Stuff YOU Should Know
New Gene Therapy Trials Underway Do you think scientists should be allowed to modify the genetic material of human beings? What if you had a serious or life-threatening disease that could possibly be helped if scientists could modify your genes? You may have heard of CRISPR last year, when a Chinese scientist used this gene-editing […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
Trump Appoints New Ambassador Saudi Arabia has been in the news a lot lately because of the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. So far in his term, the president has not appointed a U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia. But on November 13, after nearly two […]
The Science of Victory
This week’s story update on the Election Central Web site take a look at the growing number of scientists who are entering the political realm. Scientists and the regulators in the federal government often seem to be at odds with each other. President Trump, for example, has questioned the dangers of climate change and has appointed […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
A Bridge of Love in Northern Africa In a world where it often seems like everyone is at war, the neighboring North African countries of Ethiopia and Eritrea have finally made peace. Once upon a time, these two countries were actually the same nation. But twenty years ago, Eritrea declared its independence from Ethiopia. Soon […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
Can Bees Do Math? Have you ever wondered if animals can count? What about insects? If that sounds like a crazy idea, you’ll be surprised to hear that honeybees can count to four. Even more impressively, Australian scientists have recently discovered that they may also understand the concept of zero. Here’s what happened. Scientists in […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
SuperShe Have you ever dreamed about being rich enough to buy an island all your own? Entrepreneur Kristin Roth has done exactly that. Plus, she has taken the idea a step further: her SuperShe Island is a place where no men are allowed. That’s right: no men at all. Up to ten women at a […]
YOU DECIDE: Space Mission to the Moon
In December, President Trump announced his administration’s plans to send American astronauts back to the moon for the first time since 1972. The directive, called Space Policy Directive 1 (SPD-1), was signed on the 45th anniversary of Apollo 17’s landing on the moon on December 13, 1972. In his speech, Trump said that the goal […]
Stuff YOU Should Know
Mass Shooting at Texas Church Last Sunday, at least 26 people were killed and 20 more wounded when a lone gunman opened fire on a congregation at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Sutherland Springs is a small, close-knit community about 30 miles east of San Antonio. The shooter was Devin Patrick Kelley, […]
Goodbye Cassini
After 20 years in space, and 13 years orbiting Saturn, the Cassini spacecraft’s mission ended dramatically last Friday. Here, btw takes a look at why the spacecraft was important, some of its key discoveries, and why it’s so hard to say goodbye. A Spacecraft is Born Cassini was launched on October 15, 1997. Named for […]
Eclipse Mania Strikes the U.S.!
In case you haven’t heard, the United States will experience a total solar eclipse on Monday, August 21. How much of it you will see depends on where you live. Already, millions of Americans are making plans to travel to parts of the country where they will get a better view of this incredibly rare […]