Science
Ground Control
The Plan to Send Plant-Filled âGardensâ Into Orbit
Off-world agriculture has long seemed experimental, but that could soon change thanks to a collaboration between design firm Heatherwick Studio and the space architecture nonprofit Aurelia Institute.
Chris Baraniuk
Starshipâs Latest Test Reveals New Problems for SpaceX to Solve
Stephen Clark, Ars Technica
WIREDâs Guide to Mushroom Supplements (the Functional Kind)
Curious about mushroom supplements? Hereâs what they do, what the science says, and how to know if theyâre right for you—according to the experts.
Boutayna Chokrane
Why Women With Type 2 Diabetes Are Diagnosed Later Than Men
Researchers are trying to understand more about the biological and social differences that contribute to later diabetes diagnoses and worse outcomes in women.
Lori Youmshajekian
Blocked From Selling Off-Brand Ozempic, Telehealth Startups Embrace a Less Effective Drug
As the FDA halts the sale of Ozempic and Zepbound copycats, online clinics have begun offering liraglutide, an older GLP-1 medication injected daily instead of weekly.
Kate Knibbs
Diabetes Is Rising in Africa. Could It Lead to New Breakthroughs?
Growing rates of type 2 diabetes across the African content offer scientists hope of creating new, more inclusive treatments.
David Cox
Trump Cuts Are Killing a Tiny Office That Keeps Measurements of the World Accurate
A tiny but crucial agency that maintains physical coordinates like latitude and longitude in the US is struggling as the Trump administration forces out federal employees.
Molly Taft
A Baby Received a Custom Crispr Treatment in Record Time
Scientists were able to create a bespoke treatment for KJ Muldoonâs rare genetic disorder within six months. It could be a blueprint for potentially life-saving, gene-editing Crispr therapies.
Emily Mullin
The EPA Is Giving Some Forever Chemicals a Pass
Last year, the Biden administration set limits on PFAS in drinking water systems. Donald Trumpâs EPA is planning to dramatically soften that rule.
Molly Taft
The EPA Will Likely Gut Team That Studies Health Risks From Chemicals
Reorganizations at the EPA may get rid of the agencyâs fundamental program for research around the risks of toxic chemicals.
Molly Taft
Fire Breaks Out at a Data Center Leased by Elon Muskâs X
The fire department said a room with batteries contributed to the blaze at a building leased by Elon Muskâs X near Portland, Oregon.
Kylie Robison, Molly Taft, and Paresh Dave
FEMA Has Canceled Its 4-Year Strategic Plan Ahead of Hurricane Season
Multiple FEMA employees tell WIRED that they did not know of another time when a strategic plan was rescinded without another in place.
Molly Taft and Vittoria Elliott
Dismantling NOAA Threatens the Worldâs Ability to Monitor Carbon Dioxide Levels
The agency maintains the global backbone of measurements of CO2 and other gases, but these are at risk of being curtailed if the foreshadowed cuts to NOAA are realized.
Eric Morgan and Ralph Keeling
FEMA Is Ending Door-to-Door Canvassing in Disaster Areas
As it shifts responsibility for recovery efforts to local authorities, FEMA workers will stop knocking on doors to provide aid to survivors in disaster areas, per a memo obtained by WIRED.
Molly Taft
Want to Claim the Solar Tax Credit? Get Installing Now
For anyone in the US who can afford to go solar, ânow would be the time,â because House Republicans want to end federal tax credits that make it affordable.
Tik Root
AI Is Eating Data Center Power Demand—and Itâs Only Getting Worse
A new analysis of AI hardware being produced and how it is being used attempts to estimate the vast amount of electricity being consumed by AI.
Molly Taft
Why Balcony Solar Panels Havenât Taken Off in the US
In countries like Germany, balcony-mounted solar panels are all the rage. But from breaker-masking to voltage mismatches, Americaâs grid isnât ready for it—yet.
Akielly Hu
What Caused the European Power Outage?
Thereâs still no official explanation for the blackout in Spain, Portugal, and parts of southern France—but experts point to the makeup of the Iberian peninsulaâs power grid.
Fernanda González
A New Study Reveals the Makeup of Uranusâ Atmosphere
Based on 20 years of observations by NASAâs Hubble Space Telescope, new research sheds light on one of the solar systemâs most mysterious planets.
Shigeyuki Hando
The Milky Way Has a Mysterious âBroken Boneâ
Galactic bones, filaments of radio-wave-emitting particles, run through our galaxy, and one of them has a fracture. New analysis suggests collision with a neutron star may have caused it.
Jorge Garay
New Bacteria Have Been Discovered on a Chinese Space Station
On Earth there is no record of Niallia tiangongensis, a bacterium found aboard the Tiangong station that appears to be well adapted to conditions there.
