Originally published in January 1948 Credit: Scientific American Advertisement “Until recently geophysicists researching the earth’s magnetic field sent out survey parties with a magnetometer. Frequently the party had to hack its way through the bush to collect data. It was slow, expensive work. Today geophysicists can use a dramatic refinement of this old method—the airborne […]
If you were dropped into virtually any region of North America 56 million years ago, you probably would not recognize where you had landed. Back then, at the dawn of the Eocene epoch, the earth was warmer and wetter than it is today. A sea had just closed up in the middle of the Great […]
During this strange and scary pandemic year, a lot of people have been spending more time outdoors, admiring flowers and listening to birds they may have rushed past in the Before Times. The more you learn about nature, the more fascinating it is, and this month’s cover story on oaks may help you appreciate these […]
Last week, I towed first aid to a local protest championing the Movement for Black Lives. I felt elated to witness the coalescence of community, but as a street medic I was too anxious to enjoy the walk. That morning, our surgical service had sent out a department e-mail outlining hospital protocol for mass casualty […]
As the new coronavirus continues to burn through populations, studies are beginning to shed light on its impact on infants. And so far the findings have been promising for parents and researchers alike. The initial data suggest that infants make up a small fraction of people who have tested positive for COVID-19. A Centers for […]
About a billion birds die from flying into buildings each year in North America. Suspicions have been that birds may perceive the open areas behind glass as safe passageways. Or they may mistake the reflected foliage for the real thing. Researchers would like to reduce collisions, which requires a solid understanding about what makes a […]
The threat of chronic blackouts is sparking a rush to install battery backup systems as California homeowners try to avoid disruptive power cuts related to wildfires. Blackouts are increasingly a part of life as Pacific Gas and Electric Co. strives to avoid igniting deadly blazes with aging equipment. At fault for some of the state’s […]
In the years leading up to the roaring 2020s, young people were once again dropping acid. Onetime Harvard psychologist Timothy Leary died almost 25 years ago, after which some of his ashes were launched into space. But from 2015 to 2018, the rate of “turning on and tuning in” with LSD, to paraphrase Leary, increased […]
For three months, the COVID-19 pandemic did what nobody imagined possible: shut down the city that never sleeps. Businesses boarded up, public transport screeched to halt, and Times Square was quiet. Those weeks were emotionally and financially painful. But the drastic measures worked. New York was the epicenter of the pandemic. Cases peaked at almost […]
Originally published in January 1898 Credit: Scientific American Advertisement “When Jules Verne wrote his fascinating book, ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’ [1873], he aimed to show the utmost that could be accomplished by the means of transportation of his day. A quarter of a century later we are near the day when the ordinary […]