Science News

All Stories by Science News

  1. Earth: The Operator’s Manual by Richard B. Alley

    A climate scientist uses real-world stories to survey climate problems and solutions. A companion PBS documentary is available online. W.W. Norton & Co., 2011, 479 p., $27.95.

  2. Plastic: A Toxic Love Story by Susan Freinkel

    A well-researched history shows how plastics became a staple and examines current health and environmental concerns. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011, 324 p., $27.

  3. Science Past from the issue of June 17, 1961

    LONG-RANGE SYSTEM FOR SPOTTING SUBMARINES — A sonar system for detecting and tracking enemy sub­marines long before they reach United States shores is being developed by the U.S. Navy.… The sound transmitter, or transducer, which is five stories high and weighs hundreds of tons, will be carried on a former Navy tanker, the USNS Mission […]

  4. Science Future for June 18, 2011

    June 29In Portland, Ore., learn about the chemistry of beer. See www.omsi.edu/afterdark July 29Delta Aquarid meteor shower. Go to http://bit.ly/l4xX7m July 31Sea turtle migration marathon begins in Florida. Track swimmers at www.tourdeturtles.org

  5. SN Online

    ATOM & COSMOSA fireball over Indonesia sent sound waves around the world. Read “News in Brief: Atom & Cosmos.” MOLECULESChemists create a possible pain reliever from crepe jasmine (flowers shown). See “Natural pain-killing chemical synthesized.” BODY & BRAINBacteria can linger on woodwinds for days. Read “Don’t share that clarinet.” EARTHA hot pocket, not a plume, […]

  6. Letters

    NASA budget blunder My thanks and admiration to Ron Cowen for writing about NASA’s “culture of deception” in his recent article on the James Webb Space Telescope mission (“Star cents,” SN: 4/9/11, p. 22). If the astronomy community (and Congress) had decided years ago that spending $7 billion or $8 billion on JWST would be […]

  7. Freon: Destroying the ozone layer?

    Scientists discovered in the 1970s that chlorofluorocarbons such as Freon were hurting Earth’s ozone layer.

  8. Health & Medicine

    Body & Brain

    No link between viral suspect and chronic fatigue, plus reading minds, colored glasses for migraines and more in this week’s news.

  9. Life

    Life

    Ancient weirdos roamed the seas longer than thought, plus clever turtle embryos and da Vinci patterns in trees in this week’s news.

  10. Space

    Atom & Cosmos

    NASA’s new old design for a shuttle replacement, plus Mars’ growth spurt, the most remote object and more in this week’s news.

  11. Humans

    Humans

    ‘Tightness’ of a culture relates to its history, plus the taste of disgust, suicide in China and more in this week’s news.

  12. Chemistry

    Molecules/Matter & Energy

    The electron is still round, plus waterfall-jumping objects, a blood-clotter spotter and more in this week’s news.