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in Science (23 stories)
climate

Warning of record global temperatures as chance of very strong El Niño grows

El Niño Is Strengthening. The Planet Has Warmed Before. The Trend Still Matters.

What Happened

Meteorological agencies are warning that a "very strong" El Niño weather pattern is developing, raising the probability of record-breaking global temperatures in the near term. El Niño is a periodic warming of Pacific Ocean surface temperatures that amplifies global heat. Scientists suggest this ...

What's In Your Control

Whether you understand the difference between El Niño (a temporary cycle) and long-term climate change (the structural trend that actually warrants attention). Whether you engage with local climate...

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health

A Single Infusion Could Suppress H.I.V. for Years, Study Suggests

A Single Infusion May Suppress HIV for Years. If It Works, 40 Million Lives Change.

What Happened

A new study suggests that a single infusion of a broadly neutralizing antibody (or similar long-acting treatment) could suppress HIV for an extended period — potentially years — without daily medication. The research is at study stage, meaning it has not yet completed clinical trials or received ...

What's In Your Control

Whether you share this cautiously with someone affected by HIV — as genuine hope, not a cure announcement. Whether you follow reputable sources (NIH, WHO) rather than headline-chasing for updates o...

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world

The Fight to Euthanize Pablo Escobar’s Hippos in Colombia

Pablo Escobar Smuggled Four Hippos in 1981. Colombia Now Has 169. Nature, It Turns Out, Does Not Care About Drug Lords.

What Happened

Pablo Escobar illegally imported four hippopotamuses to his private zoo in Colombia in the early 1980s. After his death in 1993, the animals were abandoned and began breeding in the Magdalena River basin. The population has since grown to an estimated 169 hippos, with projections suggesting it co...

What's In Your Control

If you are a Colombian policymaker, ecologist, or river-basin resident: this matters directly to you. If you are not: you can form an informed opinion by reading actual ecological science rather th...

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health

For Some Patients, Cancer Is Becoming Like a Chronic Illness

Some Cancers Now Managed Like Chronic Illness. Medicine, Quietly, Keeps Getting Better.

What Happened

Advances in oncology — particularly immunotherapy, targeted therapies, and precision medicine — are allowing certain cancer patients to live with their disease for years or even decades, rather than facing a terminal prognosis. For select cancer types, such as some leukemias, melanomas, and lung ...

What's In Your Control

Whether you stay informed about treatment advances relevant to your own health or a loved one's diagnosis. Whether you ask an oncologist about newer options if facing a cancer diagnosis, rather tha...

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science

Surprising Signs of an Atmosphere Around a Tiny World, Billions of Miles Away

Astronomers Find Possible Atmosphere on a Distant World. The Universe, As It Turns Out, Is Full of Surprises.

What Happened

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has detected surprising signs of an atmosphere around a small rocky world billions of miles from Earth. The findings suggest the presence of volcanic gases or other atmospheric components on a body previously thought too small or too distant to retain one. Scient...

What's In Your Control

Whether you take five minutes today to feel genuine wonder about this. Whether you share it with a curious child who might grow up to study it. Whether you let it briefly remind you how vast and st...

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health

These families help researchers find Alzheimer's treatments. Their network is at risk

The Alzheimer's Research Network Is Shrinking. 50 Million People Still Have Dementia.

What Happened

A network of families who volunteer their medical data and participation for Alzheimer's research is reportedly under threat — likely due to funding cuts or institutional instability. These families, many of whom carry genetic risk factors for early-onset Alzheimer's, have been critical to identi...

What's In Your Control

Whether you or a family member enroll in Alzheimer's research registries (nia.nih.gov lists open studies). Whether you contact your congressional representative if you believe NIH or NIA funding cu...

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environment

As federal scientists faced turmoil, the Devils Hole pupfish reached a crisis point

A Fish Species With 27 Members Teeters on the Edge. Federal Scientists Are Being Fired. Both Problems Are Real.

