Science touches so many aspects of modern life that it's hard to keep up. Through our programs and this website, Science for the Public provides up-to-date information about scientific innovations, discoveries, and issues that are shaping modern knowledge.
Section #1 explains the AI basics: GenAI, AGI, ASI; GPT; how AI is "trained"; AI errors, AI "consciousness"; and AI hype
Section #2 explains the multiple impacts of AI: AI databases; copyright; jobs; cognition
Section 3 discusses important AI threats: AI deceptions; political AI; military AI; and AI disobedience
Section 4 describes the warnings of many AI leaders and experts: that the potential damage of AI is very real, and that governmental controls are absolutely necessary.
From the first moments of the universe to the formation of atoms ...
The evidence for a 4-billion-years-old Earth was a serious contradiction of the widely held Biblical view
Mounting evidence suggests a link between chemicals in consumer products and breast cancer.
What's so important about an atmosphere? Find out here.
Many of the most important advances in scientific understanding were initially rejected or ignored.
In an era of global science, other nations are increasing their science budgets. Why aren't we?
Hibernation, dormancy, suspended animation, revival from apparent death; the line between life and death...
07/18/23 The actual nutritional value of our food depends on the quality of soil in which it is grown. Healthy soil, healthy people, healthy planet. David R. Montgomery & Anne Biklé
10/29/24 A study by HSPH epidemiologist Joel Schwartz and British colleagues has revealed a much greater impact of fossil fuel pollution on health and on worldwide mortality rates than previously thought. Joel Schwartz
02/21/23 There is increasing concern about the impact of social media on mental health, especially among young people. What causes this problem and how should it be addressed? Jacqueline Sperling
08/15/19 Dark matter is believed to comprise five-sixths of the matter in the universe, but cannot be "seen." Now, technical innovations offer closer observation and maybe new physics. Tracy Slatyer
11/22/10 Einstein completely changed our understanding of the universe. Here's how. Tereasa Brainerd
07/08/16 An explanation of how modern genetics analysis confirms ancient human migrations, such as the Indo-Europeans. Nick Patterson
10/08/19 A cell's size and the proportions of its components are strictly determined, but where do the rules come from? Scientists are still trying to figure that out. Jané Kondev
10/10/14 A leader in the international research on marine sediments explains how climate history is recorded in ocean sediments. Richard Murray
01/15/13 A discussion of the exceptionally well-documented climate change in Massachusetts. Richard Primack
02/22/21 The dual role of socioeconomic background and a family of (BET) proteins in the disproportionate occurrence of certain cancers. Gerald V. Denis
04/08/25 Numerous types of cancer are increasing today and scientists are trying to identify the causes. That's why cancer research is one of the most important concerns of modern science. We learn how the research is done and also why federal funding for this work is essential. Gerald Denis
12/05/23 GBH Forum Network webinar (noon). By 2050, some 75 percent of the world population will live in cities. Future urban design will emphasize not only innovative architecture and engineering, but optimal environmental and social aspects of city dwelling also. The urban future might also include settlements beyond Earth. Justin Hollander
06/25/13 The cooling systems of power plants use an enormous percentage of our diminishing freshwater supply. What's the solution? John Rogers
Important probe of traditional assumptions about cell proliferation, particularly in the case of cancer
A prominent seismologist explains how and where earthquakes and tsunamis are generated