Culture

Letters to the editors for the December 2025 issue of Scientific American

Lurid headlines don’t give American children enough credit

In the Oscar-nominated film Bugonia, Emma Stone’s character is accused of being an alien. But would we know extraterrestrial life if we saw it on Earth?

How do scientists actually study beavers? How do beavers build dams? And what is “beaver butt juice”?

No bad luck here—just lots of fascinating math that explains why the 13th of a month so often falls on a Friday

The science of the zodiac is more intriguing than astrology would have you think

When people understand the system and process behind AI art, its moral implications become harder to accept

This Oscar-winning classic set a surprisingly simple mathematical challenge

Putting humans and LLMs head-to-head in classic tests of judgment from human psychology underscores the differences between them

Letters to the editors for the November 2025 issue of Scientific American

AI is forcing us to redraw the line between author and tool

Deep within the source code of this online multiplayer game lies an enigmatic number that puzzles and inspires experts to this day