Culture
The True Story of Einstein's Wife, a Revised History of Humans, and Other New Science Books
Book recommendations from the editors of Scientific American
Culture1092 articles archived since 1845
Evolution
On the Origin of Darwin
On this 210th anniversary of Darwin's birth we hear evolution writer and historian Richard Milner perform a brief monologue as Charles Darwin, and former Scientific American editor in chief John Rennie and Darwin's great-great-grandson Matthew Chapman read excerpts from The Origin of Species ...
Culture
Different Humpback Whale Groups Meet to Jam
Humpback populations from the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet up south of Africa and trade song stylings.
Culture
A Man-Eating Tiger, the Science of Athletic Recovery and Other New Science Books
Book recommendations from the editors of Scientific American
Cognition
"Mona Lisa Effect" Not True for Mona Lisa
The Mona Lisa effect is the illusion that the subject of a painting follows you with her gaze, despite where you stand. But da Vinci's famous painting doesn't have that quality. Christopher Intagliata reports...
Hollywood's Portrayals of Science and Scientists Are Ridiculous
And Twitter is taking note
Behavior
Seeing Superman Increases Altruism
Subject who saw a Superman poster were more likely to offer help than were people who saw another image.
Space & Physics
Ultima Thule and the Apes of Earth
As the New Horizons mission approached Ultima Thule, Rowan University paleontologist Kenneth Lacovara put our close-up study of the Kuiper Belt object into a deep-time perspective.
Behavior
Facebook Users Value the Service More Than Investors Do
Users of the social network said they'd require payment of more than $1,000 to quit the platform for one year. Christopher Intagliata reports.
Culture
Meet the Real Ravenmaster
Christopher Skaife talks about his new book The Ravenmaster: My Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London, in front of a live audience at Caveat, “the speakeasy bar for intelligent nightlife" in Lower Manhattan...
Biology
Germs of Genius—a Masterpiece’s “Microbiome” Can Spell Its Demise
But microbes living on canvases may also help preserve irreplaceable works of art
How Scientific American Helps Shape the English Language
The magazine is more widely cited than the Bible by the Oxford English Dictionary
Culture
100 Years after an Epidemic, a Scientific Guide to Alien Life and Other New Science Books
Book recommendations from the editors of Scientific American
Scientists and Artists Must Work Together
We need to engage people emotionally, not just intellectually, to address the plight of the planet
Culture
Artists Strive to Make Climate Impacts “Visceral”
Art that provokes emotions can complement climate science
Public Health
The Crusade against Dangerous Food, Part 2
Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Deborah Blum talks about her book The Poison Squad: One Chemist’s Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the 20th Century, Part 2...
Chemistry
The Crusade against Dangerous Food, Part 1
Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Deborah Blum talks about her book The Poison Squad: One Chemist’s Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the 20th Century, Part 1...
An Uncanny Display: Algorithmic Art at the Whitney Museum
A new show looks back over a half century of this surprisingly robust genre
How Have Plants Shaped Human Societies?
We still know very little, but a new project called the Plant Humanities Initiative aims to change that
Can AI Create True Art?
And if it can, what are the implications for the future of creativity?
