Biomimicry Comes for the Noble Hedgehog
Inventors often use animals' adaptations to the environment in applications that benefit humans, from sharky swimsuits to hedgehog-inspired helmets.
The “Doctress” Was In: Rebecca Lee Crumpler
The first Black woman physician served communities in the South after the Civil War but was buried in an anonymous grave. That will likely change.
Plant of the Month: Turmeric
The plant’s golden color has inspired a long—and potentially deadly—fascination.
The True Costs of Managing Pandemics
The fear of the next global virus isn't just media indulging in catastrophizing; it's a collective concern for global economic and political health.
The Chemist Whose Work Was Stolen from Her
The Black scientist Alice Ball helped develop a treatment for leprosy in the early twentieth century. But someone else took the credit.
What Do Pesticides and Chrysanthemums Have in Common?
They both contain insecticides called pyrethrins, used in ancient Persia. Today we use them in lice-killing shampoos.
Are Galls Miracle Cures or Just Weird Growths on Plants?
For millennia, humans have exploited galls for medicine, fuel, food, tanning, and dyeing. Some people have considered them miraculous.
How Judi Bari Tried to Unite Loggers and Environmentalists
The radical environmentalist had a background in labor organizing and wanted to end the misogyny of the movement and the logging industry alike.
The Black Mathematician Who Resisted Nuclear War
J. Ernest Wilkins Jr. worked on the Manhattan Project and signed a petition that the bomb not be used before Japan was offered terms of surrender.