Feature

  1. Disaster Goes Global

    The eruption in 1600 of a seemingly quiet volcano in Peru changed global climate and triggered famine as far away as Russia

    By Sid Perkins
  2. Earth

    Shaky Forecasts

    Despite past failures, geophysicists think earthquake prediction might still be possible.

    By Kristina Bartlett Brody

  3. What do you see?

    Emotion may help the visual system jump the gun to predict what the brain will see.

    By Jenny Lauren Lee

  4. Pearls Unstrung

    For a while, the Great Lakes weren’t connected by rivers and Niagara Falls was just a trickle.

    By Sid Perkins

  5. Smart from the start

    Animal embryos get some respect for their survival skills.

    By Susan Milius
  6. Planetary Science

    Stars go kaboom, spilling cosmic secrets

    Astronomers hope type 1a supernovas will help in quest to explain dark energy.

    By Ron Cowen

  7. Venom hunters

    Scientists probe toxins, revealing the healing powers of biochemical weapons.

    By Laura Sanders

  8. When Humor Humiliates

    For gelotophobes, even good-natured laughter can sound a lot like ridicule.

    By Susan Gaidos

  9. The Biofuel Future

    Scientists seek ways to make green energy pay off.

    By Rachel Ehrenberg
  10. Astronomy

    The Star That Ate a Mars

    COVER STORY: Scientists probe debris trapped by white dwarfs to learn more about what faraway Earthlike planets are made of.

    By Charles Petit
  11. Health & Medicine

    You Are Who You Are by Default

    A neural network active when the brain is at rest may prove critical to zoning out, a sense of self and envisioning the future.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  12. Health & Medicine

    Bad Breath

    New studies detail how the invisible particles that pollute the air can damage heart, lungs and genetic programming.

    By Janet Raloff