News
What Causes Lightning, and Why Thunder Follows
A lightning bolt is hotter than the surface of the Sun and lasts a fraction of a second. It starts with something as ordinary as ice crystals bumping together inside a storm cloud. Here is how.
What Is Ocean Acidification, and Why It Matters
The ocean has quietly absorbed a huge share of our carbon dioxide, and that favor is changing the water itself. Ocean acidification is the slow souring of the sea, and it hits shellfish and coral first.
What Is a Connectome? Brain Mapping Explained
Scientists have now mapped every neuron and connection in an adult fruit fly’s brain. It sits inside a bigger quest: to draw the complete wiring diagram of a brain, a connectome. Here is what that means.
How Do the Tides Work, and Why Two a Day?
Twice a day the sea climbs up the beach and slides back down, on a schedule set by an object 384,000 kilometers away. Here is how the Moon, and a bit of the Sun, moves the whole ocean.
Why Do We Get Fevers, and When to Worry?
A fever feels like your body turning against you, but it is usually your body fighting for you. Here is why you run a temperature, and the signs that mean it is time to call a doctor.
What Is the Greenhouse Effect, and How Does It Work?
The same effect that makes Earth warm enough to live on is also driving climate change. Here is how the greenhouse effect works, and how a good thing tipped out of balance.
How Do Satellites Stay in Orbit Without Falling?
Thousands of satellites circle overhead right now, and gravity is pulling on every one of them. So why don’t they fall? The answer is stranger and simpler than it sounds.
What Is Metabolism, and Can You Speed It Up?
Blaming a slow metabolism for weight gain is one of the most common health beliefs, and one of the most misunderstood. Here is what metabolism actually is and what really moves it.
What Is CRISPR, and How Does Gene Editing Work?
Scientists can now rewrite the code of life with a tool borrowed from bacteria. Here is what CRISPR is, how it edits genes, and the first disease it has already cured.