How Computer Science Became a Boys’ Club
Women were the first computer programmers. How, then, did programming become the domain of bearded nerds and manly individualists?
How Ornithologists Figured Out How to Preserve Birds
A very nineteenth-century-science problem: lots of decaying avian specimens.
Sharks Are Hiding from Scientists in Plain Sight—Almost
Marine biologists need to count sharks to save them, but the common practice of using video cameras to record populations could be improved.
Why Do Vaccination Rates Plateau?
Two experts discovered a paradox that can lead people to think disease isn't a problem.
Plant of the Month: Robusta Coffee
What’s there to love about “bad” coffee? For much of the world, plenty.
Could Our Love of Clothing Promote Sustainable Fashion?
There are some clothes you hang on to, year after year, because they're durable and amazing.
Tidal Power: A Forgotten Renewable Resource?
For well over a century, engineers have proposed harnessing the ocean's tides for energy. But the idea hasn't seemed to register in many places.
The Permanent Crisis of Infrastructure
Ever since it entered public consciousness in the 1980s, infrastructure has been synonymous with decline.
Climate Change’s Dangerous Effects on the Boreal Forest
The forest's unique ecosystem protects the world's largest carbon sink—the Earth's permafrost layer. But for how much longer?