In the inaugural episode of Cosmos, Quickly, we blast off with Lt. Gen. Nina Armagno of Space Force who is charged with protecting our space in space, particularly from Russia and China.
Tag Archives: technology
What High-Tech Prizes Does the Downed U.S. Drone Hold? Russia Really Wants to Know
An MQ-9 Reaper drone is sitting at the bottom of the Black Sea. Will the U.S. or Russia recover it?
Nord Stream Pipeline Blasts Stirred Up Toxic Sediment
The Nord Stream pipeline explosions happened in a dumping ground for chemical warfare, but other contaminants proved most toxic to marine life
AI Can Re-create What You See from a Brain Scan
Image-generating AI is getting better at re-creating what people are looking at from their fMRI data. But this isn’t mind reading—yet
Squeak Squeak, Buzz Buzz: How Researchers Are Using AI to Talk to Animals
The burgeoning field of “digital bioacoustics” is helping us understand animals like never before.
What the New GPT-4 AI Can Do
OpenAI just released an updated version of its text-generating artificial intelligence program. Here’s how GPT-4 improves on its predecessor
What the Silicon Valley Bank Collapse Means for Science Start-ups
Bailouts mean customers’ deposits are safe, but the Silicon Valley Bank’s demise has sparked concern about future investment in small tech companies
Quantum Computing Is the Future, and Schools Need to Catch Up
Top universities are finally bringing the excitement of the quantum future into the classroom
AI’s Victories in Go Inspire Better Human Game Playing
Famed AI wins in Go let human players rethink their moves in a whole new way
Controversy Surrounds Blockbuster Superconductivity Claim
Will a possible breakthrough for room-temperature superconducting materials hold up to scrutiny?
NASA’s Latest Asteroid Explorer Celebrates Our Ancient Origins in Space and on Earth
The Lucy spacecraft and its target asteroids show that the way that we name discoveries matters
Nuclear Waste Is Piling Up. Does the U.S. Have a Plan?
We needs a permanent national nuclear waste disposal site now, before the spent nuclear fuel stored in 35 states becomes unsafe
These Researchers Used A.I. to Design a Completely New ‘Animal Robot’
Xenobots are living, swimming, self-powered robots less than a millimeter across, evolved by artificial intelligence and built out of frog stem cells—and they could open new medical frontiers.
These Researchers Used AI to Design a Completely New ‘Animal Robot’
“Xenobots” are living, swimming self-powered robots that measure less than a millimeter across. They are evolved by artificial intelligence and built out of frog stem cells—and they could open new medical frontiers.
Spotlight on Women in Science
Honoring women at the forefront of science
What Can We Do to Make Sure the FAA and Southwest Airlines Fiascos Never Happen Again?
Congress and the airline industry must reassess how they approach and fund air transportation modernization
What Can We Do to Make Sure the FAA and Southwest Airlines Fiascoes Never Happen Again?
Congress and the airline industry must reassess how they approach and fund air transportation modernization
Why Is It So Hard to Make Vegan Fish?
Futuristic food science technology could finally bring plant-based salmon filets and tuna steaks to the table
New Color-Changing Coating Could Both Heat and Cool Buildings
A thin film can switch from releasing heat to trapping it, and wrapping it around buildings could make them more energy-efficient
Sorry, UFO Hunters–You Might Just Be Looking at a Spy Balloon
From aliens to foreign surveillance, we spoke to experts to find out what’s really going on.
Google’s Quantum Computer Hits Key Milestone by Reducing Errors
Researchers demonstrate for the first time that using more qubits can lower the error rate of quantum calculations
Soft Robots Take Steps toward Independence
Squishy robots can now heal themselves and grow as they explore
Why Google’s Supreme Court Case Could Rattle the Internet
Gonzalez v. Google seeks to hold tech giants accountable for recommendation algorithms in a complicated case that could see the Supreme Court meddle in more than 25 years of Internet policy
New Space Radar Will Hunt Planet-Threatening Asteroids
The new ngRADAR at the Green Bank Telescope offers unprecedented Earth-based views of the solar system
AI Chatbots Are Coming to Search Engines. Can You Trust Them?
