Archivo: The Atlantic
Tattoos Do Odd Things to the Immune System
When you stick ink-filled needles into your skin, your body’s defenders respond accordingly. Scientists aren’t sure if that’s good or bad for you.
Polio Is Exploiting a Very Human Weakness
The world has been so close to eradicating polio for so long—which is exactly why the virus is staging a comeback now.
Man’s Other Best Friend
Domesticating horses changed humanity forever. Where and when did it first happen?
What Humans Can Learn From Nature’s Biggest Hibernators
Could bears hold the key to better treatments for stroke, osteoporosis, and Alzheimer’s?
Do birds have language? It depends on how you define it.
In the cheeps, trills and tweets of birdsong, scientists find some parallels with human speech
We Almost Forgot About the Moon Trees
A collection of tree seeds that went round and round the moon was scattered far and wide back home.
Lion Bones Are Popping Up in Some Very Unexpected Places
Archaeologists long assumed that the only lions on the continent were mythical. Then they started finding bones.
Climate Change Is Going to Be Gross
The thick layer of mucilage that covered the Sea of Marmara for weeks was an unsettling glimpse of climate change’s more oozy effects.
Let’s Talk About Brines. No, Not That Kind.
The solar system is full of brines, and they’re crucial to the search for extraterrestrial life.