News & Commentary

Thrice as Nice

July 13, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesClara Chaisson

President Obama just established three new national monuments.

Bringing the Noise

July 13, 2015 Latest NewsArcticAlisa Opar

How will Shell’s Arctic drilling affect marine mammals in the Chukchi Sea?

A young beetle’s best defense? A poop shield.

July 10, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesPerrin Ireland

A weekly roundup of the best in science journalism, doodled.

Fire in the Hole

July 10, 2015 Latest NewsInternationalBrian Palmer

Glaciologists drill deep into West Antarctica and find that the ice is melting from both ends.

Bumbling Toward Extinction

July 9, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

Bumblebees risk extinction by failing to react to climate change.

Blowing Up the Climate

July 8, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

A new timeline of volcanic eruptions showcases our vulnerability to climate change.

Innovation Has Not Run Dry!

July 8, 2015 Latest NewsCaliforniaAlisa Opar

As summer heat compounds four years of drought, Californians are coping with water shortages in some wacky and smart (and desperate) ways.

Painting the Town Purple

July 7, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesJeff Turrentine

A new generation of conservative pundits is cheerfully blurring the line between red and blue—by embracing smart growth and New Urbanism.

In Defense of Goldfish

July 2, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesJason Bittel

Scientists say exotic species may help spread a gruesome amphibian virus, but pesticides should take some blame, too.

Moveable Feast

July 1, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesAlisa Opar

When dead whales sink to the ocean floor, they give life to an array of bizarre creatures—including gutless, bone-devouring worms.

The Bearded Ladies

July 1, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

Climate change may eliminate male bearded dragons.

The Dark at the End of the Tunnel

June 26, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesJason Bittel

Our nightlights do more than keep the bogeyman away—they affect the movement of bats.

Welcome to the sixth mass extinction (and yes, it’s our fault)

June 25, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesPerrin Ireland

A weekly roundup of the best in science journalism, doodled.

Franken-Coral?

June 25, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

A new study suggests that creative interbreeding could save coral from extinction.

Scrubbed but Not Clean

June 22, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesRachel Cernansky

By air or water, pollution from power plants is a problem no matter which exit it takes.

Take Two Levees and Call Me in the Morning

June 22, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

A prestigious medical journal warns of the dangers climate change poses to public health.

The Sequencer is Mightier Than the Sword

June 19, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesBrian Palmer

A new study of ivory DNA could help send elephant poachers on the run.

Vanishing Vaquitas

June 19, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesClara Chaisson

A report finds that the world’s smallest cetacean has reached a dangerous new low.

It’s Raining Lamprey!

June 18, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesPerrin Ireland

A weekly roundup of the best in science journalism, doodled.

In the Game of Species, You Win or You Go Extinct

June 17, 2015 Latest NewsUnited StatesJason Bittel

The world’s endangered species are stuck in a cycle of woe and misery that even "Game of Thrones" author George R. R. Martin would find macabre.