Scientific American

A mathematician compared the feat to the history-making chess competition in which IBM’s Deep Blue computer beat Garry Kasparov in 1997

Assistant professor of psychology Jessica Ayers’s new research challenges assumptions about the kind of friendships we need

Prior to the announcement, rumors were circulating online among mathematicians over the proof’s origins—OpenAI has denied all allegations

What do we lose when machines become our closest confidants?

Dozens of temporary gas turbines are powering SpaceXAI’s expansion—and fights over permits and pollution

An analysis of ancient bones found in a Chinese cave offer glimpses of how Denisovans lived more than 130,000 years ago

The fires are burning peatlands, which can release more particulate matter into the air than other wildfires

It’s unclear what these objects actually are, but evidence for them has been detected by NASA’s Chandra space telescope for years

A new study finds sharp contrasts between brain changes in menopause and those during pregnancy and puberty

The Pacific Ocean has seen an especially active hurricane season so far, while the Atlantic has had barely a whimper of a storm. Experts explain why

Gondwana was much bigger than we thought, according to the new analysis

The planet’s “wrinkles” give scientists a clue into how the world is contracting in size

NASA’s satellites captured the aftermath of the eruption, which lasted for more than a day

The looming El Niño conditions, combined with the warming effects of climate change, contributed to the historic temperatures

OpenAI released 10 AI-generated results over the weekend. Some mathematicians are unhappy with their approach

Up and down the Pacific coast, dead gray whales are mysteriously washing ashore—and scientists think they know why

Flying leads to positive emotions and optimism in Galahs

The five Platonic solids are the epitome of perfection—at least in mathematics. Topology explains why there are only five of them

There’s more to fog than meets the eye

In 2022 researchers detected a very odd photon from an enormous gamma-ray burst that should have been destroyed on its way to Earth

Music doesn’t just mask stress; it guides our brains back to a calm state

The findings, which were made in mice, may offer a new way to prevent a common chemotherapy side effect that can last well beyond treatment

AlphaGenome Atlas predicts the effect of any single change in the fundamental structure of DNA

The Trump administration has so far been silent on flu, COVID and RSV vaccine guidance for the coming season, even as these diseases kill thousands of people every year

A floating island in a Canadian reservoir moved more than 30 kilometers across the water—here’s why

From flashing fireflies to human music, many biological rhythms appear to converge on the same rhythmic range

Giving old mice semaglutide—commonly sold as Wegovy or Ozempic—extends their lifespan remarkably, a new study finds

The world is set to blow past the Paris Agreement’s longtime threshold “within the next few years,” according to a new report

The newfound star S301 orbits the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole so closely that its view of the heavens gets twisted

Sermorelin, tesamorelin and other growth hormone peptides are being touted as antiaging elixirs, but what evidence is behind those claims?

The world’s biggest dark matter search saw a particle it cannot explain

A researcher’s social media post that revealed how to break part of a popular encryption protocol has gone viral. But did he really do it with just “good old paper and pencil”?

The Nancy Grace Roman Telescope is headed toward a Lagrange point, a critical position in outer space where gravitational forces behave in specific ways

Experts explain why a monsoon storm turned so deadly

The silliest science awards of the year are here, but the Ig Nobels aren’t just funny business

The Nancy Grace Roman Telescope will probe dark matter and dark energy, discover exoplanets and study stars