Science & Society

  1. Health & Medicine

    50 years ago, fluoridation was promoted as a bone protector

    In 1966, scientists hoped fluoride might protect adult bone health. While the results broke down over time, the benefits for teeth remain clear.

    By
  2. Science & Society

    Readers respond to the SN 10, and awards for Science News

    The human side of science, cool cloth and more in reader feedback.

    By
  3. Science & Society

    Averages can conceal how people and science learn

    Editor in chief Eva Emerson discusses getting the whole scientific story.

    By
  4. Health & Medicine

    CDC sounds alarm on STDs

    The combined reported cases of three common sexually transmitted diseases reached a historic peak in 2015, a new CDC report says.

    By
  5. Life

    Website turns Alzheimer’s research into a game

    A new game assists Alzheimer’s researchers in the hunt for stalled blood vessels in the brains of mice.

    By
  6. Physics

    ‘Void’ dives into physics of nothingness

    In modern physics, emptiness is elusive and difficult to define, a new book shows.

    By
  7. Science & Society

    Why people don’t vote, and what to do about it

    The United States has terrible voter turnout. Political scientists have studied why people don’t vote and some effective ways to improve voter participation.

    By
  8. Tech

    Artificial intelligence needs smart senses to be useful

    Editor in chief Eva Emerson discusses the future of artificial intelligence.

    By
  9. Tech

    For robots, artificial intelligence gets physical

    Physical intelligence makes robots able to sense of the world around them.

    By
  10. Earth

    ‘A Most Improbable Journey’ offers scientific take on human history

    Walter Alvarez’s “A Most Improbable Journey” gives readers a tour of “Big History,” linking human history to unpredictable cosmic, geologic and biological events.

    By
  11. Life

    How to make a fish face, and other photo contest winners

    The tiny face of a 4-day-old zebrafish embryo snags the top spot in microscopy photography contest.

    By
  12. Genetics

    HIV came to NYC at least a decade before virus ID’d

    DNA analysis of early viral strains tracks U.S. debut to early ’70s

    By