Jorge Garay
SpaceX Tests Starship Fixes After Back-to-Back Failures
The next Starship launch may come as soon as next week. A test of its Raptor engines suggests SpaceX has resolved the issues that plagued its recent flights.
Stephen Clark, Ars Technica
The Quest to Prove the Existence of a New Type of Quantum Particle
A new proposal makes the case that paraparticles—a new category of quantum particle—could be created in exotic materials.
Shalma Wegsman
Intelligence on Earth Evolved Independently at Least Twice
Complex neural circuits likely arose independently in birds and mammals, suggesting that vertebrates evolved intelligence multiple times.
Yasemin Saplakoglu
Why Pigeons at Rest Are at the Center of Complexity Theory
When pigeons outnumber pigeonholes, some birds must double up. This obvious statement, and its inverse, have deep connections to many areas of math and computer science.
Ben Brubaker
The Phony Physics of Star Wars Are a Blast
Those epic battle scenes in space are awesome—and physically impossible. But hey, itâs more fun this way!
Rhett Allain
The Enhanced Games Has a Date, a Host City, and a Drug-Fueled World Record
The Enhanced Games, where athletes are allowed to take performance-enhancing drugs, will host its first event in May. One âenhancedâ former Olympic swimmer has already broken the 50-meter freestyle record.
Amit Katwala
Eli Lilly Sues 4 GLP-1 Telehealth Startups, Escalating War on Knockoff Drugs
Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly alleges the companies are selling illegal off-brand versions of its best-selling diabetes and weight-loss drugs, Mounjaro and Zepbound.
Kate Knibbs and Emily Mullin
An Experimental Obesity Pill Mimics Gastric Bypass Surgery
A novel drug that produces a temporary coating in the small intestine could be a new strategy for weight loss—and an alternative to surgeries and GLP-1 drugs.
Emily Mullin
Scientists Claim to Have Brought Back the Dire Wolf
Startup Colossal Biosciences has edited the DNA of a gray wolf to produce what it says is a de-extincted animal. Does that make it a true dire wolf?
Emily Mullin and Matt Reynolds
The Dream of the Metaverse Is Dying. Manufacturing Is Keeping It Alive
Forget Mark Zuckerbergâs vision of VR meetings; the industrial metaverse bridges digital and physical worlds in a way thatâs actually useful.
Nicole Kobie
2025 Is the Year of the Humanoid Robot Factory Worker
Long confined to the lab, humanoids finally appear ready to work in manufacturing. There are just a few hurdles to get them to market.
Russell Brandom
These Robots Are Recovering Dumped Explosives From the Baltic Sea
In the face of seabeds becoming valuable real estate and corroding bombs polluting the oceans, teams are turning to technology to clean up this dangerous and expensive problem.
Bryn Stole
NASA Wants to Explore the Icy Moons of Jupiter and Saturn With Autonomous Robots
Research and development is underway to create robots that can hunt for signs of life in the vast oceans that exist under the thick ice shells of bodies like Europa.
Shigeyuki Hando
How Do You Live a Happier Life? Notice What Was There All Along
Reacquaint yourself with the good things in life by taking the time to appreciate them—and yes, itâs OK to rush through the bad stuff.
Tali Sharot
The Race to Translate Animal Sounds Into Human Language
With big cash prizes at stake—and AI supercharging research—interspecies translation is closer than ever. But what, if anything, would animals want to tell us?
Arik Kershenbaum
An Uncertain Future Requires Uncertain Prediction Skills
Forecasting is both art and science, reliant on both rigor and luck—but you can develop a mindset that anticipates and plans ahead.
David Spiegelhalter
These Rats Learned to Drive—and They Love It
Driving represented an interesting way for neuroscientists to study how rodents acquire new skills, and unexpectedly, rats had an intense motivation for their driving training.
Kelly Lambert
Latest
Access Denied
Patients Are Left With Few Options as GLP-1 Copycats Disappear
Emily Mullin and Kate Knibbs
Inhumanity
US Customs and Border Protection Quietly Revokes Protections for Pregnant Women and Infants
Dhruv Mehrotra
Golden Handshake
As the US Cuts Scientific Talent, Europe Launches an Initiative to Attract It
Fernanda González
Mach 5
This US Company Just Successfully Tested a Reusable Hypersonic Rocket Plane
Stephen Clark, Ars Technica
Global Warning
The Climate Crisis Threatens Supply Chains. Manufacturers Hope AI Can Help
Chris Baraniuk
Uncanny Valley
The Dangerous Decline in Vaccination Rates
Lauren Goode, Michael Calore, and Katie Drummond
Out with a Bang
Scientists Believe Theyâve Witnessed âPlanetary Suicideâ for the First Time
Jorge Garay