What Happened

The Devils Hole pupfish — one of the rarest fish on Earth, living in a single geothermal pool in Nevada — has hit a population crisis, with numbers dropping to critically low levels. This coincides with significant disruptions to federal scientific agencies under recent administration changes, in...

What's In Your Control

Whether you donate to or volunteer with the Desert Tortoise Conservation Center or similar orgs that support Mojave/Great Basin desert species monitoring. Whether you contact your congressional rep...

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health

Tofersen, a New Treatment for A.L.S., Reverses Symptoms for Some

A Drug Slows A.L.S. For the First Time, Some Symptoms Reverse. Science Keeps Its Promises, Slowly.

What Happened

Tofersen, a drug developed by Biogen, has shown the ability to reverse some symptoms of A.L.S. (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) in certain patients — a disease that has been almost universally progressive and fatal since it was first described. The treatment targets a genetic mutation (SOD1) respo...

What's In Your Control

Whether you share this news with someone living with A.L.S. or caring for a patient — it may matter enormously to them. Whether you follow the broader pipeline of antisense oligonucleotide treatmen...

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world

Massive Alaska megatsunami was second largest ever recorded

A Mountain Fell Into the Sea in Alaska. The Wave Was Enormous. No One Was There.

What Happened

A megatsunami occurred in a remote fjord in Alaska, generating one of the largest waves ever recorded in modern history. It has been classified as the second largest megatsunami on record. The event was caused by a massive landslide — likely triggered by glacial retreat or seismic activity — send...

What's In Your Control

Whether you understand the difference between a megatsunami (localized landslide wave) and a seismic tsunami (ocean-crossing wave) — the distinction matters for your actual risk assessment. If you ...

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science

Craig Venter, pioneering human genome decoder, dies at 79

Craig Venter Decoded the Human Genome. Then He Kept Going. Now He Is Gone at 78.

What Happened

Craig Venter, the geneticist who led the private-sector effort to sequence the human genome, has died at 78. His Celera Genomics project raced against — and ultimately tied with — the publicly-funded Human Genome Project, with both announcing completion in 2000. Venter later founded the J. Craig ...

What's In Your Control

Reading about his actual contributions rather than just the headline. Considering that treatments for cancer, genetic diseases, and pandemics being developed today trace a direct line back to his w...

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environment

Forest Service Research Labs Are Closing

The U.S. Government Is Shutting Down Its Forest Science Labs. Decades of Research Hang in the Balance.

What Happened

The U.S. Forest Service is closing a number of its research laboratories, reducing the federal government's capacity to study forests, ecosystems, and wildfire behavior. These labs have produced foundational science on forest management, climate resilience, and biodiversity for decades. The closu...

What's In Your Control

Whether you contact your congressional representatives — this is a budget and policy decision, and constituent pressure has reversed similar cuts before. Whether you follow the story as it develops...

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climate

Global forest loss slows but El Niño fires could threaten progress

Forests Are Shrinking More Slowly. This Is What Decades of Effort Looks Like.

What Happened

Global deforestation rates have slowed, according to new data — a measurable improvement attributed to conservation efforts, policy changes, and shifting land-use practices in key regions. However, scientists warn that El Niño-driven wildfires, which intensify drought conditions across tropical f...

What's In Your Control

Whether you support organizations doing on-the-ground conservation work (WWF, Rainforest Trust, etc.). Whether you stay informed about the policies of governments managing major forest regions — an...

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health

Eleven cancers on the rise in young people - scientists find first clue on why it's happening

Cancer Rising in the Young. Scientists Find a First Clue. The Search Was Always Going to Take Time.

What Happened

Scientists have identified what they describe as a first clue into why eleven types of cancer are increasing in incidence among younger people (broadly, those under 50). The research points toward biological or environmental factors that may explain the trend. This is an early-stage scientific fi...

What's In Your Control

Whether you read the actual study methodology rather than just the headline. Whether you maintain evidence-based habits already known to reduce cancer risk: not smoking, limiting alcohol, maintaini...

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politics

Pace of N.I.H. Funding Slows Further in Trump’s Second Year

America's Medical Research Engine Is Slowing. Science Has Survived Worse. The Stakes Are Real.

