Environment

The Science & the Fiction

The intrepid Bad Astronomer, Phil Plait, picks the best and worst science moments at the movies. 01.21.2010

Big Picture: 5 Reasons Science [Hearts] Google

The company that tamed the Web is now helping researchers see the world with fresh eyes. 01.19.2010

8 Big Ideas That Could Pave the Road to Clean Energy

Leading thinkers offer visions of how to make our energy supply cleaner, more efficient, and more abundant. 01.19.2010

New Weapon vs Global Warming: Internal Combustion Engines?

New advancements like laser ignition could allow the next generation of automobiles to get much higher mileage. 01.15.2010

A Deep-Water Submersible That Can Switch to Autopilot

The Nereus can take orders through a 25-mile-long fiber-optic cable, but if that snaps, it can find its way back to the mother ship. 01.14.2010

Lichens: Fungi That Have Discovered Agriculture

The often misunderstood symbiote can poison wolves, break down rocks, and live for thousands of years. 01.06.2010

"Frankenfoods" That Could Feed the World

Genetically modified crops designed for industrial agriculture have given the technology a bad rap. Here are 7 transgenic plants that could help the world's hungriest and poorest people. 01.05.2010

#54: Seismic Waves Reveal the Thickness of Tectonic Plates: ~50 Miles

By analyzing how waves change speed and direction, researchers were able to locate the boundary between rigid tectonic plates and the hot, pliable asthenosphere. 12.30.2009

#60: Geographer Mark Serreze

He says a big Arctic melt is inevitable and readies us for what comes next. 12.28.2009

Vital Signs: An Uninvited Guest

The young woman carried a baby that wasn't her own—and wasn't even a human. 12.27.2009

#65: Hot Climate Produced Giant, Croc-Eating Snake

The 40-foot monster is helping scientists figure out what happened in our hotter past—and perhaps what awaits us in the future. 12.27.2009

#66: Girls Hit Puberty Earlier Around the World

Better nutrition and synthetic estrogens seem to be bringing early maturation to China, Denmark, and the U.S. 12.27.2009

#69: Science Sets Its Eyes on the Prize

Big money awaits innovators who can build rockets, sequence genomes, predict people's movie preferences, harvest energy from the tides, or explore the Moon. 12.25.2009

#71: First Ground Animals Borrowed Shells

In the harsh dry air, the hermit crab-like animals needed shields to keep their gills warm. 12.24.2009

#74: Hydrogen Energy Gets Two Big Boosts

One research group has found that an iron-based catalyst works just as well as the platinum catalysts used in fuel cells today. 12.23.2009

#77: Did an Early Pummeling of Asteroids Lead to Life on Earth?

Early organisms apparently survived the Late Heavy Bombardment—which may have made our planet a much comfier place to live. 12.22.2009