Articles

Science News for Students

My author page contains links to all of my recent articles.

Front Vision

This is a Chinese-language children’s science magazine.

Muse magazine

For over ten years, I wrote a YourTech column about technology and ethics and contributed feature stories.

Recently Published

Explainer: What is generative AI?

Science News Explores, October 9, 2024

The brain of a tiny worm inspired a new type of AI

Science News Explores, September 16, 2024

Science Competitions: Why you should enter and how you can win

Front Vision, September 2024

All Eyes on Earth

Front Vision, August 2024

Does AI steal art or help create it? It depends on who you ask

Science News Explores, June 6, 2024

AI image generators tend to exaggerate stereotypes

Science News Explores, June 6, 2024

A new test could help weed out AI-generated text

Science News Explores, May 29, 2024

Catching Ghost Particles: The story of neutrinos

Front Vision, June 2024

A new test could help weed out AI-generated text

Science News Explores, May 29, 2024

Should we use AI to resurrect digital ‘ghosts’ of the dead?

Science News, May 15, 2024

The Invisible World Inside

Front Vision, May 2024

How to design artificial intelligence that acts nice — and only nice

Science News Explores, April 18, 2024

‘Jailbreaks’ bring out the evil side of chatbots

Science News Explores, April 18, 2024

A new tool could guard against deepfake voice scams

Science News Explores, April 15, 2024

Science@Work: Serge Wich

Muse, Vol. 28, No. 04, April 2024

Fighting Back Against Malaria

Front Vision, April 2024

When Art Comes Alive

Front Vision, March 2024

To ‘green’ AI, scientists are making it less resource-hungry

Science News Explores, February 8, 2024

Harvesting Energy from the Human Body

Front Vision, February 2024

Chatbots in the Classroom

Muse, Vol. 28, No. 02, February 2024

Hands-On: Bot or Not?

Muse, Vol. 28, No. 02, February 2024

Color – It’s Elemental!

色彩即元素, Front Vision, January 2024

2023

Why biodiversity matters

为什么生物多样性很重要, Front Vision, December 2023

Talking through a tube can trick AI into mistaking one voice for another

Science News Explores, October 23, 2023

How stress harms your health

压力如何损伤 你的身体, Front Vision, October 2023

Crops are being engineered to thrive in our changing climate

Science News Explores, September 21, 2023

Will AI take all the jobs?

人工智能会抢走所有工作吗, Front Vision, September 2023

Science@Work: Nicho Hatsopoulos

Muse, Vol. 27, No. 07, September 2023

How artificial intelligence could help us talk to animals

Science News Explores, August 17, 2023

What is my pet saying? Scientists are working to find out

Science News Explores, August 17, 2023

The Beginnings and Ends of Time

时间的开始与结束, Front Vision, July 2023

Is AI More Rational Than People?

Front Vision, June 2023

Let There Be Laser Light

激光的特性、原理和用途, Front Vision, May 2023

How ChatGPT and similar AI will disrupt education

Science News, April 12, 2023

Here’s how to increase clean energy without harming wildlife

Science News Explores, April 6, 2023

What Animals Teach Us About Aging

动物与衰老, Front Vision, April 2023

Creating less new stuff could greatly help Earth’s climate

Science News Explores, March 16, 2023

A single chip like this could transmit a world’s worth of data

Science News Explores, March 10, 2023

Sleep helps AI models learn new things without forgetting old ones

Science News Explores, February 22, 2023

Think twice before using ChatGPT for help with homework

Science News Explores, February 16, 2023

Can a robot ever become your friend?

Science News Explores, February 2, 2023

Photo Op: Breathtaking First Images from the JWST

Muse, Vol. 27, No. 02, February 2023

Insect-inspired drones work together to 3-D print structures

Science News Explores, January 23, 2023

Will the internet soon reach the one-third of people without it?

Science News Explores, January 5, 2023

What Makes a Timekeeper Tick?

