Environment
Vehicle-to-Grid Technology: Electric Cars Become Power-Grid Batteries
Imagine a car that runs quietly, burns no gas, produces no emissions, stores renewable energy, and sometimes even pays you back. Seem like a pipe dream?
Guest Blog
Commentary invited by editors of Scientific American
Evolution
Internet Porn Fills Gap in Spider Taxonomy
According to the American Museum of Natural History, a total of 42,473 spider species, belonging to 110 different families, have so far been described worldwide.
Health
The 2011 Pearl Meister Greengard Prize: Honoring Dr. Brenda Milner for her pioneering work in cognitive neuroscience
Tragic it is when a young mother never gets to meet her newborn child; however, it is also awe-inspiring to see a victim of this circumstance rise above and honor his mother’s sacrifice...
Evolution
Don't lose the context! Response to: Are you maternal enough to be a woman?
Are you maternal enough to be a woman? I saw this headline on Scientific American blogs, and was intrigued. As a researcher in intra-sex variation in personality, I was eager to see any reference to maternal inclinations, given that it is the subject of my most recent paper...
Mind & Brain
Lessons from Sherlock Holmes: From Perspective-Taking to Empathy
Last week, I wrote about the importance of perspective-taking. This week, I'd like to continue with one of its close relatives, a state that would indeed be largely impossible without its existence: empathy.Empathy, a concept originally introduced as Einfühlung by Theodore Lipps, is a state that allows us to share in the experiences and mental states of others...
Environment
Hungry for Jobs and for Change, Scientists Join the Occupy Movement
Traffic backed up along Baltimore's inner harbor last week as protestors from the "Occupy" movement waved signs and shouted at the passing drivers. And among the protestors were scientists and science students, unhappy with their job prospects, their funding prospects, and the way science is viewed in America.I had heard about the protests on the news, and hadn't paid too much attention...
Evolution
Fly on wall sees things it wishes it hadn't
“Where there are humans,you'll find flies,and Buddhas.”–Kobayashi IssaEach day, in each country, a housefly is born. Lots of houseflies really. Houseflies have been being born around us for thousands of years...
The Sciences
Does Cosmology Matter?
Every month or so it seems like another eminent physicist publishes a new book claiming to go beyond or "before" the Big Bang. Roger Penrose, Brian Green and Stephan Hawking have all gotten into the game putting their stamp on the “Death of the Big Bang”.Cosmology, it would seem, is at a precipice and we appear to be living at the twilight of Big Bang as a theory of the Universe’s origin...
Mind & Brain
Italian Seismologists on Trial-for Failing to Communicate Well?
The ground shook violently in L’Aquila, Italy, early in the morning of April 6, 2009, more violently than it had during the tremors the area had been experiencing for months.
Health
Molecules to Medicine: From Test-Tube to Medicine Chest
We looked briefly at why drug studies came into being; now let’s look at how a drug is developed, from test tube to your tissues.Every government approved drug goes through the same sequence of testing anywhere in the world...
Blog Index
@ScientificAmerican
STAFFBehind the scenes at Scientific American
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Anecdotes from the Archive
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Anthropology in Practice
Exploring the human condition.
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Beautiful Minds
Insights into intelligence, creativity, personality, and well-being
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Budding Scientist
Everything you always wanted to know about raising science-literate kids
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Cross-Check
Critical views of science in the news
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Dark Star Diaries
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Dog Spies
Explore the science behind the dog in your bed
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Extinction Countdown
News and research about endangered species from around the world
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Eye of the Storm
The Science Behind Extreme Weather
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Frontiers for Young Minds
Science by and for kids ages 8-15
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Guest Blog
Commentary invited by editors of Scientific American
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Hot Planet
Climate science in a changing world
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Illusion Chasers
Illusions, Delusions, and Everyday Deceptions
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Life, Unbounded
Discussion and news about planets, exoplanets, and astrobiology
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Observations
Opinion, arguments & analyses from guest experts and from the editors of Scientific American
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Roots of Unity
Mathematics: learning it, doing it, celebrating it.
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Rosetta Stones
Adventures in the good science of rock-breaking.
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SA Visual
STAFFIllustrating science since 1845
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Talking back
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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Voices
Exploring and celebrating diversity in science.
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