Parenthood is the main cause of gender imbalance in STEM. Almost half of all women leave or go part-time after they have their first child. This is twice the number of men. Read Cui Wang’s experience as a young scientist…
Scientists discovered a shape that blocks all sound–even your co-workers
Open office space and small apartments could be transformed by the work of Boston University researchers, who recently unveiled an “acoustic metamaterial” that blocks all sound. “The implications for architecture and interior design are remarkable, because these metamaterials could be…
Boaty McBoatface makes deep-sea discovery
The submarine Boaty McBoatface took measurements deep in the Southern Ocean near Antarctica and discovered something new about the mixing of warm and cold water that may affect future climate change models. “The resulting warming of the water on the…
UC Berkeley creates a Data Science major
UC Berkeley’s fastest-growing class is data science 101. The new major merges aspects of computer science and statistics to mine the massive amount of available data. Internet-connected devices generate 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every day. The ability to process…
Dogs sniff out electronics to fight crimes
Police dogs at the Connecticut State Police Department are trained to sniff out electronics. They can find anything with digital storage, such as cell phones, thumb drives, computers, and memory cards. The program started in 2012 to help investigators find…
Turtle gets around with Lego wheelchair
A wild turtle with a broken shell is rolling around on a wheelchair made of Legos while he’s on the mend at The Maryland Zoo. “It was important to keep the bottom of the shell off the ground so it…
Closing the gap between men and women in STEM
“There’s a myth that if you’re bad at math, you can’t enter a STEM field. Having a natural competence in math can be helpful, but skill and intelligence grow with consistent practice and effort. Getting involved in projects is the…
Astrophysicist wins prize 50 years later
Astrophysicist Jocelyn Bell Burnell won the Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics 50 years after discovering pulsars in space. Bell Burnell is donating her winnings to the U.K.’s Institute of Physics, where they will fund graduate scholarships for under-represented students…
Ada Lace books may turn girls into science geeks
Emily Calandrelli, host of Xploration Station thinks there aren’t enough female science geeks in fiction. She wants to help change that with her Ada Lace series of children’s books. Calandrelli says, “What I wanted to do was create a character…
Find the summer constellations
This NPR website and video helps you find constellations in our night sky. The site also includes a simple PDF that you can use to discover the summer stars.