Google, Microsoft and Baidu are using tools similar to ChatGPT to turn Internet searches into a conversation. How will this change humanity’s relationship with machines?
Why We’re Suddenly Spotting Spy Balloons
Every question we have about the airborne objects that might or might not be spying on the U.S.
Underdog Technologies Gain Ground in Quantum-Computing Race
Individual atoms trapped by optical ‘tweezers’ are emerging as a promising computational platform
How ChatGPT Can Improve Education, Not Threaten it
A professor explains why he is allowing students to incorporate ChatGPT into their writing process instead of banning the new technology
Turkey’s Twitter Cutoff Harmed Earthquake Rescue Operations
A temporary Twitter block after the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria shows how vital the platform has become for responding to disasters
New Exascale Supercomputer Can Do a Quintillion Calculations a Second
New “exascale” supercomputers will bring breakthroughs in science. But the technology also exists to study nuclear weapons
Coming Soon to Your Podcast Feed: Science, Quickly
A new era in Scientific American audio history is about to drop starting next week—get ready for a science variety show guaranteed to quench your curiosity in under 10 minutes.
Chinese Spy Balloon Has Unexpected Maneuverability
An expert explains why it’s so odd that the suspected Chinese spy balloon can change course
Mystery Portrait May Be a Raphael, Artificial Intelligence Suggests
A mysterious portrait of the Virgin Mary and Jesus may have been painted by the master Raphael, facial recognition finds. But many art historians reject the claim
FBI Takes Down Hive Criminal Ransomware Group
A cybersecurity expert explains how the FBI’s operation against the ransomware group Hive will impact the rest of this criminal industry
New Apps Aim to Douse the Social Media Dumpster Fire
Social media makes us miserable, but can “positive apps,” such as Gas and BeReal, make a difference?
Government Researchers Aim for Better–And Cheaper–Batteries
Department of Energy researchers are partnering with battery manufacturers to help them find new ways to make cheap batteries that can store a lot of energy
What an Endless Conversation with Werner Herzog Can Teach Us about AI
An AI-generated conversation between Werner Herzog and Slavoj Žižek is definitely entertaining, but it also illustrates the crisis of misinformation beginning to befall us
Research Summaries Written by AI Fool Scientists
Scientists cannot always differentiate between research abstracts generated by the AI ChatGPT and those written by humans
Gene Drives Could Fight Malaria and Other Global Killers but Might Have Unintended Consequences
A new technology could wipe out whole species. Is it a magic bullet or a genetic atom bomb?
Are Quantum Computers about to Break Online Privacy?
A new algorithm is probably not efficient enough to crack current encryption keys—but that’s no reason for complacency, researchers say
Flavor-Enhancing Spoons and Chopsticks Could Make Food Taste Better
New types of cutlery can enhance flavors such as sweetness or saltiness for a more satisfying meal
Mighty Morphin’ Turtle Robot Goes Amphibious by Shifting Leg Shape
A turtle-inspired robot can morph its legs to move from land to water and back
ChatGPT Explains Why AIs like ChatGPT Should Be Regulated
We asked the text-generating AI ChatGPT to talk about its own flaws
Saving Coral Reefs with Dental Tech
Dental scanners could help researchers diagnose stressed-out baby corals
The 60-Second Podcast Takes a Short Break–but Wait, There’s More
Scientific American’s short-form podcast has been going for 16 years, 3 months, and 7 days, counting today, but it’s time for us to evolve.
AI Platforms like ChatGPT Are Easy to Use but Also Potentially Dangerous
Systems like ChatGPT are enormously entertaining and even mind-bogglingly human-sounding, but they are also unreliable and could create an avalanche of misinformation
First ‘Vagina-on-a-Chip’ Will Help Researchers Test Drugs
A new chip re-creates the human vagina’s unique microbiome
10 Ways AI Was Used for Good This Year
Artificial intelligence can improve health, protect biodiversity and even write wine reviews
9 Science Stories That Restore Our Faith in Humanity
A river’s “gut” revived, snake-saving social media, an intragalactic donut, and more success stories of the year
Transforming Robots Help to Transfer Skills
How do you teach a new robot old tricks?