Science

First female-to-male sexual transmission of Zika reported in New York City

By Nsikan Akpan

A New York City resident has become the first woman suspected of transmitting Zika virus to a sexual partner.

Pokémon GO uses augmented reality — or does it?

By Larry Greenemeier, Scientific American

Pokémon GO’s pocket monsters may be taking over the world—but they’re not quite part of it yet, a tech pioneer insists…

Ducklings make way for abstract thought, Oxford study finds

By Nsikan Akpan

An Oxford study uses pairs of swinging objects to determine that ducklings have abstract thoughts.

Medical marijuana research comes out of the shadows

By PBS News Hour

It was an unprecedented meeting of the minds and it happened at Harvard Medical School. The subject of April’s confab? Medical cannabis. Researchers suspect cannabis can do so many things, from fighting cancer to easing concussions and Crohn’s disease. There…

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New underwater microscope films kissing and fighting corals like never before

By Leigh Anne Tiffany

We can now get up close and personal with corals, watching how they kiss and fight, thanks to a new high-tech microscope.

Culture, not biology, decides the difference between music and noise

By Lora Strum

A new study shows only cultures previously exposed to western music form opinions on consonance and dissonance, an element of music theory that establishes consonant chords as more aurally pleasing…

You can see Florida’s state-of-emergency level algae bloom from space

By Eugene Mason

An algae bloom in southeast Florida has grown so large it’s visible from space. A NASA satellite snapped an image of the algal bloom in early May as it festered across 33 square miles in Lake Okeechobee, which…

The End of AIDS?

By Megan Crigger, William Brangham, Jason Kane

It’s a bold mission by any standard: to end the AIDS epidemic. But the tools are there, say officials of the joint United Nations program on HIV/AIDS. Here’s what the UNAIDS plan, known as “90-90-90,” looks like.