One bioethics scholar wonders if modern medicine is in danger of pathologizing what are painful, but normal, human experiences.

Spider silk is as strong as steel and as light as a feather, but attempts to industrialize its production have gotten stuck, so to speak.

For some species of octopus, reproducing is a lonely act that ends in death.

A linguist explains why we get so distracted by the fiery language of politics, while ignoring urgent information reported by scientists.

A new exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum asks: Is there a Black aesthetic?

Robert S. Duncanson was among the first African American artists to gain international fame. And yet his grave has stayed unmarked for 146 years.

Startups worldwide convert refuse into energy, biomaterials, and more food.

Remembering the Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, and how she challenged American stereotypes.

Well-researched stories from Longreads, The Atlantic, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.

Americans have long obsessed over their favorite musicians.