钟表运转的奥秘, Front Vision, January 2023

2022

A shape-shifting robotic tooth-cleaner might one day brush for you

Science News Explores, November 11, 2022

These fabrics change color as they stretch

Science News Explores, November 4, 2022

How wriggling, blood-eating parasitic worms alter the body

Science News Explores, November 3, 2022

Bad Water: The story of the Flint River and a public health crisis

污染水, Front Vision, November 2022

A Guide to the Believing Brain

Muse, Vol. 26, No. 8, October 2022

The Future of Antarctica

南极在变化封面, Front Vision, October 2022

Welcome to the metaverse

Science News Explores, September 8, 2022

This leaping robot can out-jump anything — animal or machine

Science News Explores, August 22, 2022

The Story of CRISPR

Front Vision, August 2022

Virtual critters evolve bodies that help them learn

Science News for Students, July 8, 2022

How to Make Electricity Without Fossil Fuels

Front Vision, July 2022

Will Superintelligence Destroy Humanity?

Front Vision, June 2022

A Drug’s Journey: The Secrets of Pharmacology

Front Vision, May 2022

Engineers borrow a tree’s cellulose to toughen new materials

Science News for Students, April 4, 2022

Do The Math: Don’t Fear the Bermuda Triangle

Muse, Vol. 26, No. 4, April 2022

Is the sky really blue? It depends on what language you speak

Science News for Students, March 17, 2022

These flying robots protect endangered wildlife

Science News for Students, March 10, 2022

How to Appreciate Architecture

面对建筑、体验建筑, Front Vision, March 2022

A Science Journalist’s Journey to Understand AI

The Gradient, January 15, 2022

2021

Secret forest fungi partner with plants — and help the climate

Science News for Students, December 9, 2021

How 3D Printing will Transform Manufacturing

打印将如何改变制造业, Front Vision, December 2021

The Robots Among Us

我们身边的机器人, Front Vision, December 2021

No Words for Blue

Muse, Vol. 25, No. 9, November/December 2021

A growing share of teens feels lonely at school

Science News for Students, November 5, 2021

Predicting Storms: The science and history of cyclones and anticyclones

Front Vision, November 2021

No Fear: Can a rare brain disease erase fear?

Muse, Vol. 25, No. 8, October 2021

Manufacturing on Mars

火星制造业, Front Vision, October 2021

Will the woolly mammoth return?

Science News for Students, September 23, 2021

Cloning boosts endangered black-footed ferrets

Science News for Students, September 23, 2021

Discovering the power of placebos

Science News for Students, September 9, 2021

My Science Writing Career

名科普作家的写作经验, Front Vision, August 2021

Hands-On: How to Tell Someone’s Fortune

Muse, Vol. 25, No. 6, July/August 2021

Science@Work: Ashton Robinson Cook

Muse, Vol. 25, No. 6, July/August 2021

The Search Engines of the Future

Front Vision, July 2021

As Fast as an Ostrich

像鸵鸟一样快, Front Vision, June 2021

New robots can clean virus-laden surfaces so people won’t have to

Science News for Students, May 20, 2021

New device gets power from 5G signals grabbed from the air

Science News for Students, May 17, 2021

The Power Grid

电网, Front Vision, May 2021

Light levitation might help explore Earth’s ‘ignorosphere’

Science News for Students, April 21, 2021

The Bee Highway: Making a place for bees in the city

Muse Magazine, Volume 25, No. 4, April 2021

How Plants Shape Human Beings

植物如何影响 人类发展, Front Vision, April 2021

Greening your digital life

Science News for Students, March 25, 2021

5G promises new energy savings for digital tech

Science News for Students, March 25, 2021

Training AI to be really smart poses risks to climate

Science News for Students, March 19, 2021

The Future of Food

未来的食物, Front Vision, March 2021

No Place Like Home: Where and when are all the habitable planets?

Muse Magazine, Volume 25, No. 3, March 2021

What the mummy’s curse reveals about your brain

Science News for Students, January 14, 2021

Bye-bye batteries? Power a phone with fabric or a beacon with sound

Science News for Students, January 6, 2021

Amazing Powers of the Mind

Muse Magazine, Volume 25, No. 1, January 2021

Activity: Do You Have ESP?

