Week in science goes nuclear
What are the prospects for nuclear power in the US? They look mixed, according to a detailed analysis of the technology and policy issues in play. Even as we...
Why open science failed after the gulf oil spill
At last month's meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of science, there was an inspiring talk about how the open sharing of scientific data could provide new avenues for...
Neil deGrasse Tyson pushes exploration in Space Chronicles
Plans for NASA have seen some large swings in recent years. First came President Bush’s ambitious vision for a return to the Moon with a new spacecraft. Then it was President Obama’s reorganization...
Scientists and tourists put Antarctica at risk for an invasion
In 2007 and 2008, various groups organized a collaborative program that promoted research in the polar regions. Called the "International Polar Year," it brought scientists, tourists, and research projects to Antarctica......
Erasing a bit shown to boost entropy
In 1961 Rolf Landauer linked information and thermodynamic entropy by showing that erasing or combining bits of memory must be accompanied by an increase in entropy. For the first time since then,...
Feature: Chain reaction: the (slow) revival of US nuclear power
We may be at a critical point for nuclear power in the United States. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved the construction of a new nuclear plant for the first time...
NASA to use Virginia site to launch five rockets in experiment visible along Eastern Seaboard
Listening to the nightly news, you'll often hear the weather forecaster mention jet streams moving weather systems around. These are located above 10 km above sea level, where they also affect...
Galactic pile-up leaves behind mysterious dark matter core
Astronomers have found an enormous and strange clump of dark matter left behind following a violent collision of galaxy clusters.
The clump...
Lawrence Krauss describes how to get A Universe From Nothing
Like his buddy Richard Dawkins, the evolutionary biologist who wrote the Afterward to his book, physicist Lawrence Krauss does not have a ton of patience for theology. Or American schools. Or...
Dept. of Energy signs agreements to develop small nuclear generators
The Obama administration's Department of Energy, led by Steven Chu, has taken a "portfolio" approach to easing the country into a future in which we're less reliant on fossil fuels. Instead of betting on...
Week in Science goes to TED
This week, some of Ars' top science stories came from our Editor-in-Chief Ken Fisher, who was attending the TED talks in California. TED typically features people with big ideas that have the...
Attempt to grab climate scientists’ e-mails rejected by Virginia Supreme Court
The climate researcher Michael Mann last worked at the University of Virginia in 2005, but his past employment has continued to haunt him. Virginia's attorney general, Kenneth Cuccinelli decided that, in the wake of...
