Surprising Science

The New York Times’ resident ethicist, Randy Cohen, had some confused but caustic advice for a parent who wrote in with the following quandary: My 9-year-old son, who has attention-deficit […]

Dr. Gregory Hannon’s lab may be a place of “organized chaos,” but the work coming out of it is revolutionizing medical science. By manipulating the RNA interference (RNAi) pathway that […]

A genetic propensity may be responsible for some alcohol dependence, according to new research which links alcoholism to a cluster of genes on chromosome 11.

A collection of house plants have been installed in a fifth-floor space at the AC Institute in Chelsea, with a video screen above their head as part of the television-for-plants-project.

Scientists have found that microbes living in the human gut may have more influence over our health than our own genes, perhaps causing psychological and physical changes like obesity.

From the great Carl Zimmer comes a link to a beautiful video of a siphonophore. (Click through jump to watch.) It includes soundtrack from the scientist who has discovered many […]

As television manufactures prepare to roll out their 3D-ready sets, engineers are slowly but surely taking on the next hurdle: 3D TV without the cumbersome glasses.

Amidst concerns over violations of privacy, Homeland Security aims to operate 450 new body scanners at over 29 airports across the country this year.

Untreated chronic pain is not only an epidemic, it’s a crime. According to a groundbreaking new report by Human Rights Watch, the majority of the world’s population lacks adequate access […]

The remnants of a vast sheet of ice lies hidden under Martian rubble, revealed by a new and wonderfully detailed radar map of Mars’ mid-latitudes.

An extended and extra cold winter brought on by a gigantic asteroid strike was responsible for wiping the dinosaurs from the face of the Earth.

Not getting enough sleep can cause fat to accumulate around your organs, a condition much more serious than being typically overweight, scientists have found.

A powerful group of anti-abortion House of Representatives Democrats are willing to “kill” President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform plan unless the procedure is banned.

German technologists have developed a new mobile phone that allows soundless communication by reading the movements of the caller’s lips.

Botched illegal abortions kill thousands of Kenyan women every year, according to a report released today by the Center for Reproductive Rights, a New York-based NGO dedicated to advancing reproductive […]

When you’re an infant, the brain makes three dots and a line into a face; later in life, it turns a creak and a shadow into a ghost. Adults too […]

Scientists have discovered a remarkable species of octopus whose exceptional powers of camouflage mean it can successfully imitate flounder fish in the Atlantic Ocean.

The means by which scary black holes at the centers of most galaxies suck up gas from their surroundings by overcoming centrifugal force has now been pinned down by astronomers.

New research suggests that a large space rock exploded over Antarctica thousands of years ago, leaving a scattering of tiny meteoric particles and a layer of extraterrestrial dust.

“I would lay down my life for two brothers or eight cousins,” said the British geneticist J.B.S. Haldane, neatly summarizing the theory of “kin selection”: To predict how much one […]

“Religion is not an adaptation,” Robert Wright says in his Big Think interview. “That is, it’s not here because it was conducive to the replication of the genes underlying it.” But […]

Today Obama is due to make remarks indicating a willingness to work with the Republicans on some areas in exchange for their support in getting the health care reform bill passed.

In the third installment of our new series, The Future In Motion, we sat down with Burt Rutan, famed aerospace engineer and winner of the Ansari X Prize. In this […]

The university professor at the heart of the “Climategate” row over leaked emails admitted yesterday that some of his correspondence had been “pretty awful.”

Going on marches, signing petitions, staging rallies and other political activism could actually improve your health and general well-being, according to two new studies.

Water has been found on the moon after scientists detected ice deposits near the Moon’s North Pole, confirming decades of speculation about Moon rivers and oceans.

Testing patients’ genetic makeup could be used in a pioneering new cancer treatment which seeks to provide bespoke drug regimes based on genetic propensity.

What are seen as “green fuels,” made from the growth of sustainable plants, actually cause more harm than fossil fuels, according to a new report.

The world’s biggest atom smasher, the Large Hadron Collider, was restarted today by operators in preparation for experiments probing the secrets of the universe.

Before there were abstract concepts, and probably before there were numbers, there were stories. She did this; it made him do that; then I heard her say this. According to […]