Science

The 1874 locust swarm was estimated to be twice the square mileage of the state of Colorado. Why don't locusts swarm anymore?

Researchers suggest effects of the Colonial Era can be detected in rocks or even air.

In her newest book, Barbara Ehrenreich attacks the "epidemic" of wellness.

A new book explores the nation’s now-faded preoccupation with the 'epidemic' of hunched bodies.

Whether we consider the sounds of nature to be pleasant or menacing depends largely on our ideologies.

A review of Deirdre Cooper Owens' "Medical Bondage: Race, Gender, and the Origins of American Gynecology."

Susan Fenimore Cooper is now being recognized as one of the nation's first environmentalists.

The midlife crisis went from an obscure psychological theory to a ubiquitous phenomenon.

The stations' broadcasts have been attributed to aliens and Cold War relics, but they actually are coded intelligence messages.

Alexa’s interface is treated as revolutionary, but you might be surprised to learn of its predecessors from the mid-1980s.

The development, use, and marketing of medications for children in the 20th century.

Today, 1 in 3 American babies are delivered via the procedure, twice what the World Health Organization recommends.

In 1935, as lava from Mauna Loa advanced on Hilo, the not-yet-famous Army general was called to the rescue.

Henrietta Lacks's "immortal" cell line, called "HeLa," is used in everything from cancer treatments to vaccines.

Our identity is mapped at our fingertips, but also, maybe, our individual fate.

And why would President Trump bother to change the name?

Claire L. Evans’s new book is a bittersweet reminder that the internet used to be freer and more fun.

An incredibly preserved set of tracks tell the story of an ancient hunt.

DNA’s visual culture and the construction of genetic truth.

The untold story of a failed Russian geoengineering scheme, panic in the Pentagon, and a Nixon-era effort to study global cooling.

The answer was hidden in the shadows.

War, famine and persecution inflict profound changes on bodies and brains. Could these changes persist over generations?

In 1907, a patent application for the pigeon camera was submitted.

Twenty years ago, another high-profile tech executive testified before Congress. It was a more innocent time.

Uncovering Charleston's "backstreet" abortion networks.

What the first opioid epidemic can teach us about the second.

Yaupon tea, a botanical cousin to yerba maté, is now almost unknown.

This is not "forbidden knowledge." It is America’s most ancient justification for bigotry and racial inequality.

A new museum exhibit in Philadelphia showcases the first public health record of African Americans.

Decades after Charles Knowlton died, his book would be credited with reversing population growth in England and the popularization of contraception in the U.S.