Discussions
Despite Fukushima, Nuclear Keeps Powering Ahead
A few countries have scaled back in response to the disaster, but many others are building or planning new nuclear reactors.
The Incredible Shrinking Engine
A new engine design could significantly improve fuel efficiency for cars and SUVs, at a fraction of the cost of today’s hybrid technology.
Asteroids Could Be Mined for Fuel, Says Company
Orbiting spacecraft could be refueled with water taken from planetoids—but some experts doubt the economics.
Plug-In Hybrids Are on the Way
Cars with advanced batteries get 100 mpg and boast far greater range than all-electric vehicles.
Kerry Could Spearhead Bilateral Climate Change Agreements
UN-scale treaties might be dead, but who needs everyone to get on board?
The iPhone Has Passed a Key Security Threshold
Does society really want extremely private mobile devices if they make life easier for criminals? Apple’s newly toughened standards sharpen the focus on that question.
The Future of American Manufacturing
The president’s proposed initiatives are a good start in helping to revitalize manufacturing, but they don’t go nearly far enough.
Quantum setback for warp drives
Include quantum mechanics in the calculations and faster-than-light drives become unstable
Graphene Battery Turns Ambient Heat Into Electric Current
Physicists have built a graphene battery that harvests energy from the thermal movement of ions in solution
Chatbot Wears Down Proponents of Anti-Science Nonsense
When he tired of arguing with climate change skeptics, one programmer wrote a chatbot to do it for him.