Science & Tech

Science & Tech

Explore the discoveries that reveal how the world works, alongside the technologies that extend, reshape, and sometimes challenge what’s possible.

A color-enhanced image shows Pluto planet in the foreground with its moon Charon in the background, both set against a black space backdrop.
In 2006, Pluto was controversially demoted to "dwarf planet" by the IAU. Unless you ignore most of astrophysics, it won't ever be one again.
Gloved hands arrange Scrabble tiles on a grid, forming the words "ABRACADABRA," "FART," "HEART," "SHIT," "BIRD," and "LAST.
From WEIRD psychology to SHIT telescopes, researchers keep turning complex ideas into catchy shorthand.
Bullet Cluster separation mass gravity x-ray lensing
The first colliding galaxy cluster to reveal dark matter, empirically, turns 20 this year. Here's why it cements dark matter's existence.
A person with hair floating upwards looks out of a spacecraft window at Earth, filled with hope as clouds and oceans shimmer below—a view reminiscent of the Artemis II mission’s journey.
NASA has just sent astronauts back to the Moon for the first time since 1972 with Artemis II. So why would we cut NASA and NSF science now?
Chart illustrating the Standard Model of Elementary Particles, as found in the early universe, divided into quarks, leptons, gauge bosons, and the Higgs boson, with details on mass, charge, and generation.
Today, we have the Standard Model of particles with four fundamental forces governing them. But things weren't always the way they are now.
A colorful nebula with a bright center and symmetrical, wing-like clouds of gas and dust extends outward in space, as seen in a JWST reveal that uncovers stars and galaxies in the universe beyond.
Many facts are well-known to professionals, but are unappreciated or even rejected outright by the public. "How stars work" takes the cake.
Antimatter rocket with a glowing blue exhaust travels through deep space, showcasing the marvels of interstellar travel amid distant galaxies and stars.
Our dream of journeying to other star systems has a big obstacle to overcome: the vast interstellar distances. Can antimatter get us there?
Night view of a city skyline with illuminated skyscrapers and a bridge, home to a self-healing power grid, all reflected in the water below.
A new generation of self-healing tools could make the U.S.'s aging power grid far more resilient against modern threats.
Illustration of server racks, a yellow high voltage warning sign, a green dollar symbol, and faint graphs in the background.
Data centers consume enormous amounts of power, but their steady demand could make the grid more efficient — and lower costs for everyone.
A fork holds a piece of lettuce, partially obscured by a bright yellow glow against a dark background.
A growing movement is trying to turn energy directly into food — reviving an old dream of escaping the violence and inefficiency of eating.
Abstract illustration of a person running, shown in silhouette with layered, wavy bands of green, blue, black, and yellow in the background.
A Columbia researcher argues that everything from stress to aging comes down to how energy moves through your body.
Illustration of Earth overlaid with a grid and energy types from the Kardashev Scale: Type I, II, and III, representing planetary, stellar, and galactic energy usage.
The famous framework ranks civilizations by energy use — but ignores a critical factor that can halt their progress.
World map showing global oil reserves, rare earth elements deposits (yellow dots), and major shipping routes and chokepoints, with oil reserves highlighted by pink circles of varying sizes.
As the global economy moves beyond oil, the strategic importance of the world’s most critical hydrocarbon chokepoint is likely to decline rapidly.
A black-and-white photo of a person walking in profile, centered on a red background with multiple yellow arrows pointing outward in all directions—a striking design inspired by modern China.
A firsthand look at China’s material progress and clean-tech revolution — and what could happen if we let an authoritarian state steer AI's future.
A detailed orange image of the Sun shows its surface texture and sunspots, against a black background.
10mins
“10 years ago, my colleagues and I looked at the prognosis for climate change, and it looked pretty hopeless. There really was no way out. But something happened – something good.”
Image of a galaxy cluster with bright yellow galaxies at the center, surrounded by blue regions representing dark matter in deep space—a striking view often used for dark matter cosmic test MOND studies.
On cosmic scales, only dark matter (or something equivalent) gives us the Universe we observe. Now, the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect agrees.
Colorful nebula with bright stars ignite glowing gas clouds in space, featuring red, yellow, and blue hues against a dark background.
Although a star's "birth" is well-defined, it doesn't correspond to an ignition event in its core. Here's how stars are actually born.
protoplanetary disk
Every time a new star forms, there's an opportunity to form planets alongside and around it. How does it happen, and how long does it take?
An Ishihara color blindness test with colored dots, showing letters “u” and “d” in black, and a magnified section highlighting the dot pattern—inviting viewers to observe proton decay through subtle visual cues.
"Color" with respect to the strong force is just an analogy. Here's how to understand it without colors, group theory, or any advanced math.
A hexagonal storm formation with a dark central vortex on a planet’s surface, showing swirling blue and tan cloud patterns.
From 2004 through 2017, Saturn was imaged many times and from many angles up close by Cassini. This new viral image isn't real; it's AI.