The Best of Knowable Magazine
10+ most popular Knowable Magazine articles, as voted by our community.
Sound science, smart stories. Published by @AnnualReviews, seed funding @MooreFound/@SloanPublic. Léanos en español @RevistaKnowable.
Knowable Magazine on Climate Crisis
Climate change is altering the chemistry of wine
Warming, wildfires and unpredictable weather threaten to disrupt the delicate processes that underlie treasured wines. Researchers and producers are innovating to keep ahead.
Mistletoes in a warming world
Can the famous parasitic plants help animals to survive climate change, or will they be killed off by extreme weather?
Knowable Magazine on Energy Transition
How heat pumps of the 1800s are becoming the technology of the future
Innovative thinking has done away with problems that long dogged the electric devices — and both scientists and environmentalists are excited about the possibilities
Knowable Magazine on Environment
Bee gold: Honey as a superfood
From pesticide detox to increased longevity, the benefits of the sweet stuff go well beyond simply nourishing the hardworking insects in the hive
Knowable Magazine on Health
Inside the brains of aging dogs
In a citizen science project, thousands of pet dogs are helping scientists to understand what happens to memory and cognition in old age
Could getting rid of old cells turn back the clock on aging?
Researchers are investigating medicines that selectively kill decrepit cells to promote healthy aging — but more work is needed before declaring them a fountain of youth
Knowable Magazine on Nature
City birds are changing their tune
Several species of urban-dwelling birds have modified their songs in response to human-generated noise
The evolution of whales from land to sea
The genomes of cetaceans help tell the story of mammals who returned to the life aquatic
Knowable Magazine on Neuroscience
Color is in the eye, and brain, of the beholder
The way we see and describe hues varies widely for many reasons: from our individual eye structure, to how our brain processes images, to what language we speak, or even if we live near a body of…
Knowable Magazine on Science
What if we tolerated diseases?
The immune cells that fight bacteria and viruses are well-known. But some scientists think we should devote more attention to a second prong of defense: one that allows our bodies to more harmlessly…
«“Bacteria, they like glucose,” says Soares. Therefore, the body often shuts down glucose production when it is infected, and infections often make animals lose their appetites. These twin actions limit the pathogen’s energy source and so help survival of the host.»
Small wonders: The antibodies from camels and sharks that could change medicine
A handful of animals make a pared-down version of these pathogen-fighting proteins of our immune system. Scientists hope to harness them as treatments for ills from cancer to covid, for tracking cells…
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The science of a wandering mind
More than just a distraction, mind-wandering (and its cousin, daydreaming) may help us prepare for the future
«Is mind-wandering the same thing as daydreaming, or would you say those are different?»
Evolution Didn’t Wire Us for Eight Hours of Sleep
Chimps sleep nine hours a night. Cotton-top tamarins sleep about 13. What happened to humans?
Rethinking air conditioning amid climate change
ACs and refrigerators help keep people safe — but they also further warm the planet. Scientists are working on eco-friendlier solutions as global demand for cooling grows.
There are more active volcanoes than you think
OPINION: Volcanologists warn that magma-filled vents evolve over time, leading to an underestimation of the number that might erupt — especially those capable of the biggest explosions
The lasting anguish of moral injury
Psychologists are finding that moral code violations can leave an enduring mark — and may require new types of therapy
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