Chemistry
Gut microbes may flush ‘forever chemicals’ from the body
Experiments in mice show that some gut bacteria can absorb toxic PFAS chemicals, allowing animals to expel them through feces.
All Topics
Chemistry
Earth
Climate
What to know about the extreme U.S. flooding — and ways to stay safe
An oceanographer explains how climate change, warming oceans and a souped-up atmosphere are creating conditions for deadly floods.
Humans
Humans
A child’s biological sex may not always be a random 50-50 chance
Some people’s biology may set them up to birth babies of a certain sex, explaining why a family with multiple children may have all girls or all boys.
Life
Health & Medicine
‘Rehab’ exposes the dark underside of U.S. drug treatment centers
In Rehab, journalist Shoshana Walter investigates the systemic pitfalls of drug treatment programs, which prevent people’s recovery from addiction.
Math
Computing
There’s no cheating this random number generator
From jury duty to tax audits, randomness plays a big role. Scientists used quantum physics to build a system that ensures those number draws can’t be gamed.
Physics
Space
The biggest black hole smashup ever detected challenges physics theories
Gravitational waves spotted by LIGO reveal two black holes, 140 and 100 times the mass of the sun, merged to become a 225 solar mass behemoth.
Science & Society
Earth
How hot can Earth get? Our planet’s climate history holds clues
Earth has survived huge temperature swings over eons of climate change. Humans might not be so lucky.
Space
Planetary Science
This star offers the earliest peek at the birth of a planetary system like ours
A young sunlike star called HOPS 315 seems to host a swirling disk of gas giving rise to minerals that kick-start the planet formation process.
Tech
Artificial Intelligence
Does the AI industry operate like a modern colonial empire?
In Empire of AI, journalist Karen Hao investigates OpenAI and the social and environmental costs of a multinational tech arms race.
