Atlantic Salmon

Taking “Stock” of Salmon and Word Choice

The long debate over spawning habits and genetics belies the problems caused by categorizing fish with a term associated with finance and breeding.

How Libraries Stand the Test of Time

The digital era builds upon millennia of librarianship as humans strive to preserve our cultural heritage.
Digital visualization of a colourful fractal called a Mandelbrot set.

Fifty Years of Fractals

A half century ago ago, Benoit Mandelbrot coined the word "fractal" and pioneered a new type of geometry.
Cross Reference image

What’s That in My Glass? It’s Cross Reference!

Grab a cheeseboard and pour a soft, fruity red to help you solve this month’s puzzle.
Two broad wedges made of thousands of tiny dots in colorful bands on a black background.

Shifting Forces: The Evolving Debate Around Dark Energy

New evidence suggests the universe might not behave as expected, raising questions about the costs of being wrong.
Plate Number 191. Dancing (fancy) by Eadweard Muybridge, 1887

The Intersection of Dance and Science

Lynn Matluck Brooks dives into the ever-evolving relationship between movement and technology.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Racknitz_-_The_Turk_1.jpg

Before Deep Blue: the Automaton Chess Player

You may have heard of IBM’s chess-playing computer, but Johann Nepomuk Maelzel’s Automaton Chess Player beat Deep Blue to the (mechanical) punch. Check mate.
stone wheel in a cave

How Was the Wheel Invented?

Computer simulations reveal the unlikely birth of a world-changing technology nearly 6,000 years ago.
An aerial view of an open pit phosphate mine

Life According to Phosphorus

Phosphorus is essential for fertilizing high-yield agriculture. The US domestic supply, restricted to Florida, is expected to run out in a couple of decades.
A child reading about the phases and rings of Saturn

Science Lit for Kids Holds a Mirror Aloft

Over decades, books that rouse children’s interest in the natural world have morphed in style and approach—an evolution reflective of tectonic societal change.