A Farewell to an American Icon: The Penny

The mighty Mississippi River cuts the United States essentially in half from Northern Minnesota all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico. It has a lot of history and romance around its waters, and is al...

10 Nov 202227min

The US Food and Drug Administration is supposed to make sure the medications we take are effective–and safe. But when a small independent lab in Connecticut called Valisure started testing popular dru...

9 Nov 202229min

Here's a thought experiment. It's the middle of winter and you can't afford to pay for both heat and electricity. Which do you stop using first? The lights? The stove? The furnace? This is the real li...

8 Nov 202226min

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, the US and other Western nations have imposed economic sanctions on scores of Russian billionaires close to President Vladimir Putin. They’ve also gone after ...

7 Nov 202228min

Here’s a random yet important fact: Copper is one of the very best conductors of electricity of all metals. And that matters, because as we move toward a world in which more and more things in our liv...

4 Nov 202226min

Messenger RNA technology made it possible for scientists and drugmakers to quickly develop a Covid-19 vaccine. Now, pharmaceutical companies are racing to use mRNA for other illnesses, including flu, ...

3 Nov 202226min

On November 6, leaders around the world will gather for the annual UN Climate Change conference, known this year as COP27. The aim: finding ways to slow the warming of the planet, before it’s too late...

2 Nov 202226min

The US is just a week away from the midterm elections, which will decide governors’ races in 36 states--and whether Democrats will keep their majority in the House of Representatives and the Senate. S...

1 Nov 202229min