Rapid-Response Vaccines for Epidemic Outbreaks
Trevor Mundel, president of global health at the Gates Foundation, talks to Scientific American editor-in-chief Mariette DiChristina about the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the efforts to create vaccine platforms for rapid responses to epidemics.
LSD's Long, Strange Trip Explained
When LSD binds to serotonin receptors, it pulls a "lid" closed behind it, locking it in place for hours, and explaining its long-lasting effects. Christopher Intagliata reports.
The Universe in a Cup of Coffee
You think it's just a beverage, but it's a whole lot more
Polar Bear Cubs at High Risk from Toxic Industrial Chemicals, Despite Bans
Levels in young animals elevated to 1,000 times the acceptable amount in people
Knot Not Easy to Knot
Chemists have synthesized the most complex molecular knot ever, using a strand just 192 atoms long. The advance could lead to new tougher materials. Christopher Intagliata reports.
Deceptive Spice Extract Offers Cautionary Tale for Chemists
Curcumin dupes assays and leads some drug hunters astray
Roadkill Animals Are Surprising Sources of Drug Discovery
Deer and opossums on an Oklahoma highway harbor microbes with helpful chemicals
World's Smallest Snowman: Scientist Claims New Record
It stands just under three micrometers tall, carved with a scanning electron microscope
Graphene-Spiked Silly Putty Picks up Human Pulse
“G-putty” is so sensitive that it can track even the steps of a small spider
Battling Gas Bubbles
A gassy science project
“Supermolecules” Could Yield Materials the Periodic Table Won’t Allow
A way to design new molecules and materials that the periodic table does not allow
Teen Wins Big for a Homemade Polymer
An orange–avocado material that could keep crops hydrated during droughts places first at the Google Science Fair