Latest Insights & Analysis

Stay updated with the latest public health research, commentary, and field notes from our editorial team.

Featured Story

The New Techno-Eschatology: AGI and Secular Religion

March 25, 2025 · 5 min read

Some techies today fear hell—not from a god, but from a computer.  Human beings have a habit of wrapping up big unknowns in familiar stories. Even in our high-tech, secular age, the quest to create Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) often comes with a kind of religious or end-of-the-world fervor. Some communities of self-described rationalists speak […]

Read analysis
Longform

The New Techno-Eschatology: AGI and Secular Religion

Some techies today fear hell—not from a god, but from a computer.  Human beings have a habit of wrapping up big unknowns in familiar stories. Even in our high-tech, secular age, the quest to create Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) often comes with a kind of religious or end-of-the-world fervor. Some communities of self-described rationalists speak […]

Read more →
Biology

Hidden Ecosystems of the Ordovician

Every fossil story begins with loss. Sediment buries life, time hardens it, and chance decides what survives. For the Ordovician Period—roughly 485 to 444 million years ago—that loss has long been severe. While the Cambrian Explosion left us famous sites like the Burgess Shale, its Ordovician successors seemed strangely quiet. Paleontologists saw only fragments of […]

Read more →
Announcements

Next Week in Science, December 4, 2025

And what’s in the news The role of theory of mind in how increasing preschoolers’ self-esteem affects their materialism: an experimental study A new study involving 239 Polish preschoolers shows that enhancing self-esteem in areas of competence and peer acceptance can reduce materialistic tendencies, but only in those with a well-developed Theory of Mind. This […]

Read more →
Psychology

Kissing Across the Eons: The Evolutionary History of a Kiss

Kissing is often perceived as a quintessentially human act, synonymous with romance and warmth in various cultures worldwide. However, recent studies suggest that this intimate action has deeper roots, extending far beyond just human relationships. Emerging research indicates that kissing might be an evolutionary behavior that predates humans, dating back to our ape ancestors millions […]

Read more →
Biology

What Really Drives Support for India’s Cheetah Comeback?

Less than a century ago, the cheetah vanished from India—hunted to extinction by 1947. Today, the species is back, but the biggest challenge isn’t only ecological. It’s emotional. A new study shows that whether the cheetah thrives again in India may depend as much on people as on prey. Across India’s towns and villages—from Jaipur […]

Read more →
Astronomy

Is Dark Matter Finally Within Our Grasp?

For almost a century, the mysterious substance that constitutes the universe’s “invisible mass”—dark matter—has eluded scientists, only hinted at through the gravitational effects on galaxies we can observe. Yet, recent research may finally bring us closer to understanding what dark matter truly is. This prospective leap in cosmic discovery ignites both excitement and contemplation on […]

Read more →
Environment

How Biodiversity Can Make the 15-Minute City Thrive

Every year, more of us trade fields for freeways. Today, over half the world’s population lives in cities. But as our urban footprints expand, the homes of countless plants, birds, and animals disappear beneath concrete and glass. What if the same city planning ideas designed to improve our lives could also rebuild nature’s foothold? A […]

Read more →
Environment

Transform Desert Energy Systems in Qatar

Summer power demand in Qatar can soar to nearly 8,000 megawatts—more than twice the country’s winter lows. But here’s the twist: some renewable technologies produce the least energy at the very moment Qatar needs them most. That mismatch is the puzzle that a team of researchers set out to solve. Their study is not just […]

Read more →
Computing

AI Meets Blockchain for Cloud Security

Every minute, millions of files move through the cloud — photos, medical scans, research data, government reports. And every minute, someone is trying to break in. For years, cybersecurity experts have been playing catch-up, patching holes faster than hackers can find them. But what if our data could learn to protect itself? That’s the bold […]

Read more →
Environment

How This Study Could Improve Qatar’s Air Quality

It’s Qatar-week! المعرفة منفعة عامة. Every decade, Qatar’s skyline grows taller, its population expands, and its energy use climbs. But behind this progress sits a startling pattern: the country remains one of the world’s highest per-capita emitters of greenhouse gases. A new study digs into why—and the surprises the researchers uncovered challenge some long-held assumptions […]

Read more →

Get the science breakthroughs you need—
every Tuesday morning.

We scan 70+ journals so you don't have to.
One email. Zero jargon. Unsubscribe anytime.

Want to see what you'll get?

View Sample: Tiny Cells, Rare Mutations, and Wild Bees

🔒 No spam. 1-click opt-out. Privacy-first.