Observations
Masks and Emasculation: Why Some Men Refuse to Take Safety Precautions
They think it makes them look weak, and avoiding that is evidently more important to them than demonstrating responsible behavior
Blogs
Observations
How a Landmark Physics Paper from the 1970s Uncannily Describes the COVID-19 Pandemic
Phil Anderson’s article “More Is Different” describes how different levels of complexity require new ways of thinking. And as the virus multiplies and spreads, that’s just what the human race desperately needs...
Observations
The Fight against COVID-19 Threatens to Cause Collateral Health Damage
The pandemic is no excuse to abandon chronic disease management and prevention
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Observations
Why Carbon?
Musings on a symphony in C
Observations
Her Nobel Research Outshines Her Star Turn
Nobel Laureate Frances H. Arnold talks to Scientific American editor-in-chief Mariette DiChristina about her work, which takes advantage of the evolution algorithm to make entirely new enzymes that can perform useful chemistry...
Observations
I Was a Teenage Element Hoarder
Even at the age of 15, I realized my obsession with collecting all the elements in the periodic table’s is not something most kids aspire to
Observations
Happy Sesquicentennial, Periodic Table!
The organizing scheme that revolutionized our understanding of the chemical elements turns 150 in 2019
Observations
The Floor Is (Usually) Not Lava
We tend to imagine that below the crust, Earth is a seething pool of molten rock—but it’s not
SA Visual
Aerial Fireworks, Illustrated
Graphics from the Scientific American archive provide a glimpse of the history and science of pyrotechnics
Budding Scientist
Helping the Lab Feel More Familiar
Skills learned in the kitchen, at the vanity, in the craft room or in the garage can help put classroom struggles into context
Observations
What's in Your Wiener? Hot Dog Ingredients Explained
This Fourth of July holiday, collectively Americans will eat some 150 million hot dogs, according to industry analysts. Lined up, that substantial serving of frankfurters would stretch from sea to shining sea—several times...
Observations
What Makes Them Go Boom? Our Favorite Explainers on the Science of Fireworks
Staring up as cascades of colorful light bloom noisily from the dark sky—that's how many Americans will conclude their Independence Day. Behind the pretty image, however, fireworks rely on basic physical and chemical principles...
PsiVid
The Chemistry of Sarin Poison Gas on the Periodic Table of Videos
On the Periodic Table of Videos, Rob Stockman, a researcher who works to understand neurotransmitters, explains to us how sarin and other nerve gases work to disrupt bodily functions
Blog Index
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Everything you always wanted to know about raising science-literate kids
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Explore the science behind the dog in your bed
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The Science Behind Extreme Weather
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Climate science in a changing world
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Mathematics: learning it, doing it, celebrating it.
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Adventures in the good science of rock-breaking.
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STAFFIllustrating science since 1845
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STAFFA science blog, sans blague
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The Artful Amoeba
A Blog About the Weird Wonderfulness of Life on Earth
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Exploring and celebrating diversity in science.
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