Science & the Public

Agriculture

Dirt Is Not Soil

Probing the distinction in what you call the stuff that mud is made of.

Agriculture

The Good Earth

The Smithsonian is out to share the "secrets" of soil.

Chemistry

The Goop in Our Air

Emerging data indicate that tiny and toxic particles polluting urban air chemically morph from hour by hour, depending on what other pollutants these particles encounter during journeys that can run hundreds of miles.

Chemistry

CO2: Only One Flavor

Federal climate policymakers should have a grounding in basic chemistry.

Health & Medicine

One Downside to Sushi

Uncooked fish can host detectable concentrations of potentially toxic chemicals — pollutants that cooking can make disappear,

Humans

Toxic yes: Toxins? No

Yet another news story baits us with the promise of reading about noxious toxins – and doesn't deliver.

Humans

Cars Are Learning to Drive

Hands-free driving, truth be told, sounds very appealing.

Ecosystems

Aspiring to Save the Planet

The failure of the G-8 Summit to put some teeth in greenhouse-gas limits suggests it may be time for a global climate czar.

Health & Medicine

Animal rights and wrongs

Featured blog: Some animal-rights activists are taking a page out of the anti-abortionists' playbook and now bully animal researchers at home.

Humans

Data Recycling and Other No-No’s

At least one editor argues that maintaining the ethical behavior of journal authors requires constant policing.

Agriculture

Fishy Data on Weed Killer

A popular weed killer can feminize wildlife by tinkering with a gene that indirectly affects the production of sex hormones.

Science & Society

Climate Threatens Living Fossil

Thanks to global warming, within the lifetimes of certain reptiles in the South Pacific, all members of their species could be born male.