More Science from Scientific American Science news and technology updates from Scientific American Heat Loss to Night Sky Powers Off-Grid Lights Thu, 19 Sep 2019 15:18:00 GMT A slight temperature difference at night between a surface losing heat and the surrounding air can be harnessed to generate electricity to power lights. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Why Our Disabilities Make Us Better Scientists despite the Odds against Us Thu, 19 Sep 2019 13:00:00 GMT But the research world raises barriers to our full participation -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Asteroid Dust Triggered an Explosion of Life on Ancient Earth Thu, 19 Sep 2019 16:15:00 GMT At 466 million years ago, the breakup of a large space rock may have led to major changes in our planet’s biodiversity -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Winston Churchill's Thoughts on Evolution Mon, 16 Sep 2019 14:01:00 GMT His essay on alien life was uncovered in 2016; now we have a second example of his previously unpublished thoughts about science -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Pterosaurs Were Monsters of the Mesozoic Skies Tue, 17 Sep 2019 13:30:00 GMT Fossils and mathematical modeling are helping to answer long-standing questions about these bizarre animals  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Introducing the October 2019 Issue Tue, 17 Sep 2019 13:00:00 GMT Monsters of the Mesozoic skies, the quest for a room-temperature superconductor and more -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com New Proto-Dinosaur Found in Colorado Sun, 15 Sep 2019 16:00:00 GMT A lanky reptile found in the Centennial State is a close cousin of early dinosaurs -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Migrating Birds Provide Surprising Snacks for Sharks   Fri, 20 Sep 2019 13:00:00 GMT Meticulous work reveals the identity of sharks’ feathered prey  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Kids Are Not Hurt by Screen Time Mon, 16 Sep 2019 19:32:00 GMT A study finds no deleterious effects on mental health when kids spend their leisure time texting and engaging in other online activities. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Microplastics in Fresh Water Are Mostly Laundry Lint Tue, 17 Sep 2019 14:43:00 GMT Microplastic particles are everywhere, but in freshwater systems, 60 percent of particles are clothing lint from laundry. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Silent Skies: Billions of North American Birds Have Vanished Thu, 19 Sep 2019 18:00:00 GMT Though waterfowl and raptor populations have made recoveries, bird populations have declined since 1970 across nearly all habitats -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Frogs Make Their Homes in Elephant Footprints Wed, 18 Sep 2019 13:00:00 GMT The massive herbivores shape the environment for living creatures around them—including some of the smallest animals  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com The Problem with Failing to Admit We Don't Know Thu, 19 Sep 2019 16:00:00 GMT Although numbers are often treated as cold, hard facts, we should be willing to acknowledge how uncertain they can be -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Saturn's Rings May Be Ancient After All Tue, 17 Sep 2019 19:00:00 GMT Against earlier studies estimating an age of just 100 million years, new research suggests the planet’s rings could be as old as the solar system itself -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Early Butchers Used Small Stone Scalpels Wed, 18 Sep 2019 15:00:00 GMT Homo erectus used hand axes to butcher elephants and other game. But a new study suggests they also used finer, more sophisticated blades. Christopher Intagliata reports. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com New Proof Solves 80-Year-Old Irrational Number Problem Mon, 16 Sep 2019 10:45:00 GMT Mathematicians have finally proved a conjecture on approximating numbers with fractions -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Don't Trust Scientists? Then Help Collect the Data Wed, 18 Sep 2019 16:00:00 GMT Citizen science has the potential to reduce data dishonesty -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Did the Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid Inadvertently Help Lichens? Sun, 15 Sep 2019 13:00:00 GMT The leafy lichens seem to have picked up where a lot of incinerated plants left off -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Is Mathematics, like Science, Pluralistic? Sun, 15 Sep 2019 16:00:00 GMT Mathematicians disagree over whether their fundamental assumptions, or axioms, are true -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com A Newly Identified Protein May Be the Key to Vanquishing the Common Cold Tue, 17 Sep 2019 17:45:00 GMT Inactivating this protein in human cells and mice provided immunity to a range of viruses, but an effective treatment is still a long way off -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Real-Life Zombies Fri, 20 Sep 2019 16:15:00 GMT A zombie takeover is science fiction, right? Well, it turns out some zombies already exist in nature and “life” after brain death might not be so far-fetched -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Humanity's Journey Thu, 19 Sep 2019 13:00:00 GMT -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Drenchable Drones, Prickly Cells and Face-Tracked Chimps: Science GIFs to Start Your Week Mon, 16 Sep 2019 12:00:00 GMT Enjoy and loop on -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com Did a Jurassic Dinosaur Smoosh a Turtle? Sun, 15 Sep 2019 19:00:00 GMT A smashed shell may have been crumpled by an ambling dinosaur -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com New Measurement Aims to Solve Neutrino Mystery Thu, 19 Sep 2019 15:00:00 GMT A new finding limits how much the bizarre particle can weigh, shedding light on a physics quandary -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com