Muse Magazine, Volume 25, No. 1, January 2021

The Elevators that Will Carry Us into the Future

大楼内的新型运载工具, Front Vision, January 2021

2020

The Greening of the City, Front Vision, December 2020

Underneath the City, Front Vision, December 2020

New device tells smiles from frowns — even through a mask, Science News for Students, December 4, 2020

Ordinary paper turns into flexible human-powered keypad, Science News for Students, November 6, 2020

You should guess answers to your homework before searching online, Science News for Students, October 14, 2020

Science@Work: Nicole Patton Terry, Muse Magazine, Vol. 24, No. 8, October 2020

Healthy screen time is one challenge of distance learning, Science News for Students, September 11, 2020

Are coyotes moving into your neighborhood? Science News for Students, September 3, 2020

The Very Real Threat of Virtual Attacks, Front Vision, September 2020

The Future of the Internet, Front Vision, September 2020

A robot referee can really keep its ‘eye’ on the ball, Science News for Students, August 20, 2020

How to Make a Diamond, Front Vision, August 2020

The Story of Jade, Front Vision, August 2020

Advanced Ceramics: Humanity’s earliest invention gets a makeover, Front Vision, July 2020

Inventing New Body Parts, Front Vision, July 2020

Silk-based microneedles may help treat diseased plants, Science News for Students, June 18, 2020

Activity: From Here to There and Everywhere, Muse Magazine, Vol. 24, No. 5, May/June 2020

The Super Powers of Poop, Front Vision, May 2020

Unwanted Electronics: What should we do with old, broken electronic devices? Front Vision, April 2020

On Fire: How to safely burn the world’s waste, Front Vision, April 2020

At Home in the Universe: Where and when is life most likely to exist? Front Vision, March 2020

Talking to E.T.: How might humans and intelligent aliens communicate with each other? Front Vision, March 2020

An Alien Encounter, Front Vision, March 2020

The Kraken’s True Form, Muse Magazine, Vol. 24, No. 1, January 2020

2019

Science@Work: Vince Rossi, Muse Magazine, Vol. 23, No. 9, November/December 2019

Strange but true: the mystery of the Monte Cristo Homestead and the supernatural science that explains it, BBC Science Focus, October 31, 2019

The science of ghosts, Science News for Students, October 31, 2019

Shaking Things Up: How human activity triggers earthquakes, Front Vision, September 2019

As infections ravage food crops, scientists fight back, Science News for Students, August 15, 2019

How Big Data Powers AI, Front Vision, July 2019

Bots vs. Blazes: Drones and robots help us fight fires, Muse Magazine, Vol. 23, No. 6, July/August 2019

You can fight back against cyberattacks, Science News for Students, May 9, 2019

Here Be Monsters, Muse Magazine, Vol. 23, No. 5, May/June 2019

Fortnite Frenzy: How a free game makes money — and lots of it, Muse Magazine, Vol. 23, No. 4, April 2019

On the lookout for micro-missiles from space, Science News for Students, March 7, 2019

Out of the Dolphin Cave and into the Ocean: How high school kids invented a cart to help save dolphins, Muse Magazine, Vol. 23, No. 2, February 2019

Doctor Robot, Front Vision, February 2019

War of the Robots, Front Vision, February 2019

Becoming Better Cyborgs, Front Vision, January 2019

2018

How Language and Thought Intertwine, Front Vision, October 2018

Who Needs Wheat Flour, Anyway? A Search for Gluten-Free Goodness, Muse Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 7, September 2018

Cold Fusion, Muse Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 6, July/August 2018

Science@Work: Tammy Ma, Muse Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 6, July/August 2018

The Blade Jumper, Front Vision, July 2018

Superintelligence, Front Vision, May 25, 2018

Chatting with Computers, Front Vision, May 25, 2018

Wireless devices crowd out cosmic radio signals and more, Science News for Students, April 12, 2018

Cool Jobs: Decoding how your brain ‘reads’, Science News for Students, March 22, 2018

Think Your Password, Muse Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 3, March 2018

Science@Work: Lila Miller, Muse Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 2, February 2018

New treatment could calm temperature-sensitive teeth, Science News for Students, January 3, 2018

