Scientific American

This study was originally published in 2024 and was criticized as being misleading by other scientists at the time

There’s a $1-million prize for proving the Riemann hypothesis. Claude couldn’t pull that off, but it made significant progress on a related problem

New guidelines say testing sperm for DNA damage could help explain recurrent pregnancy losses

First glimpsed as “little red dots” in deep-space images from the James Webb Space Telescope, these giant, gas-shrouded black holes are full of surprises

This study has been touted by Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont as proof of the benefits of a universal, single-payer health care system, but the research hasn’t been peer-reviewed

Put your science knowledge to the test with this week’s news quiz. Play now.

Follow all the latest updates about the August 12 eclipse with Scientific American

The vagus nerve is the autonomic nervous system’s highway, connecting every major organ

Researchers have nailed down an elusive quantity called baryon number, which may be responsible for the cosmic mismatch between matter and antimatter

From a partial eclipse over Berlin to totality over Spain, see some of the incredible images of the August 12 total solar eclipse

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

This storm, a rarity for this part of the Pacific, is expected to bring heavy rains, strong wind and possibly “life-threatening flooding” to Hawaii this weekend

A new study shows that each neuron can do multiple computations at once thanks to hundreds of sprawling branches

Doctors used to warn coffee drinkers. Now research reassures them

There’s a reason humans have been obsessed with these celestial events for millennia—they are beautiful

The Cambrian explosion is a critical moment for life on Earth—and it may have been all about poop

Many of these structures date to around C.E. 100–300, during the time of the Aquiry civilization, and may have been used for ceremonial purposes

Relive the 2026 total solar eclipse, as seen by a drone over Spain

Linguists explain how a language built from musical notes could convey complex meaning and even support conversation

In a retrospective study, people taking estrogen-only hormone therapy for menopause were less likely to see signs of dementia

A “fever” of cownose rays revealed by striking drone footage could be a sign of warming oceans

A new study of the Helix Nebula shows a never-before-seen detail of how dying stars recycle elements. Researchers found it by accident

This dying star appears to have a face of gas and a mane of space dust

Mathematician Yang-Hui He explains why artificial intelligence is fundamentally transforming mathematical work—and why that’s a good thing

As psychedelic therapies expand, new clinics treat uncommon long-term harms

This seismic event is of a similar magnitude to the pair of earthquakes that hit Venezuela in June

July also saw its second-highest air temperatures on record this year

President Donald Trump and other Republican officials had criticized this chapter as biased against fossil fuel companies

The president called for the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to be split into separate shots, despite decades of research showing that the MMR vaccine is safe and effective

A puzzle about dots on a page led to one of the most profound areas of modern math

Andy Green holds the overall land speed record, having hit 763.035 miles per hour while driving a jet-powered vehicle in 1997

This new cache of material includes footage of a U.S. military plane’s infrared display recorded during an exercise over the Gulf of Oman in 2021

After 49 years in space, NASA’s Voyagers are running low on power—but an audacious move should extend the tenures of the two spacecraft

The Eddington experiment used a solar eclipse to prove Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity

This technique could lead to new treatments for antibiotic-resistant bugs, but some scientists say the technology could be misused

The last common ancestor of all living things may not have been alive at all

The backlash raises a bigger question for science communicators: Where should AI fit into their work?

This flu shot, mFlusiva, was shown in a clinical trial to be up to 27 percent more effective than a standard flu jab