NYT > Science

1. For a Mere $2 Million, You Could Own Three Books That Unlocked the Universe
   At Sotheby’s, a feast of rare science books includes volumes from Copernicus, Galileo and Newton that together revolutionized human understanding of the cosmos.
2. The Leap Second Has Been Canceled
   Earth’s rotation subtly changes the length of the day. Now our clocks won’t change with it — at least not for a very long time.
3. Terry Tao Is on the Front Lines of the Debate Over AI and the Future of Math
   The Fields Medalist Terence Tao is on the front lines of a debate about artificial intelligence and the future of his field.
4. Citizen Science Groups Grapple With the Rise of A.I. Slop
   Facing a flood of A.I. slop, groups bent on democratizing science create new checks and balances.
5. Inside the Plague Research Labs at the Heart of a Russian Mystery
   A Russian researcher, who died from an unknown illness, worked at a remote anti-plague facility. Few foreigners have visited these labs, which dot the former Soviet states, and are shrouded in secrecy.
6. A New World of Lung Cancer Therapy Awaits Pope Leo
   Lung cancer is still a leading cause of cancer death, but that rate is half what it was in the 1990s, partly because newly developed treatments are working.
7. They Created a Cell That’s Almost Alive. What to Do With It Now?
   SpudCells may one day produce new medicines and materials. But first scientists have to improve them — and make sure they aren’t misused.
8. How Top Trump Officials Stoked Fears of a Nuke That Could Fry the Power Grid
   For more than a decade, conservative activists held that a single atomic bomb could, without killing Americans directly, lay waste to the country — a claim that built fervor for war with Iran.
9. A Reporter Who Saw Covid Coming Has Died
   Helen Branswell recognized the threat of the pandemic ahead of the vast majority of journalists and even medical experts. She was 69.
10. RFK Jr. Pledged to Advance Anti-Vaccine Group’s Goals. Here’s What He’s Doing.
    The health secretary is quietly taking steps that public health experts fear will reduce immunization rates further.
11. Bleached Coral Rebounded After Touching Healthy Coral, Study Finds
    After sick corals were placed in direct contact with healthy ones of the same genetic makeup, they recovered at “incredible” speed, scientists found.
12. Amit Forlit, the Israeli Private Eye at the Heart of a Climate Hacking Scandal
    He’s been linked to someone called “The Hawk.” He named his company “This Isn’t a Dentist’s Office.” The feds say he hacked American environmentalists.
13. How a Logging Industry Downturn Fuels Wildfires
    Loggers are finding it impossible to profitably harvest some federal forests. That leaves more fuel for fires to accumulate.
14. What Can Four-Winged Dinosaurs Teach Us About Birds?
    Flight was probably more widespread in dinosaurs than previously thought. A newly identified species sheds light on how some achieved liftoff.
15. There’s Worlds Out There More Habitable Than Earth
    Scientists believe there are planets outside our solar system where life is even more abundant and sustainable.
16. NASA’s Perseverance Rover Sets a Mars Driving Record
    Advances in self-driving technology have made it easier to traverse distant worlds.
17. He Helped Discover Ebola 50 Years Ago. He’s Still Worried.
    In an interview, Dr. Peter Piot recalled when he first saw the spindly virus under a microscope and reflected on a five-decade career spent fighting two deadly pathogens.
18. How Do Cuttlefish Hide? Scientists Search for the Secret to Camouflage.
    Cephalopods are masters of camouflage. Scientists want to decipher how the process works in the brain.
19. The Times’s New Space Editor Has Her Eye on the Cosmos
    On the Science desk, Victoria Jaggard spends her days pondering the universe’s most pressing mysteries.
20. Who Were the Vikings? 21 Graves Weave a Tale of Hunters, Nomads and Sorceresses.
    “The Sea-King and the Sorceress” examines the lives and deaths of the diverse people who called themselves Vikings.
21. New York City’s Latest Famous Family Is a Hoot. Yes, They’re Barn Owls.
    The city’s latest feathered extraordinaires are captivating the Upper West Side with their screeches.