For the first time, humans have detected an interstellar asteroid—a space rock they're calling 'Oumuamua, which is a Hawaiian word meaning "scout." It's the only object we've ever seen that entered the solar system from beyond our little collection of […]
“When your robotic lover tells you that it loves you, should you believe it?” —“Robots, Love, and Sex: The Ethics of Building a Love Machine,” IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing (2012) Late June. Sweltering, airless English summer heat. 4,165 days […]
The internet, you have undoubtedly heard, is bad for your brain. It can be especially damaging for those struggling with mental illness. Trolls are everywhere. Searching for information about your struggles may lead you into dark places. Websites that promote […]
As I walk through life, I often look down at people’s shoes. No disrespect intended. I’m not trying to avoid eye contact with you. I’m paying attention to the imperfections in the world and looking for ways to help fix […]
This much scientists know: Humans pump about 40 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year. Less clear is where the planet puts it. About half of it stays in the air, where it adds to the annual, two- […]
Each year, more comics hit the shops than any one person could ever read. And while the splashy superhero titles are (somewhat) easier to keep up with, finding all of the great hidden gems each year is tough. We're here […]
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is not going to be president. That much, at least, is clear, despite the outsize coverage of his apparent intentions to run. But in the three days—has it really only been that long?—since Schultz first […]
In 1985, when Carl Sagan was writing the novel Contact, he needed to quickly transport his protagonist Dr. Ellie Arroway from Earth to the star Vega. He had her enter a black hole and exit light-years away, but he didn’t […]
Samantha Bee has a problem: 54 percent of her audience isn’t registered to vote. Yes, more than half of the people who watch Full Frontal—a group that ought to know a thing or two about politics in America by now—never […]
In the complex cells of humans and other organisms, two different genomes collaborate to sustain life. The larger genome, with DNA encoding thousands of genes, resides in the cell nucleus, while copies of the much smaller one sit in all […]