Scientific American Content: Global

Scientific American Content: Globalhttps://www.scientificamerican.comScientific American is the essential guide to the most awe-inspiring advances in science and technology, explaining how they change our understanding of the world and shape our lives.en-usTue, 20 Oct 2026 14:45:00 +0000Scientists left in the dark by National Science Foundation grant application delayshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-left-in-the-dark-by-national-science-foundation-grant-application-delays/<p>The Major Research Instrumentation program offers grants of up to $4 million to scientists buying or developing research equipment</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:45:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-left-in-the-dark-by-national-science-foundation-grant-application-delays/Green stars do exist—and others shine pink or purple, toohttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/green-stars-do-exist-and-others-shine-pink-or-purple-too/<p>The colors of dead stars come in a surprising rainbow of choices</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:30:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/green-stars-do-exist-and-others-shine-pink-or-purple-too/The Selfish Gene at 50https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-selfish-gene-at-50/<p>A half century ago <i>The Selfish Gene </i>by Richard Dawkins became an instant bestseller and transformed public awareness of evolutionary biology. Today scientists are still debating its core message</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 12:45:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-selfish-gene-at-50/Math Puzzle: Baby bottle mix-uphttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/math-puzzle-baby-bottles/<p>Solve a new-parent dilemma with this math puzzle</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/math-puzzle-baby-bottles/The provocative new theory that could explain aging and diseasehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-provocative-new-theory-that-could-explain-aging-and-disease/<p>Could disruptions in the flow of energy through mitochondria cause everything from type 2 diabetes to Alzheimer’s?</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-provocative-new-theory-that-could-explain-aging-and-disease/Inside the bold, quixotic quest to store planet-warming carbon in the oceanhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/inside-the-bold-quixotic-quest-to-store-planet-warming-carbon-in-the-ocean/<p>These start-ups are trying to suck CO<sub>2</sub> from the air and stash in the sea. Is it working?</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/inside-the-bold-quixotic-quest-to-store-planet-warming-carbon-in-the-ocean/We’re addicted to social media. How do we get sober?https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/were-addicted-to-social-media-how-do-we-get-sober/<p>How doctors, scientists and “anonymous” programs are working to free people from their phones</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/were-addicted-to-social-media-how-do-we-get-sober/Why we probably live in a quantum multiversehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-we-probably-live-in-a-quantum-multiverse/<p>The once-fringe quantum Many Worlds theory now seems much more likely</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-we-probably-live-in-a-quantum-multiverse/Our love-hate relationship with social mediahttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/our-love-hate-relationship-with-social-media/<p>Regardless of whether social media addiction is real, these platforms hack the human brain, often to our detriment</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/our-love-hate-relationship-with-social-media/How a fusion start-up could help maintain the U.S. nuclear arsenalhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-a-fusion-start-up-could-help-maintain-the-u-s-nuclear-arsenal/<p>The U.S. hasn’t detonated a nuclear weapon since 1992. Now a fusion start-up whose co-founders include former national lab scientists could help conduct experiments that make sure the stockpile works</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-a-fusion-start-up-could-help-maintain-the-u-s-nuclear-arsenal/Why data centers are reviving solid-state transformershttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-data-centers-are-reviving-solid-state-transformers/<p>Solid-state transformer designs have been around for decades. Now data centers may finally give the chip-filled devices their killer application</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-data-centers-are-reviving-solid-state-transformers/How your brain learns to cope with uncertaintyhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-your-brain-learns-to-cope-with-uncertainty/<p>Can our “prediction machine” brains learn to handle a world in chaos?