Stories by Bryan Bumgardner

Surviving the West Virginia Water Crisis [Slide Show]

A disastrous chemical leak in Charleston reveals the long-simmering tension between industry and environmental regulation in the Mountain State

Too Big to Fail? The Green Bank Telescope’s Uncertain Future

A budget struggle has the world's largest steerable radio telescope making sacrifices in the name of science

“Eco-Goats” to Storm D.C. Cemetery

From Aug. 7 to 12, The Historic Congressional Cemetery in Washington D.C. is embracing a new type of green technology, one that will clear unwanted plant species while producing fresh fertilizer: “eco goats.” A herd of more than 100 goats will be temporarily grazing along the edges of the cemetery, clearing a 1.6-acre area of [...]..

Is Bradley Manning Guilty or Innocent?

Bradley Manning, the U.S. soldier responsible for the public release of more than 700,000 classified documents, was acquitted July 30 of the controversial “aiding the enemy charge” by a military judge, further inflaming public discussion about Manning’s role: was he a heroic whistleblower or a treasonous leaker of government data?...

Zombie Tits, Ungifted and Animal Wise Authors Win Scientific American s Summer Reading Poll

Join our G+ Hangout On Air at noon today (Friday, July 26) with the three winning authors, here:G+ Hangout on Air with Virginia Morell, Rebecca Crew and Scott Barry Kaufman, hosted by SA blogger Joanne Manaster The votes are in for Scientific American’s poll in which we asked readers to choose their favorite authors from our list of the best summer science books of 2013.We are excited to announce our three winners! Becky Crew, author of Zombie Tits, Astronaut Fish and other Weird CreaturesScott Barry Kaufman, author of Ungifted: Intelligence RedefinedVirginia Morell, author of Animal Wise: The Thoughts and Emotions of our Fellow CreaturesAll three authors are set to join us live for a Google Plus Hangout on Air at noon Eastern on Friday, July 26...

Bizarre New Texas Longhorn Dinosaur Bolsters Controversial Theory of Dino Diversity

A newly unearthed dinosaur has been called the "Texas longhorn" of its family tree, and it's not hard to see why: Nasutoceratops titusi , a relative of the famous Triceratops, sported 3.5-foot-long horns, measured 15 feet long from nose to tail, and weighed 2.5 tons...

Air Pollution Linked to Significant Decrease in Life Expectancy

Research on coal burning in China offers powerful evidence of air pollution’s effect on public health

Do Fireworks Resemble the True Sights and Sounds of the U.S. s Key Historical Battles?

After witnessing the British bombardment of Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore on the night of September 13, 1814, Francis Scott Key was moved to immortalize the scene in what became the U.S...

Vote for the Best Summer Books on Science

Is Age the Main Factor in Nelson Mandela's Lung Infection?

The former South African president's hospitalization raises questions about aging and pulmonary health

How Are the NSA and Others Collecting and Using our Data?

A metadata expert reveals the sobering implications of personal data collection by governments and companies

New Astronauts Face Limited Opportunities for Spaceflight

NASA announced on Monday its 2013 class of astronaut candidates, but the current state of the agency’s human spaceflight program makes it hard to get excited about what lies ahead for these remarkable individuals.To mark the announcement, NASA hosted a Google Hangout on Air with several administrators and former astronauts. After sifting through more than 6,300 applications—the second-highest amount ever received—NASA chose four men and four women, and will train them “for missions to low Earth orbit, an asteroid and Mars,” according to a NASA press release.NASA’s human spaceflight program has gone through some recent downsizing...

Could Drones Make the Decision to Kill on Their Own? [Video]

It sounds like something out of the Terminator movies: automated drones that can identify, track and eliminate individual targets without explicit human approval.Today’s U.S.

Is It Possible to Keep Electronic Secrets?

Unless you live under a rock, you've heard of PRISM, a vast digital surveillance program run by the National Security Agency that was recently revealed by a whistleblower.

Best Summer Books: SA`s Picks and Yours

All year long Scientific American editors, bloggers and contributors mull over and write about recently published science books worth reading. These works cover everything from ancient quantum computing to surviving a mass extinction...