Wampum was Massachusetts’ First Legal Currency
First Nations' seashell-derived wampum was Massachusetts' first legal currency, used as currency throughout northeastern America into the 19th century.
Female Inventive Talent
Brief commentary on one line from JSTOR: An unsigned editorial from an 1870s issue of Scientific American suggests that women can be great inventors, too.
The Antikythera Shipwreck Keeps Revealing Wonders
In the first century B.C.E., a Roman ship sank near the Greek Island of Antikythera. In 1900 some off-course sponge divers discovered the wreckage.
A Primer on Neutron Stars
In the far off constellation of Hydra; two neutron stars collided, producing vast clouds of gold and other heavy elements. What's a neutron star anyway?
The Origins of Human Speech: More Like a Raven or a Writing Desk?
Language is the cognitive faculty that separates humans from other animals, but interjections have often been equated with the primitive cries of animals.
To Save the Threatened, Scientists Clone Cacao, Fertilize Mollusks, and Hunt Porpoises
All over the world, researchers are trying to better understand a world in constant flux and to prevent species from extinction as they battle for survival.
When the Sea Recedes
When caused by storms, receding oceans are result of an inverted storm surge, a “negative surge.” Storm surges have a few causes.
Meet Zika’s Lifesaving Side: It Kills Cancer
A new study suggests the Zika virus may kill some cancer cells. It can destroy the stem cells of glioblastoma, the most common type of brain tumors.
It’s the End of the World as We Know It. Is there Any Room for Optimism?
Climate scientists tend to be optimistic and have faith that humanity can engineer our way out of the climate change we’ve created.
An Eclipse is a Scientific Bonanza
On August 21, 2017, North America’s first total solar eclipse in a while will cross the center of the United States from East to West.