Bug Detective, Muse Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 1, January 2018

2017

This robot won’t trip people up, Science News for Students, December 1, 2017

The Mind in the Machine, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 9, November/December 2017

Sweat-slurping ‘aliens’ live on your skin, Science News for Students, October 25, 2017

Good germs lurk in gross places, Science News for Students, October 5, 2017

Video games level up life skills, Science News for Students, September 27, 2017

Cash for Blood, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 8, October 2017

Tiny spongelike machines sop up blood sugar, Science News for Students, September 22, 2017

Save the Doodles, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 6, July/August 2017

Camera catches new fish species — as it’s eaten! Science News for Students, June 26, 2017

Cool Jobs: New tools to solve crimes, Science News for Students, June 8, 2017

Underwater robot vacuums up lionfish, Science News for Students, June 5, 2017

Are fidget spinners tools or toys? Science News for Students, June 1, 2017

Cool Jobs: Counting calories, Science News for Students, May 25, 2017

Explainer: All about the calorie, Science News for Students, May 25, 2017

Just viewing super-size meals can promote overeating, Science News for Students, April 21, 2017

Teaching robots right from wrong, Science News for Students, April 20, 2017

Twitch Together, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 4, April 2017

Early birds eat better, Science News for Students, April 14, 2017

Communing with the Letter Spirits, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 3, March 2017

Wired and weird: Meet the cyborg plants, Science News for Students, February 23, 2017

Fasten Your Seat Belt, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 2, February 2017

Science@Work: Stephen Fletcher, Muse Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 1, January 2017

2016

Could toothpaste give heart disease the brush-off?
Science News for Students, November 23, 2016

DIY Dream Journal
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 9, November/December 2016

Zombies are Real!
Science News for Students, October 27, 2016

Cool Jobs: Video game creators
Science News for Students, October 6, 2016

Science@Work: Richard Kirby and Paraic McGlynn
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 8 October, 2016

One day, computers may decode your dreams
Science News for Students, September 22, 2016

Explainer: How to read brain activity
Science News for Students, September 22, 2016

Hands-on: Test Your Smarts
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 7, September 2016

Mighty & Magical Magnets
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 5, May/June 2016

The cool science of hot peppers
Science News for Students, May 5, 2016

Newly discovered microbe keeps teeth healthy
Science News for Students, April 18, 2016

Microbes mine treasure from waste
Science News for Students, March 31, 2016

Magic Potions
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 4, April 2016

Myth or Reality?
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 3, March 2016

From zits to warts: Which disturb people most?
Science News for Students, March 25, 2016

Explainer: What is metabolic syndrome?
Science News for Students, March 4, 2016

Teens eating better but gaining weight
Science News for Students, March 4, 2016

Zoo Complicated: Are Captive Animals Happy?
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 2, February 2016

The Truth About Zits
Science News for Students, January 22, 2016

The Ring of Fire
Muse Magazine, Vol. 20 No. 1, January 2016

2015

Do dogs have a sense of self?
Science News for Students, December 24, 2015

Some otters wear red algae
Science News for Students, December 17, 2015

Engineers consider liquid salt to generate power
Science News for Students, December 2, 2015

Some 3-D printing can leave toxic taint
Science News for Students, November 23, 2015

Slime Cities
Science News for Students, November 3, 2015

Science @ Work: Max Tegmark
Muse Magazine, Vol. 19 No. 9 November/December 2015

Testing Einstein in Space
Muse Magazine, Vol. 19 No. 9 November/December 2015

Fun and Games
Muse Magazine, Vol. 19 No. 5 May/June 2015

2014

Rare as a Rhino
Science News for Students: October 2, 2014

Wave to Saturn
Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 23 No. 7 September 2014

Meet Dr. Mad Science
Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 23 No. 6 July/August 2014

The Science of Star Trek
Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 23 No. 3 March 2014

2013

X-ray ‘eyes’, Science News for Students: November 22, 2013

A Race Through Time, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 22 No. 6 July/August 2013

Imagination Challenge: What can you build out of a cardboard box? Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 22 No. 5 May/June 2013

