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.
05-06-24 WGBH Forum Network webinar, 12:30 PM EDT. All sorts of animals engage in imaginative types of play. Is this behavior just creature-entertainment, or is it important for development and bonding? David Toomey
05/14/24 Our universe is expanding because of dark energy --one of the greatest mysteries in science. The major project devoted to understanding that expansion and dark energy is the target of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). DESI has produced the largest and most precise 3D map of our cosmos ever constructed. And the first results of the survey are amazing. Paul Martini
04/23/24 Promoted for years as a means to strengthen bones and lower risk of multiple diseases, improved studies by JoAnn Manson and others revealed that Vitamin D supplements were not very effective at all. Natural sources, including sunshine, are much better. It’s important to understand why. JoAnn Manson
03/19/24 A prominent biologist explains the crucial importance of biodiversity for life on Earth, and how the sixth mass extinction fractures that stability. Michael Reed.
02/09/24 GBH Forum Network webinar (noon ET) The extreme level of atmospheric CO2 is well beyond a “capture and storage/sequestration” solution, yet the hype persists that some clever extraction innovation will resolve the problem. Charles Harvey
Most of the mass of the universe is invisible and undetectable and is known only by its effects....
a fiber valued for its many practical applications has a long history of deadly impact
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?
Partly in order to understand its amazing complexity, and partly in order to advance medical therapies. So, how do you create a viable cell?
01-17-23 Coastal wetlands and salt marshes absorb huge amounts of CO2. Scientists are working to understand this complex process when such ecosystems are especially stressed by climate change. Robinson Fulweiler
09/12/23 The breaching of most of the Earth system boundaries (ESBs) is destroying the planet and the crisis must be addressed immediately. Solutions must include justice for those who suffer displacement, health and economic impacts of the crisis. Diana Liverman
11-28-23 GBH Forum Network webinar: 12 Noon (EST) Our planet is subject to more than 50 earthquakes a day. How do scientists analyze this activity and can they predict the most threatening quakes? Brendan Meade
Your generous donations help to support our mission.
Science for the Public is a 501(c)(3) organization and your donation is
tax-deductible.
09/19/23 WGBH Forum Network webinar 11:30 EDT There is plenty of hype about space travel and even colonizing planets like Mars. We might need to know about the effects of zero-gravity on the human body. James Lackner
09/08/15 Mathematician L. Mahadevan describes how nature, science and art intersect. It will change your entire perspective.
05/10/10 Two young scientists at the famous Jack Szostak Lab explain research issues, Matthew Powner and Utay Budin
05/10/23 Although technologies such as ChatBots are not conscious, their sophisticated communications can seem human enough to fool people. That raises concerns. Nir Eisikovits
04/25/17 Some ways to show how marine organisms actually experience climate change. Brian Helmuth
04/25/17 What an atmosphere is, what it does, how it changes --on Earth, elsewhere in our solar system and beyond. Daniel Cziczo
09/27/10 The effects of vehicle pollutants on the developing brain. Shakira Franco Suglia
02/15/21 The amazing mechanisms by which viruses infect cells and the challenge of developing effective vaccines. Forian Douam
10/16/12 How university educational outreach programs encourage high school students' interest in science. Irene Porro
05/23/17 The great potential of ordinary plants in the development of "green" batteries. Alán Aspuru-Guzik
A well known astrophysicist who is also gifted at making science and mathematics accessible to the general public
An aerospace engineer on the leading edge of artificial gravity designs, space physioogy and other innovations for living in space