Scientific American Magazine

Contrary to popular belief, the author says, morphine taken solely to control pain is not addictive. Yet patients worldwide continue to be undertreated and to suffer unnecessary agony

Its steady warmth and brightness are illusory; the sun's output of radiation and particles varies. Systematic observations are beginning to unveil the causes of these changes and their effects on the earth

Chaos in bodily functioning signals health. Periodic behavior can foreshadow disease

A biochemical mechanism called the water-oxidizing clock enables plants and some bacteria to exploit solar energy to split water molecules into oxygen gas, protons and electrons

The compound is not a candidate to supplant silicon. Nevertheless, its speed and optical capabilities have spawned fast-growing applications in computing and communications

Two nights without a blood meal and a vampire bat starves to death—unless it can solicit food from a roostmate. A buddy system ensures that food distribution among the bats is equitable

Once the center of one of Europe's largest states, medieval Novgorod is nearly perfectly preserved. Among the finds are 700 birch-bark manuscripts that give an intimate view of the city's life

A new economic theory elucidates mechanisms whereby small chance events early in the history of an industry or technology can tilt the competitive balance