The Rat Pack Researchers and a Fishy Mystery, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 22 No. 4 April 2013

Water, Water Everywhere: From outer space to inside your body, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 22 No. 3 March 2013

Singing Over the Noise: How Songbirds Adapt to City Life, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 22 No. 2 February 2013

Say it with Photos: Fun with Photos on Facebook, Instagram, and Beyond, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 1 January 2013

2012

The Dragon in the Dungeon, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 9 November/December 2012

Tweet, Post, Share! How You are Changing Politics, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 8 October 2012

Baboon for President, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 8 October 2012

Engineering the Perfect Game, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 6 Olympic Gold: Physics or Fate?, July/August 2012

Terrible Twister! Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 3 The Perfect Storm, March 2012

The Rat Pack Researchers and the Annoy-a-thon, Odyssey Magazine, Vol. 21 No. 1 How Annoying! “Stop That” Science, January 2012

2007 through 2011

  • The Search for Another Earth, Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 9 Does E.T. Exist?, November/December 2011.
  • They’re Sneaky… They’re Slimy… They’re Biofilms! Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 8, Slimes, October 2011.
  • The Rat Pack Researchers and the Zippy Mystery, Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 7, Addicted? September 2011.
  • The Alien Discovery that Wasn’t, Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 6, Rage or Reason? July/August 2011.
  • Keep an Eye on Solar Activity with the Free 3D Sun iPhone App, Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 5, The Sun Burns, May/June 2011.
  • Staring at the Sun, Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 5, The Sun Burns, May/June 2011.
  • Parallel Universes: Where (Almost) Anything is Possible! Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 3, Copycats, March 2011.
  • Learning from Disasters: Exxon-Valdez vs. Deepwater Horizon, Odyssey, Vol. 20 No. 1, Oil Spill! January 2011.
  • The Ice Storm that Stole Christmas, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 9, On Ice, November/December 2010.
  • Ava Do: Stealing Hearts & Minds (and Much More!), Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 8, The Magic Half, October 2010.
  • Four Incredible Cyborg Creatures, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 7, Am I A Borg, Yet? September 2010.
  • Under Pressure: Looking Inside Earth, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 6, That Rocks, July/August 2010.
  • Asses to Zebras, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 5, Wild Horses, May 2010.
  • Journey to the Moons, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 4, Fly Me to the Moons, April 2010.
  • Meet Allyson Ames: One of the Richest Kids in America, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 2, It’s Just Money, February 2010.
  • Andy Goldsworthy: Sculpting Earth Art, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 1, Is It Art or Science?, January 2010
  • Prize-Winning Art… By Scientists!, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 1, Is It Art or Science?, January 2010
  • Ars Electronica: A Tantalizing Technological Tour, Odyssey, Vol. 19 No. 1, Is It Art or Science?, January 2010
  • Star Trek, Odyssey, Vol. 18 No. 7, Techno Travel, September 2009
  • The Boy Who Couldn’t Play, Odyssey, Vol. 18 No. 6, Let’s Play!, July/August 2009
  • Shark Attack, Odyssey, Vol. 18 No. 5, Swimming with the Sharks, May 2009
  • Beetle Attack, Odyssey, Vol. 18 No. 4, The Carbon Connection, April 2009
  • Happy Birth Day, Odyssey, Vol. 18 No. 1, Babies: Journey to Life, January 2009
  • Robo-Speak, Odyssey, Vol. 17 No. 8, Robo-Buddy, October 2008
  • Modern Mummies, Odyssey, Vol. 17 No. 7, Stiff: The Engrossing Cadaver, September 2008
  • Albina’s Cell Phone, Odyssey, Vol. 17 No. 1, Unwired, January 2008
  • Career Watch: Working in Biometrics, Odyssey, Vol. 16 No. 7, Tagged: Identity Theft, October 2007
  • Great Depression Slang and Hobo Code, Cobblestone, The Great Depression, March 2008
  • A Day at School in Kyrgyzstan, Faces, Vol. 24 No. 3, Teens Around the World, November 2007
  • Together in Cyberspace, Faces, Vol. 24 No. 3, Teens Around the World, November 2007
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