Innovations

To solve the puzzle, you must twist the cubes so that eventually each side returns to its original color: The challenge is the astounding number of potential variations — more than 43 quintillion of them.

A Brief History of the Rubik’s Cube

Nearly half a century after its humble invention, the cube continues to be a global sensation. What’s the secret?

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Protease Inhibitors to Fight COVID-19: Stopping the Virus's Life Cycle

Breakthroughs at the intersection of Health and Science

Are there other imaging agents hiding in plain sight?

Could Tattoo Ink Be Used to Detect Cancer?

A new study on medical imaging agents shows common pigments and dyes could help with early diagnosis

A humpback whale breaches off the coast near Alameda, California. Ships collide and kill an estimated 80 endangered whales a year off of the West Coast.

Innovative New Whale Detection System Aims to Prevent Ships From Striking Animals

Whale Safe launches in Southern California waters to help reduce deaths of the iconic marine mammals

Picture of the top and bottom sides of the chips with integrated microfluidic cooling, next to the miniaturized power converter

A New System for Cooling Down Computers Could Revolutionize the Pace of Innovation

A Swiss team has created tiny, fluid-filled channels in microchips to spirit away heat and save energy

3D-printed masks made for a New Hampshire hospital amid PPE shortages in March.

Covid-19 Has Designers Reimagining Personal Protective Equipment

The global pandemic has led to a surge in demand for PPE. Inventors have responded—with mixed results.

As the researcher taps the page, numbers appear on screen.

With a Simple Piece of Paper, Engineers Create Self-Powered, Wireless Keyboard

Scientists at Purdue University have found a way to make a piece of paper digitally interactive

Club Cardinal users can decorate their own dorm rooms.

Stanford University Students Flock to a Virtual Campus

A new digital platform allows students to explore campus and connect in Zoom rooms during the school's Covid-19 shutdown

Cars line up at a drive-in coronavirus testing site in Miami Gardens, Florida, in late June. Testing in many states has been hampered by bottlenecks and long delays, problems that could be eased by the rapid, simple tests scientists are now developing.

Scientists Are Racing to Develop Paper-Based Tests for Covid-19

Inexpensive—and potentially at-home—tools could take only minutes to tell if someone is infected

Excavations at this site in Israel's Negev Desert yielded evidence of olive oil soap manufacturing dating back roughly 1,200 years.

Archaeologists Find 1,200-Year-Old Soap Factory in Israel

To create the cleaning concoction, ancient workers mixed olive oil with ashes from saltwort plants

Riker Laboratories advertised its new device for treating asthma in 1957—two years after a teenager’s truly inspiring suggestion.

The History of the Asthma Inhaler

How a brilliant quip led to a treatment that helps millions every minute

Allied freighters ablaze in the harbor of Bari, Italy, after the German attack.

How a Chemical Weapons Disaster in WWII Led to a U.S. Cover-Up—and a New Cancer Treatment

The physician who led the investigation into a deadly explosion in Italy found the truth, and some hope

Water runs from a hose into a hay bale pool.

Seven Ideas for Do-It-Yourself Backyard Pools

Build a personal oasis with everything from hay bales to scrap wood to a shipping container

Susie and Paul Sensmeier of Christiansburg, Virginia, got front row seats to the arrival of the first drone-shipped home delivery in the fall of 2019.

This Drone Made the First Home Delivery in the United States

Wing’s tether-toting drone delivered a winter vest to a retiree in Virginia and now its headed to the Air and Space Museum

Quantum physicist Amruta Gadge became the first to create a Bose-Einstein Condensate—the exotic, elusive fifth state of matter—remotely.

Five Scientific Achievements That Happened During Coronavirus Lockdown

Quarantine did not stop these innovators from discovering new species, creating the elusive fifth state of matter remotely, and more

An array of 24 speakers can quiet city noise by as much as closing the window

Window-Mounted Device Could Keep Out City Noise

A microphone outside the window measures the incoming noise so that an array of two dozen speakers can cancel it out

John Rogers and his colleague Shuai Xu’s tech startup Sonica Health is submitting the device with a pulse oximeter and its algorithms to the FDA for approval later this month.

This Band-Aid-Like Patch Could Detect Early COVID-19 Symptoms

Northwestern University scientist John Rogers has developed a wearable that adheres to the throat and relays data to a physician

A set of 120,000-year-old shells from the Qafzeh Cave in northern Israel. Ancient humans collected these shells, which had natural perforations, and arranged them on lengths of string.

New Research Suggests Humans Invented String at Least 120,000 Years Ago

Marks found on ancient shells indicate that they were laced together to create necklaces

FARMstead ED pairs visitors with onsite and educational hands-on farm experiences throughout California's San Luis Obispo County.

Small Farms Find Creative Ways to Attract Visitors During the Coronavirus Pandemic

From curbside produce pickup to reservation-only classes, farms are adapting to make ends meet

Poles like these at a Boston fire station are no longer used universally, but they remain emblematic of the profession.

How an Ingenious Fireman Brought a Pole Into the Firehouse

More than a century ago, David Kenyon of Chicago discovered the fastest way to the ground floor

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