Science & Society
- Health & Medicine
The most popular stories of 2015
Our readers love to read about health and wellness. Check out which stories were most popular.
- Environment
Paris meeting yields climate agreement
It provides outlines and incentives for nations to curb fossil-fuel use. The goal is to limit global warming to no more than 2° Celsius (3.4 °Fahrenheit) above temperatures typical in the 1750s or earlier.
- Science & Society
Expert panel approves human gene editing
Scientists have recently been reporting big advances in the ability to tweak the genes of living organisms, including people. But some question the ethics of doing that. A panel of experts now says such research can go ahead — with one major exception.
- Environment
Wildlife forensics turns to eDNA
Environmental DNA, or eDNA, tells biologists what species have been around — even when they’re out of sight or have temporarily moved on.
- Health & Medicine
News Brief: Group dancing helps teens bond
Coordinated dance routines help teens bond with one another, new data show. Group dancing also offers other benefits, including a higher threshold for pain.
- Ecosystems
Two SNS writers win big
Here’s a Cool Job: writing about science. Two people who regularly do that for SNS have just picked up awards for stories on the physics of lightning and how nature recycles the dead to feed the living.
- Health & Medicine
Internet use may harm teen health
Using the Internet more than two hours a day puts teens at risk of high blood pressure, a new study finds.
- Humans
Bronze Age mummies unearthed in Great Britain
Bronze Age communities from southern England to Scotland appear to mummified their dead. Tests show this occurred between roughly 3,000 and 4,000 years ago.
- Brain
Parents’ math anxiety can ‘infect’ kids
A study of first- and second- graders found that kids whose parents fear math learn less math at school ¬— but only when parents help with homework.
- Science & Society
Retractions: Righting the wrongs of science
Retractions let scientific journals remove bogus studies from the record. It's part of a self-correction process that helps move science forward.
- Science & Society
When a study can’t be replicated
Many factors can prevent one study from matching another in all regards, including its findings. Those factors may have nothing to do with mischief.
- Science & Society
More data link vaping to smoking
A new study finds vapers who don’t smoke are likely to start — even when they initially had no intention of ever taking up a cigarette.
