Language
What’s the World’s Oldest Language?
Debate rages over which languages can claim to have the earliest origin
Stories by Lucy Tu
Neuroscience
Neuroscientists Re-create Pink Floyd Song from Listeners’ Brain Activity
Artificial intelligence has turned the brain’s electrical signals into somewhat garbled classic rock
Pharmaceuticals
How Advocates Pushed Big Pharma to Cut Tuberculosis Drug Prices
The world’s best TB drug was too expensive for sufferers—until advocates and a YouTube star changed almost everything
Mental Health
First Pill for Postpartum Depression Approved
The FDA approved zuranolone, a short-term oral medication that could help new parents who are struggling with depression after giving birth
Epidemiology
Six Ways to Stay Safe Outdoors in Extreme Heat
As summers get hotter and longer, experts provide advice on how to survive heat-related emergencies
Artificial Intelligence
Here’s How AI Can Predict Hit Songs With Frightening Accuracy
New AI technology predicts hit songs—by listening to someone’s body.
Epidemiology
Why Maternal Mortality Rates Are Getting Worse across the U.S.
A new study shows U.S. maternal mortality rates are increasing, and health care providers and advocacy groups are racing to build better care for new parents
Cosmology
Time Flowed Five Times Slower Shortly after the Big Bang
Voracious black holes feeding on matter in the early universe display the curious spacetime phenomenon known as time dilation
Diet
Better Ways Than BMI to Measure Obesity
A leading medical society says that the commonly used body mass index falls short, and it is time for alternative measures
Arts
Can Your Body’s Response to Music Predict Hit Songs? A New AI Study Claims It Can
A new study suggests AI can analyze cardiac activity to predict whether a song will be a hit before it’s released. But some hit-song scientists are skeptical
Health Care
One Year after Dobbs, Abortion Bans Are Harming Reproductive Care, Ob-Gyns Say
The Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade is impacting health care well beyond abortion in states that have banned the practice
Medicine
A Common Diabetes Drug May Prevent Long COVID in Some People
The drug metformin cut long COVID risk by 41 percent in both people who were overweight and those with obesity. But treatments remain elusive
