Scientific American

How To Survive The Next Big Storm

What’s next for cities threatened by hurricanes: re-entrenchment and planning, or simply fleeing from the coasts?

How To Survive The Next Big Storm

The Radioactive Fish Of Fukushima

Bottom-dwelling fish continue to be found with high levels of radioactive elements. What does this mean for the clean-up, and the future of the surrounding environment?

The Radioactive Fish Of Fukushima

Meet The Man Who Just Geo-Hacked The Ocean

Russ George recently dumped 120 tons of iron ore into the ocean to take the idea of geoengineering the ocean’s plankton to suck up carbon dioxide from theory to reality. He’s been both celebrated and vilified for his actions. Here is why he did it.

Meet The Man Who Just Geo-Hacked The Ocean

Can We Fight Poverty And Climate Change At The Same Time?

Combining humanitarian aid, economic development and environmental improvement may be the only way for the global community to bolster its resilience to 21st-century challenges.

Can We Fight Poverty And Climate Change At The Same Time?

Everyone Charges Their Car At The Same Time

One fear of electric cars is that they will crush the grid as everyone plugs in at the same time. It turns out to be totally true. How can we convince people to think differently about charging?

Everyone Charges Their Car At The Same Time

The Intertwined History Of Polar Bears And Climate Change

By studying the genetic record for clues as to how the bears managed to adapt to the frozen North, scientists hope to find hints about how they might re-adapt to a much warmer home.

The Intertwined History Of Polar Bears And Climate Change

An 18-Rotor “Volocopter” Takes Flight

It may look crazy, but its inventors say it could change helicopters.

An 18-Rotor “Volocopter” Takes Flight

Just How Much Of The Planet Do We Have Left?

The idea of planetary boundaries–the maximum amount of resources we can use–is controversial and debatable. How do we know when we’ve simply depleted too many of our natural resources to recover?

Just How Much Of The Planet Do We Have Left?

Can A New Kind Of Battery Spark A Real Electric Car Revolution?

The lithium ion cells from batterymaker A123 appear to do away with many of the problems (explosiveness, expensiveness) that have made cars powered by batteries a hard sell. Will this be the point that EVs turn the corner?

Can A New Kind Of Battery Spark A Real Electric Car Revolution?

Track Record: Tracing The Evolution Of Subway Systems

New research digs up the underlying rules governing the shape of subway systems across the world.

Track Record: Tracing The Evolution Of Subway Systems

Eating Yogurt Gives Mice Big Balls (You Should Try It!)

Besides generally making you healthy, a new study found that eating yogurt has some surprising benefits (at least in mice) including making their testicles, er, quite impressive.

Eating Yogurt Gives Mice Big Balls (You Should Try It!)

Will Organic Food Fail To Feed The World?

A new analysis suggests that farmers have to balance producing enough food for humans and preserving the environment. Neither option will work alone.

Will Organic Food Fail To Feed The World?

Will James Cameron’s Voyage to the Bottom Of The Sea Yield Breakthrough Drugs?

The moviemaker’s expedition to the Mariana Trench could usher in a new type of undersea lab that extracts chemical compounds from microorganisms living in the deepest parts of the sea

Will James Cameron’s Voyage to the Bottom Of The Sea Yield Breakthrough Drugs?

Reinventing Aid For Urban Disasters

Our model for aid after earthquakes, floods, or other calamities is made for remote, rural areas. But most people live in cities, and we need to be prepared to care for them after disasters.

Reinventing Aid For Urban Disasters

Will Genome Sequencing Actually Prevent Disease?

The $1,000 genome, long just a pipe dream, is now a reality. But it may not revolutionize medicine the way we were hoping.

Will Genome Sequencing Actually Prevent Disease?

Fossil Free: Microbe Helps Convert Solar Power To Liquid Fuel

Until we get solar cars, the sun won’t be powering our trips to the store. Unless this crazy project that uses tiny bugs to convert that solar power to a fuel you can put in your gas tank pans out.

Fossil Free: Microbe Helps Convert Solar Power To Liquid Fuel

Is “All Of The Above” The Right Strategy For U.S. Energy? An Interview With Steven Chu

The U.S. government aims to improve our current energy production, but what does that mean in practice?

Is “All Of The Above” The Right Strategy For U.S. Energy? An Interview With Steven Chu

A Low-Tech Plumbing Challenge Searches For The iPad Of Commodes

Can a Gates Foundation-funded toilet-design initiative end a foul practice in the developing world?

A Low-Tech Plumbing Challenge Searches For The iPad Of Commodes

Fear-Resistance: Should We Worry About Totally Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis?

Extensively drug-resistant TB is already a scourge on health systems worldwide. Is it possible that soon there will be a mutation of the disease with no possible treatment?

Fear-Resistance: Should We Worry About Totally Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis?

Tricking Stomach Microbes To Convert Seaweed To Fuel

Seaweed grows fast and naturally without fertilizer and is a better source of biofuel than most land-based plants. And with a little alteration, our good friend E. coli loves to eat it and spit out fuel.

Tricking Stomach Microbes To Convert Seaweed To Fuel

Impact

The pandemic makes it clear that the Postal Service should get back into the banking business

Middle class jobs for non-college grads have disappeared from big U.S. cities

Biden-Sanders task force proposals could actually move the needle on climate action

Creativity

The cynic’s case for why brands need to double down on the Facebook ad boycott

25 years ago, ‘Waterworld’ forever changed how we think about hits and flops

Andy Samberg’s ‘Palm Springs’ reinvents the ‘Groundhog Day’ time-loop genre

Co.Design

Muji’s U.S. business declares bankruptcy

This startup sells clothes from the same factories as Alexander Wang and Prada—at a fraction of the cost

Facebook’s proposed emoji illustrates yet another glaring blindspot on race

Work Life

4 reasons why businesses should keep investing and growing during a downturn

Lessons I learned transitioning my company to ‘working from anywhere’

5 ways to revive that job offer that COVID-19 put on hold