Science
Good Chat
The Science of Having a Great Conversation
Forming meaningful bonds with others can improve your health, make you mentally sharper, and fuel creativity. Making friends can feel daunting, but research shows there are many ways to build better connections.
David Robson
Safety First
With So Much Bird Flu Around, Are Eggs, Chicken, and Milk Still Safe to Consume?
Enzo Palombo
The Case for MDMA’s Approval Is Riddled With Problems
The FDA is considering approving MDMA alongside psychotherapy as a treatment for PTSD. But evidence of the drug’s effectiveness isn’t clear cut.
Emily Mullin
Neuralink’s First User Is ‘Constantly Multitasking’ With His Brain Implant
Noland Arbaugh is the first to get Elon Musk’s brain device. The 30-year-old speaks to WIRED about what it’s like to use a computer with his mind—and gain a new sense of independence.
Emily Mullin
There’s New Hope for an HIV Vaccine
A trial vaccine has succeeded in generating low levels of antibodies needed to target HIV. It’s a first but much-needed step toward preventing infection.
Emily Mullin
Wegovy Can Keep Weight Off for at Least 4 Years, Research Shows
Users receiving weekly injections saw their weight fall, plateau, and stabilize over the course of a four-year trial—but it’s still unclear how long these effects last after stopping taking the drug.
Beth Mole, Ars Technica
Starship’s Successful Test Moves SpaceX One Step Closer to Mars
The vehicle mostly survived launch and reentry—key stepping stones toward operational flights of the largest rocket in history.
Jonathan O’Callaghan
Boeing’s Starliner Has Finally Launched a NASA Crew Into Space
Seven years behind schedule, and after two scrubbed attempts last month, Starliner has at last sent two astronauts to space on a mission for NASA. The troubled company still has lots of catching up to do.
Jonathan O’Callaghan
The Auroras Should Be Spectacular This Summer, Thanks to Solar Maximum
Increasing solar activity over the next year could bring more opportunities to see fantastic displays of the northern lights.
Dennis Mersereau
A Warp Drive Breakthrough Inches a Tiny Bit Closer to Star Trek
Physicists have figured out how a warp drive could work—even if it's more useful for our understanding of gravity than interstellar travel.
Paul Sutter, Ars Technica
The World’s Largest Fungus Collection May Unlock the Mysteries of Carbon Capture
Research is uncovering the key role that fungi play in getting soils to absorb carbon, and how humanity’s actions aboveground are wreaking havoc in the mysterious fungal world below.
Matt Reynolds
Don’t Believe the Biggest Myth About Heat Pumps
Not only do heat pumps work fine in cold weather, they’re still more efficient than gas furnaces in such conditions.
Matt Simon
How Big Dairy Took Over Your TikTok Feed—With Help From Uncle Sam
A vast constellation of celebrities, from Kelly Ripa to the McDonald’s mascot Grimace, have helped push dairy sales.
H. Claire Brown
In Defense of Parasitic Worms
Nature can’t run without parasites, and climate change is driving some to extinction. What happens when they start to disappear?
Jesse Nichols
The End of El Niño Might Make the Weather Even More Extreme
The shift from El Niño to La Niña will see temperatures drop, but when one weather system swings to the other, summers tend to be hotter than average—meaning 2024 could be even warmer and wilder than last year.
Sachi Mulkey
Each of the Past 12 Months Broke Temperature Records
Last June was the warmest in recorded history. It kicked off an alarming streak with no end in sight.
Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica
How Much Energy Would It Take to Pull Carbon Dioxide out of the Air?
A physicist runs the math on direct air capture and warns: This tech won't save us from climate catastrophe.
Rhett Allain
Zombie Fire Season Is Here in the Arctic
Every year, peatlands in the Arctic suddenly ignite. Smoldering subterranean fires from the previous summer were thought to be to blame, but now modeling suggests a worrying new cause.
Sebastian Wieczorek, Eoin O’Sullivan, and Kieran Mulchrone
Ecuador Is Literally Powerless in the Face of Drought
Drought-stricken hydro dams have led to daily electricity cuts in Ecuador. As weather becomes less predictable due to climate change, experts say other countries need to take notice.
