Cyberpunk Dreams in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia’s The Line promised a futuristic desert city, but the ambitious project now faces delays and an uncertain future.
How America Racialized the Robot
Early robots in the US evolved from symbols of revolt into racialized figures tied to labor and the legacy of slavery.
Bicycling Into the Future
Across centuries, bicycles have embodied hopes for speed, freedom, efficiency, and survival.
The Erie Canal at 200
Finished in October 1825, the Erie Canal connected increasingly specialized regions, altering the economic landscape of the northeast United States.
A Practical Machine: The Wright Brothers in Dayton
Orville and Wilbur Wright wanted to create a practical machine—not a novelty or a gimmick—and they accomplished that at Ohio’s Huffman Prairie on October 5, 1905.
The Politics of Our AI Overlords
Fears of AI often focus on domination by algorithm-powered capitalism, but science fiction once used societies ruled by computers as analogs for communism.
Arthur C. Clarke’s Scuba Adventures and Ocean Frontiers
Clarke’s interest in oceanic exploration in the 1950s was, like his undersea fiction, often neglected by an audience focused on the race for outer space.
Is AI Good for the Planet?
The algorithms that promise to predict wildfires and optimize energy grids are powered by servers that drink up rivers and belch out more carbon than cars.
Using Pollen To Make Paper, Sponges, and More
Reengineered, the powdery stuff could become a range of eco-friendly objects.
Super-Resolution Microscopes Showcase the Inner Lives of Cells
Advanced light microscopy techniques have come into their own—and are giving scientists a new understanding of human biology and what goes wrong in disease.