The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. Scott Bolton’s first encounter with Io took place in the summer of 1980, right after he graduated from college and started a job
This story originally appeared on Grist and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Wood pellets, by design, are highly flammable. The small pieces of compressed woody leftovers, like sawdust, are used in
A cool house without air conditioning may soon be possible. Scientists in Singapore have developed a new type of paint that reflects sunlight and cools surfaces by slowly evaporating water. Unlike other commercially
People trying to lose weight often count calories, carbs, steps and reps and watch the scales. Soon, they may have another number to consider: a genetic score indicating how many calories a person
If you spend much time on the internet, you will see the same things pop up again and again. For me, it’s these “cooling blankets” that people talk about on social media. I
The China National Space Administration has shared the first image from its Tianwen-2 probe, which is en route to Kamo‘oalewa, a near-Earth asteroid. The image was captured by a camera onboard the probe,
A single drawing from a 94-year-old scientific paper has revived interest in one of the more roundabout ways a spider preps its dinner. First swathe a fruit fly or other tidbit of prey
Anti-vaccine advocate and current Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took to social media Wednesday to announce the names of eight people he is appointing to a critical federal vaccine advisory committee—which is
US Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jan Schakowsky on Thursday sent letters to the two potential buyers of troubled genetic testing firm 23andMe demanding details about consumer data privacy should either of them acquire
Autism in toddlerhood looks the same in boys and girls. A large study of autistic kids between 1 and 4 years old turned up no overt differences in symptoms. Those results, published May
