How is a legacy preserved, and how is someone forgotten? Determined to make a final name for himself, Nobel Prize–winning chemist Irving Langmuir ventured into science that many would classify as what he himself called “pathological science,” or “wishful thinking,” while chemist and physicist Katharine Burr Blodgett continued her work as a diligent experimenter. But…
Stentor coeruleus is a single-celled organism with unexpected abilities MELBA PHOTO AGENCY / Alamy A simple unicellular organism with no brain or neurons seems capable of an advanced form of learning. The simplest form of learning, known as habituation, is gradually reducing how much you respond to a repeated, harmless stimulus, like a smell or…
March 13, 2026 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm China just approved its first brain implant for commercial use, a world first Neuracle Medical Technology’s invasive brain-computer interface has been given the green light in China for people with partial spinal cord injuries By Tanya Lewis edited by Claire Cameron Juan Gaertner/Science Photo…
Passwords are both a curse and a blessing tete_escape/Shutterstock Passwords occupy an odd place in our lives. They’re both a blessing – keeping our data and information safe from anyone intruding into our IT systems and accessing them – and a curse, in that they’re often difficult to manage and tricky to remember. Cybersecurity expert…
A handful of tiny molecules circulating in the blood may help identify which older adults are most likely to survive the next two years, researchers report February 24 in Aging Cell. In a study of more than 1,200 people 71 and older, six small RNA molecules in the blood, called piRNAs, predicted short-term survival with…
March 13, 2026 3 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm 24 mice launched to orbit in 2023. What happened to their bodies could help humans better survive in space The human body is not built for life in space, and a new study helps reveal how By Jackie Flynn Mogensen edited by Claire Cameron…
Illustration of a female Australopithecus sediba carrying an infant JOHN BAVARO FINE ART/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY Childbirth was difficult and dangerous for our ape-like ancestors, much as it is for women today. A new study of the pelvises of Australopithecus suggests that labour exerted powerful forces on their pelvic floors – meaning Australopithecus mothers risked perineal…
A brain repair kit that helps yaks and other animals naturally cope with low oxygen levels at high altitudes may point to a new way to treat brain diseases such as multiple sclerosis. In mice with brain damage that mimics MS, the kit’s tools lessened signs of damage in young mice exposed to low oxygen…
March 13, 2026 4 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm Hoppers‘ beaver expert shares the wild facts of these dam builders How do scientists actually study beavers? How do beavers build dams? And what is “beaver butt juice”? By Brianne Kane edited by Andrea Thompson Dr. Sam and Nisha in Pixar’s Hoppers. Field researchers…
Stentor coeruleus is a single-celled organism with unexpected abilities MELBA PHOTO AGENCY / Alamy A simple unicellular organism with no brain or neurons seems capable of an advanced form of learning. The simplest form of learning, known as habituation, is gradually reducing how much you respond to a repeated, harmless stimulus, like a smell or…