</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-your-brain-learns-to-cope-with-uncertainty/November 2026: Science history from 50, 100 and 150 years agohttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/november-2026-science-history-from-50-100-and-150-years-ago/<p>In 1926 we wrote about how there was a good chance Mars had both plants and animals. And in 1876 we probed the duplicity of the artificial butter business</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/november-2026-science-history-from-50-100-and-150-years-ago/Poem: ‘Life in Bilateral Wonder’https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/poem-life-in-bilateral-wonder/<p>Science in meter and verse</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/poem-life-in-bilateral-wonder/A graphic explainer of uranium enrichmenthttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-graphic-explainer-of-uranium-enrichment/<p>Inside the process of isolating uranium-235</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-graphic-explainer-of-uranium-enrichment/These extreme cosmic explosions are breaking physicshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/these-extreme-cosmic-explosions-are-breaking-physics/<p>Astronomers are finally figuring out what powers mysterious gamma-ray bursts</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/these-extreme-cosmic-explosions-are-breaking-physics/Science crossword: Scroll barshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/science-crossword-scroll-bars/<p>Play this crossword inspired by the November 2026 issue of<i> Scientific American</i></p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/science-crossword-scroll-bars/What actually makes ultraprocessed foods unhealthy?https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-actually-makes-ultraprocessed-foods-unhealthy/<p>Scientists can’t figure out why ultraprocessed foods are unhealthy for us—and new studies suggest that the “processing” isn’t the problem</p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-actually-makes-ultraprocessed-foods-unhealthy/Readers respond to the June 2026 issuehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/readers-respond-to-the-june-2026-issue/<p>Letters to the editors for the June 2026 issue of <i>Scientific American</i></p>Tue, 20 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/readers-respond-to-the-june-2026-issue/Can AI predict whether you’ll die from cancer from just an image of your face?https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-ai-predict-whether-youll-die-from-cancer-from-just-an-image-of-your-face/<p>Researchers tasked an algorithm with predicting cancer patients’ risk of dying. For some people, it was shockingly accurate</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 22:30:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-ai-predict-whether-youll-die-from-cancer-from-just-an-image-of-your-face/Japan launches a probe to collect rocks from Mars’s moon Phoboshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/japans-mission-to-collect-rocks-from-mars-moon-phobos-achieves-liftoff/<p>The Martian Moons Exploration mission will aim to bring back samples from Phobos</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 20:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/japans-mission-to-collect-rocks-from-mars-moon-phobos-achieves-liftoff/Alarm grows over Russian satellite’s provocative approach to U.S.-owned satellitehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alarm-grows-over-russian-satellites-provocative-approach-to-u-s-owned-satellite/<p>How close is too close for encounters between sensitive spacecraft orbiting Earth? With a mysterious approach to another satellite, Russia’s military may be trying to find out</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 18:30:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alarm-grows-over-russian-satellites-provocative-approach-to-u-s-owned-satellite/How what we see and hear feed together to help us understand emotionshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-what-we-see-and-hear-feed-together-to-help-us-understand-emotions/<p>The emotions themselves may be more important than the senses we use to perceive them</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 17:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-what-we-see-and-hear-feed-together-to-help-us-understand-emotions/The first mission to sample Mars’s moons launches todayhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-first-mission-to-sample-marss-moons-launches-today/<p>For the first time ever, a spacecraft will travel all the way to the Mars system and return. But first, it has to get through the launch</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 15:20:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-first-mission-to-sample-marss-moons-launches-today/Biohackers say this supplement lets you drink coffee at night. No one knows if it’s safehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/biohackers-say-this-supplement-lets-you-drink-coffee-at-night-no-one-knows-if-its-safe/<p>Rutaecarpine is touted as a fix to rapidly flush caffeine out of the body, but it may be toxic when mixed with Tylenol</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 15:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/biohackers-say-this-supplement-lets-you-drink-coffee-at-night-no-one-knows-if-its-safe/The mechanics of honeybee stingers, microplastic health risks and new findings on postmenopausal ovarieshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/the-mechanics-of-honeybee-stingers-microplastic-health-risks-and-new-findings-on-postmenopausal-ovaries/<p>New research reveals how bee stingers work, why microplastics may be harmful and what postmenopausal ovaries are doing decades later</p>Mon, 19 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/the-mechanics-of-honeybee-stingers-microplastic-health-risks-and-new-findings-on-postmenopausal-ovaries/Plants move to get away from their decaying brethrenhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/plants-move-to-get-away-from-their-decaying-brethren/<p>A new discovery reveals how plants protect themselves from microbes in rotting material</p>Sat, 17 Oct 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/plants-move-to-get-away-from-their-decaying-brethren/Here’s what scientists think about Theranos a decade after it implodedhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heres-what-scientists-think-about-theranos-a-decade-after-it-imploded/<p>A viral documentary has everyone talking about Elizabeth Holmes’s fraudulent blood testing start-up again—but scientists never stopped</p>Fri, 16 Oct 2026 19:48:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heres-what-scientists-think-about-theranos-a-decade-after-it-imploded/Everything you need to know about flu season 2026https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/everything-you-need-to-know-about-flu-season-2026/<p>An early start doesn’t necessarily mean disaster</p>Fri, 16 Oct 2026 16:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/everything-you-need-to-know-about-flu-season-2026/5 ways to make Halloween decorations friendlier to wildlifehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/5-ways-to-make-halloween-decorations-friendlier-to-wildlife/<p>You don’t need to sacrifice spookiness to keep real owls, bats and snakes safe</p>Fri, 16 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/5-ways-to-make-halloween-decorations-friendlier-to-wildlife/How many planets could fit in the solar system?https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-many-planets-could-fit-in-the-solar-system/<p>As far-fetched as it may seem, quirks of orbital mechanics could allow dozens of planets to be packed around a star</p>Fri, 16 Oct 2026 10:45:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-many-planets-could-fit-in-the-solar-system/Are you addicted to your phone? What scientists say about screen time and social mediahttps://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/are-you-addicted-to-your-phone-what-scientists-say-about-screen-time-and-social-media/<p>Experts unpack the science of screen addiction and how to build a healthier relationship with technology</p>Fri, 16 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/are-you-addicted-to-your-phone-what-scientists-say-about-screen-time-and-social-media/Google’s quantum Willow chip may be able to grow ‘magic states’https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/googles-quantum-willow-chip-may-be-able-to-grow-magic-states/<p>The work could help improve quantum computers’ accuracy in complex calculations</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 18:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/googles-quantum-willow-chip-may-be-able-to-grow-magic-states/Scientists discover an ancient shipwreck dating to when the Great Pyramid was builthttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-discover-an-ancient-shipwreck-dating-to-when-the-great-pyramid-was-built/<p>The wreck was found with relatively intact cargo on the seabed off the coast of Türkiye and is believed to be between 4,700 and 4,400 years old</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 15:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-discover-an-ancient-shipwreck-dating-to-when-the-great-pyramid-was-built/Can AI break encryption? OpenAI’s new math has cryptographers dividedhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-ai-break-encryption-openai-new-math-has-cryptographers-divided/<p>OpenAI’s bumper crop of 722 math papers wowed and worried the research community—and cryptographers are split over whether the algorithms that protect our texts and bank log-ins are next</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 14:30:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-ai-break-encryption-openai-new-math-has-cryptographers-divided/Scientists vote to end leap seconds, redefining how the world keeps timehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-vote-to-end-leap-seconds-redefining-how-the-world-keeps-time/<p>A new system, called the “leap hour,” will allow Earth’s rotation and official time to fall out of alignment by a full hour</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 12:40:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-vote-to-end-leap-seconds-redefining-how-the-world-keeps-time/What would it take to terraform Mars? Erika DeBenedictis has ideashttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-would-it-take-to-terraform-mars-erika-debenedictis-has-ideas/<p>The CEO of Pioneer Labs, a biotech startup developing Mars-adapted microbes, is on a quest to make alien worlds nice places to live</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-would-it-take-to-terraform-mars-erika-debenedictis-has-ideas/Anthropic’s AI worm research raises new fears about smart device securityhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/anthropics-ai-worm-research-raises-new-fears-about-smart-device-security/<p>Researchers explored how AI could spread through everyday gadgets. But cybersecurity experts have seen these tricks before</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/anthropics-ai-worm-research-raises-new-fears-about-smart-device-security/Honeybees deemphasize potential ‘misinformation’ in their waggle danceshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/honeybees-deemphasize-potential-misinformation-in-their-waggle-dances/<p>Confident bees work harder to convince their