SCIENCE
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New Interstellar Object Comet 3I/Atlas—What We Know So Far as It Zips through the Solar System
New Interstellar Object Stuns Scientists as It Zooms through Solar System All eyes are on Comet 3I/Atlas as astronomers worldwide chase the exotic ice ball through our solar system By Nora Bradford edited by Lee Billings A diagram shows the trajectory of interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS as it passes through the solar system. It will make its closest approach to the…
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Why Did the Company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline Sue Greenpeace?
Rachel Feltman: For Scientific American’s Science Quickly, I’m Rachel Feltman. In 2016 a group of activists who called themselves water protectors—led by members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe—set up camp on the windswept plains of North Dakota. Their protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline quickly grew into one of the largest Indigenous-led movements in recent U.S. history. At the…
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Meditation’s Benefits Stretch Beyond the Person Who Meditates
Meditation’s Benefits Stretch Beyond the Person Who Meditates Often framed as a boon for personal wellness, meditation helps us connect with and support others, too By Mariah G. Schug edited by Daisy Yuhas Richard Drury/Getty Images Listening to the daily news, with stories of war and conflict, can be disheartening. Unsurprisingly, data suggest that a majority of Americans feel exhausted…
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The Hidden Game Theory of Sherlock Holmes
Looking at my bookshelf, I’m stricken with guilt: the collected Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle have been sitting untouched for years. Unfortunately, I never got past the fantastic television adaptation starring Benedict Cumberbatch to read the source material. But happily for Holmes, the British detective has a following the world over. In fact, stories about the ingenious sleuth…
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Hurricane Hunter Flights Improve Hurricane Forecasts, But Trump Budget Cuts Could Threaten Them
Daring Hurricane Hunter Flights Make Forecasts More Accurate. But They Could Face Cuts NOAA’s Hurricane Hunter airplane missions significantly increase the accuracy of hurricane forecasts, but President Trump’s proposed budget cuts jeopardize the data-gathering efforts and other forecasting tools By Chelsea Harvey & E&E News Stickers of previous hurricane missions adorn the side as a crew member walks past “Kermit,”…
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Mysterious Link between Earth’s Magnetism and Oxygen Baffles Scientists
Mysterious Link between Earth’s Magnetism and Oxygen Baffles Scientists The strength of Earth’s magnetic field and the amount of oxygen in its atmosphere seem to be correlated—and scientists want to know why By Davide Castelvecchi & Nature magazine A group of Dimetrodon’s hunting in a Permian era environment. Stocktrek Images, Inc./Alamy Stock Photo The strength of Earth’s magnetic field seems…
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Could Iran Have Been Close to Making a Nuclear Weapon? Uranium Enrichment Explained
Could Iran Have Been Close to Making a Nuclear Weapon? Uranium Enrichment Explained When Israeli aircraft recently struck a uranium-enrichment complex in the nation, Iran could have been days away from achieving “breakout,” the ability to quickly turn “yellowcake” uranium into bomb-grade fuel, with its new high-speed centrifuges By Deni Ellis Béchard edited by Dean Visser Men work inside of…
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Brain Implant Lets Man with ALS Speak and Sing with His ‘Real Voice’
Brain Implant Lets Man with ALS Speak and Sing with His ‘Real Voice’ A new brain-computer interface turns thoughts into singing and expressive speech in real time By Miryam Naddaf & Nature magazine The motor cortex (orange, illustration). Electrodes implanted in this region helped to record the speech-related brain activity of a man who could not speak intelligibly. Kateryna Kon/Science…
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Milky Way–Andromeda Collision Is in Doubt, North Atlantic Ocean Heat Surged, and Worms Build Towers
New Doubts about Milky Way–Andromeda Collision, Explanation of 2023 Marine Heat Wave and Worms That Build Towers The Milky Way’s big crash with Andromeda might not be a sure thing. Plus, we discuss an overheated ocean, a giant planet circling a tiny star and worms that build living towers. By Rachel Feltman, Naeem Amarsy & Fonda Mwangi Anaissa Ruiz Tejada/Scientific…
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What Is the Analemma? | Scientific American
We’re all familiar with the sun’s daily motion in the sky. It rises in the east, gets higher in the sky until circa noon, then begins its hours-long descent to set on the western horizon. You may also know of our star’s more stately annual journey. For Northern Hemisphere dwellers, as summer approaches, it moves a tiny bit higher in…
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