What Happened

The pace of NIH (National Institutes of Health) funding has continued to slow into the second year of Trump's administration. The NIH is the world's largest public funder of biomedical research, distributing tens of billions of dollars annually to universities, hospitals, and research institution...

What's In Your Control

Whether you contact your Congressional representatives — NIH funding is appropriated by Congress, and constituent pressure has historically moved these numbers. Whether you support universities or ...

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science

Desmond Morris, whose book The Naked Ape inspired and scandalised, dies aged 98

Desmond Morris, Who Held a Mirror Up to Humanity, Dies at 98. We Saw Ourselves. We Were Uncomfortable. He Was Right.

What Happened

Desmond Morris, the British zoologist and author, has died at the age of 98. His 1967 book The Naked Ape applied zoological observation to human behaviour, selling tens of millions of copies worldwide. It was controversial on publication, challenged by both religious institutions and academic pee...

What's In Your Control

Whether you read The Naked Ape — or re-read it. Whether you remember that a life combining rigorous science and fine art, stretching nearly a century, is an instructive model for a life well constr...

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science

The Little Probe That Could: Why Voyager 1 Matters, and Why NASA Just Switched Part of It Off

Voyager 1, 47 Years Into the Void, Keeps Going. NASA Adjusts. The Mission Continues.

What Happened

NASA has switched off one of Voyager 1's instruments or systems to conserve power, as the probe's plutonium power source continues its slow, inevitable decline. Voyager 1, launched in 1977, is the most distant human-made object ever — currently over 24 billion kilometers from Earth. Engineers rou...

What's In Your Control

Whether you take five minutes to genuinely appreciate that humans launched an object in 1977 — before the internet, before personal computers — that is still calling home from beyond our solar syst...

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health

Global Wildlife Trade Fuels Spread of Disease from Animals to People

Humans Trade Wild Animals. Sometimes This Causes Disease. The Practice Continues.

What Happened

Research indicates that global wildlife trade increases the risk of zoonotic disease transmission from animals to humans. Scientists have documented how markets and trafficking routes facilitate contact between wild animals and people, creating conditions for pathogens to jump species.

What's In Your Control

Whether you purchase products from wildlife trade (exotic pets, traditional medicines, bushmeat). Supporting conservation organizations. Choosing leaders who fund pandemic preparedness and wildlife...

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climate

UN warns Earth's climate being 'pushed beyond its limits' as El Niño looms

UN Reports Climate Patterns Shifting. El Niño Returns on Schedule.

What Happened

The United Nations released a report warning that Earth's climate systems are being stressed beyond normal limits, with an El Niño weather pattern expected to develop. The report highlights concerns about extreme weather events and temperature increases.

What's In Your Control

Whether you prepare your household for potential extreme weather in your region. Your energy consumption choices. Your voting decisions on climate policy. Whether you read every climate report or c...

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technology

Turing Award Goes to Inventors of Quantum Cryptography

Scientists Win Computing's Top Prize for Quantum Work. Progress Moves in Quiet Steps.

What Happened

The Turing Award, often called the "Nobel Prize of computing," was awarded to researchers who developed quantum cryptography methods. This technology enables theoretically unbreakable communication by using quantum physics principles to detect any attempt at eavesdropping.

What's In Your Control

Whether you learn more about quantum computing if it interests you. Whether you recognize that most technological progress happens through decades of quiet work by people you'll never hear about. Y...

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politics

Trump Administration Readies Plans to Dismantle NCAR Research Lab

Government Eyes Climate Research Cuts. Administrations Change, Weather Patterns Don't.

What Happened

The Trump administration is reportedly preparing plans to eliminate or significantly restructure the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), a federally-funded climate and weather research institution. NCAR employs approximately 1,500 people and conducts atmospheric science research incl...

What's In Your Control

Whether you support organizations that fund climate research independently of government. How you vote in future elections. Whether you pursue or encourage careers in atmospheric science despite fu...

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