How Can We Ensure Our Survival As A Species?
Astronomer and cosmologist Lord Martin Rees asks whether our species will endure despite the many existential threats we face.
Science
Will California Gas Leak Mark A Turning Point In Energy Debate?
A massive methane leak may soon end, but its environmental impact is still being weighed. A scientist says it won't have a big effect globally, but it's a setback in efforts to curb greenhouse gases.
Coal Country Reacts To Supreme Court Stay On Obama Clean Power Plan
The U.S. Supreme Court has put a hold on the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan, which would significantly regulate coal, after 27 states sued over the proposal. Among them was Wyoming, which produces more coal than any other state. NPR reports on how the court's stay is being received in coal producing states.
A Fix For Gender-Bias In Animal Research Could Help Humans
Women report more bad side effects from medicines than men do. Researchers say the discrepancy may stem in part from how biomedical research is conducted at its earliest stages in animals.
Virus Profilers Race To Figure Out What Makes Zika Tick
Though Zika was discovered in 1947, few scientists since had studied the virus. Now, while some check its genes, others turn to placental cells for clues to any link between Zika and birth defects.
Zika Virus: What Happened When
For decades, Zika was considered a mild virus that rarely made people ill. Suddenly it seems to be causing serious problems and is spreading across the Americas. Here's the latest news.
Chinese Taste For Fish Bladder Threatens Tiny Porpoise In Mexico
The nets that ensnare the giant totoaba fish also trap and kill the world's smallest and rarest mammal: a porpoise called the vaquita.
An Old Bird Can Hatch A New Chick — Even At Age 65
Wisdom, a Laysan albatross that researchers first tagged in 1956, has hatched what could be her 40th chick, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says.
Supreme Court Puts White House's Carbon Pollution Limits On Hold
A decision on the Clean Power Plan could be long in coming — meaning that the rules' fate might not be determined before a new presidential administration comes into power in 2017.
Scientists Aflutter Over Gravitational Wave Rumors
If the rumors are true, then humanity is about to learn a lot about the heaviest stuff in the universe.