples with the millennia-old partnership between space science and warfare.
- Health & Medicine
The United States and Brazil top the list of nations with the most gun deaths
Globally, the estimated number of gun deaths due to homicides, suicides and unintentional injuries went up from 1990 to 2016.
- Science & Society
5 decades after his death, George Gamow’s contributions to science survive
George Gamow, irreverent physicist and prolific popularizer, died half a century ago.
- Psychology
‘Replication crisis’ spurs reforms in how science studies are done
Redos of social sciences studies from major journals point to opportunities for improvement.
- Genetics
Americans support genetically engineering animals for people’s health
Genetically engineering animals is OK with Americans if it improves human health, a new poll reveals.
- Science & Society
Cheese found in an Egyptian tomb is at least 3,200 years old
Solid cheese preserved in an ancient Egyptian tomb may be the world’s oldest.
- Computing
A new computer program generates eerily realistic fake videos
It’s getting harder to tell fact from fiction — even on camera.
- Science & Society
Scientists-turned-students guide viewers through ‘The Most Unknown’
In The Most Unknown, a film on Netflix, a research round robin leads to fascinating discussions about scientific questions.
- Science & Society
The trouble with water, be it too much or too little
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute discusses the future of water and global issues associated with water scarcity and rising sea levels.
- Genetics
Researchers say CRISPR edits to a human embryo worked. But critics still doubt it
Researchers say that they have confirmed CRISPR/Cas9 edits of a heart disease–causing version of a gene, but critics still have doubts.
- Science & Society
For popularity on Twitter, partisanship pays
Pundits claim that we’re all living in political echo chambers. A new study shows that, on Twitter at least, they’re right.
