Here’s Why Abortion Largely Won on Election Day—But Not on the Top of the Ticket
Voters supported abortion rights measures while electing antiabortion candidates in the 2024 election. The split reflects a complicated abortion landscape post-Dobbs
Grumpy Voters Want Better Stories—Not Statistics
A social scientist looks at the portrait of U.S. voters, and voting, in the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election that put Trump into the White House
Read all the stories you want.
Science Crossword: Equine Emergence
Play this crossword inspired by the December 2024 issue of Scientific American
December 2024: Science History from 50, 100 and 150 Years Ago
Alcohol in space; basking in the limelight
Book Review: How Oak Trees Warn Us about the Limits of Adapting to Climate Change
Oak trees have genetic flexibility that allows them to solve ecological problems. But even they will need our help to survive climate change
See How Close We Are to Gender Equality around the World
U.N. statistics show progress toward the goal of gender equality but a long way left to go
Poem: ‘The First Bite’
Science in meter and verse
Book Bans Harm Kids
Censoring what children read deprives them of reality and the chance to feed their curiosity and develop empathy
The Surprising New History of Horse Domestication
Archaeological and genetic discoveries topple long-standing ideas about the domestication of equines
Book Review: An Expansive New Translation of a Haruki Murakami Classic
In End of the World and Hard-Boiled Wonderland, the title is flipped, but cyberpunk pleasures remain
Curiosity, Horses and Hypochondria
Discovering weird new shapes, turning oil rigs into reefs and making the ocean absorb more greenhouse gases
Contributors to Scientific American’s December 2024 Issue
Writers, artists, photographers and researchers share the stories behind the stories