Hannah Singleton
How Many Charging Stations Would We Need to Totally Replace Gas Stations?
The United States could fully transition to electric vehicles in about 20 years. When that happens, we’re going to need a lot of chargers.
Aarian Marshall
US Offshore Wind Farms Are Being Strangled With Red Tape
This year has seen wind farm costs rise and many projects canceled as developers struggle with opaque regulations and determined opposition—but the industry is far from dead.
Christopher Niezrecki
Everyone's Pumped About Heat Pumps
This week on Gadget Lab, we talk about the surging popularity of heat pumps, the ultra-energy-efficient heating and cooling appliances we’ve called “climate superheroes.”
Lauren Goode and Michael Calore
The Hunt for Ultralight Dark Matter
Perhaps dark matter is made of an entirely different kind of particle than the ones physicists have been searching for. New experiments are springing up to look for these ultra-lightweight phantoms.
Lyndie Chiou
Does String Theory Actually Describe the World? AI May Be Able to Tell
Using machine learning, string theorists are finally showing how microscopic configurations of extra dimensions translate into sets of elementary particles—though not yet those of our universe.
Charlie Wood
What’s Up With These Crazy Northern Lights?
Solar winds at a million miles an hour and freaky magnetic turbulence are sparking some of the best light shows in centuries.
Rhett Allain
An Old Abstract Field of Math Is Unlocking the Deep Complexity of Spacecraft Orbits
Mathematicians think abstract tools from a field called symplectic geometry might help with planning missions to far-off moons and planets.
Leila Sloman
Woman Who Received Pig Kidney Transplant Has It Removed
Surgeons at NYU took out the pig kidney because it wasn’t getting enough blood flow.
Emily Mullin
Gene-Edited Salad Greens Are Coming to US Stores This Fall
Biotech giant Bayer plans to distribute mustard greens that have been genetically altered to make them less bitter to grocery stores across the country.
Emily Mullin
WTF Is With the Pink Pineapples at the Grocery Store?!
Using DNA from tangerines and tobacco, food scientists have made a familiar fruit tastier—and more Instagrammable—than ever. We looked into it so you don’t have to.
Emily Mullin
Lab-Grown Meat Is on Shelves Now. But There’s a Catch
A store in Singapore is selling lab-grown chicken, but it contains only 3 percent animal cells.
Matt Reynolds
The Atlas Robot Is Dead. Long Live the Atlas Robot
Before the dear old model could even power down, Boston Dynamics unleashed a stronger new Atlas robot that can move in ways us puny humans never can.
Carlton Reid
Meet the Next Generation of Doctors—and Their Surgical Robots
Don't worry, your next surgeon will definitely be a human. But just as medical students are training to use a scalpel, they're also training to use robots designed to make surgeries easier.
Neha Mukherjee
AI Is Building Highly Effective Antibodies That Humans Can’t Even Imagine
Robots, computers, and algorithms are hunting for potential new therapies in ways humans can’t—by processing huge volumes of data and building previously unimagined molecules.
Amit Katwala
This Artificial Muscle Moves Stuff on Its Own
Actuators inspired by cucumber plants could make robots move more naturally in response to their environments, or be used for devices in inhospitable places.
Max G. Levy
Scientists Are Unlocking the Secrets of Your ‘Little Brain’
The cerebellum is responsible for far more than coordinating movement. New techniques reveal that it is, in fact, a hub of sensory and emotional processing in the brain.
R Douglas Fields
Meet the Designer Behind Neuralink’s Surgical Robot
Afshin Mehin has helped design some of the most futuristic neurotech devices.
Emily Mullin
Are You Noise Sensitive? Here's How to Tell
Every person has a different idea of what makes noise “loud,” but there are some things we all can do to turn the volume down a little.
Amy Paturel
Why You Hear Voices in Your White Noise Machine
If you've ever heard music, voices, or other sounds while trying to sleep with a white noise machine running, you're not losing your mind. Here's what's going on.
Jennifer Billock
Latest
Southern Lights
The Northern Lights Could Be Visible Across the US Thanks to a Rare Solar Storm
Dennis Mersereau
Brain Trust
Elon Musk’s Neuralink Had a Brain Implant Setback. It May Come Down to Design
Emily Mullin