peers of tasty treats</p>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 10:45:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/honeybees-deemphasize-potential-misinformation-in-their-waggle-dances/New ‘First Proof’ exam reveals how AI-powered math is a pay-to-play sporthttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-first-proof-exam-reveals-how-ai-powered-math-is-a-pay-for-play-sport/<p>The benchmark confirms that some AIs are becoming exceptional tools for research-level math. But open-source models still struggle</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 19:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-first-proof-exam-reveals-how-ai-powered-math-is-a-pay-for-play-sport/NIH appears to shut down public comments on science peer-review rule change ahead of schedulehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nih-appears-to-shut-down-public-comments-on-science-peer-review-rule-change-ahead-of-schedule/<p>The proposed change to how the National Institutes of Health handles grant applications has been criticized by scientists as reducing transparency</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 18:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nih-appears-to-shut-down-public-comments-on-science-peer-review-rule-change-ahead-of-schedule/Microplastics are linked to inflammation—scientists might have finally worked out whyhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/microplastics-are-linked-to-inflammation-scientists-might-have-finally-worked-out-why/<p>Microplastics interact with water to create highly reactive molecules, a new study finds</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 17:30:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/microplastics-are-linked-to-inflammation-scientists-might-have-finally-worked-out-why/Stunning video reveals the year-round dance of the sun’s coronahttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/stunning-video-reveals-the-year-round-dance-of-the-suns-corona/<p>NASA’s PUNCH mission is showing a rarely seen aspect of our nearest star—the churning chaos of the solar corona</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 16:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/stunning-video-reveals-the-year-round-dance-of-the-suns-corona/How a year of extreme weather and a ‘Super El Niño’ will affect fall foliagehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-a-year-of-extreme-weather-and-a-super-el-nino-will-affect-fall-foliage/<p>Leaf-peeping season is ramping up—here’s what to expect</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 16:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-a-year-of-extreme-weather-and-a-super-el-nino-will-affect-fall-foliage/An ancient Chinese math puzzle shows how to win at cards, horse races and gerrymanderinghttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/an-ancient-chinese-math-puzzle-shows-how-to-win-at-cards-horse-races-and-gerrymandering/<p>A stratagem that dates back two millennia leads to a math puzzle that took 30 years to solve</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 14:30:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/an-ancient-chinese-math-puzzle-shows-how-to-win-at-cards-horse-races-and-gerrymandering/Climate scientists issue a sobering diagnosis about Earth's 'vital signs'https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/climate-scientists-issue-a-sobering-diagnosis-about-earths-vital-signs/<p>“The climate emergency is already here”</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/climate-scientists-issue-a-sobering-diagnosis-about-earths-vital-signs/Amateur astronomer harnesses AI to find a possible hidden exoplanethttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/amateur-astronomer-harnesses-ai-to-find-a-possible-hidden-exoplanet/<p>Evidence for this possible super-Earth has been lurking for years in NASA data. Pavel Rabtsevich found it—with a little help from AI</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/amateur-astronomer-harnesses-ai-to-find-a-possible-hidden-exoplanet/Are Blue Zones real? One researcher finds the data deeply flawedhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/are-blue-zones-real-one-researcher-finds-the-data-deeply-flawed/<p>The data behind Blue Zones might not be that strong</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/are-blue-zones-real-one-researcher-finds-the-data-deeply-flawed/Claude just found a CRISPR-like DNA pattern, but even Anthropic's scientists aren't sure what it doeshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/claude-just-found-a-crispr-like-dna-pattern-but-even-anthropics-scientists-arent-sure-what-it-does/<p>The large language model took less than a day to identify the curious stretch of DNA</p>Wed, 14 Oct 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/claude-just-found-a-crispr-like-dna-pattern-but-even-anthropics-scientists-arent-sure-what-it-does/Hurricane Isaias shows ‘it only takes one’ to wreak havoc after historically calm Atlantic hurricane seasonhttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hurricane-isaias-shows-it-only-takes-one-to-wreak-havoc-after-historically-calm-atlantic-hurricane-season/<p>The Category 2 storm spawned tornadoes, flooding and extreme rain when it made landfall</p>Tue, 13 Oct 2026 21:00:00 +0000https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/hurricane-isaias-shows-it-only-takes-one-to-wreak-havoc-after-historically-calm-atlantic-hurricane-season/