Technology
Watch a Robot Dog Learn How to Deftly Fend Off a Human
Kick over this robot and it’ll quickly right itself—not because someone told it how, but because it taught itself to overcome the...
This Drone Sniffs Out Odors With a Real Moth Antenna
Researchers slap a living antenna on a drone to give the machine an insanely keen sense of smell. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the “Smellicopter.”
The Milky Way Gets a New Origin Story
Over the past two years, astronomers have rewritten the history of our galaxy.
What a Victorian Disease Detective Proved About Urban Health
John Snow showed that London's cholera outbreak arose from bad water, not the moral failings of the poor. His legacy can help tackle...
Yes to Masks. No to Parties. 2021 Will Be a Lot Like 2020
Sorry, folks: Thanks to Covid, next year won’t be much more fun than this one, at least until enough vaccines arrive.
30 Years Since the Human Genome Project Began, What’s Next?
Eric Green, head of the nation’s top genomics research institute, looks back on how far the field has come and shares his bold vision...
In a Pandemic, Medical Illustrators Made Science Accessible
With lots of research, arrows, and an inviting color palette, artists helped transform complex research into useful information.
2020 Was a Breakout Year for Crispr
Between glimpses of a medical cure and winning science’s shiniest prize, this proved to the gene-editing technology’s biggest year...
The Error of Fighting a Public Health War With Medical...
It was a mistake that cost 300,000 lives.
After Centuries, a Simple Math Problem Gets an Exact Solution
Mathematicians have long pondered a deceptively easy puzzle about the reach of a goat tied to a fence. Until now, they’ve only found...
