NASA’s Europa Clipper[1] spacecraft, headed to Jupiter’s ice-covered moon[2] Europa in October 2024, will carry a laser-etched message[3] that celebrates humanity’s connection to water. The message pays homage to past NASA missions that carried similar
Bridges can be protected from ship collisions – an expert on structures in disasters explains how
The MV Dali, a 984-foot, 100,000-ton cargo ship, rammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge[1] when leaving Baltimore harbor on March 26, 2024, causing a portion of the bridge to collapse.
In an interview, University of Michigan civil engineer Sherif El-Tawil
Horses lived in the Americas for millions of years – new research helps paleontologists understand the fossils we’ve found and those that are missing from the record
Many people assume that horses first came to the Americas when Spanish explorers brought them here about 500 years ago. In fact, recent research has confirmed a European origin[1] for horses associated with humans in the American Southwest and Great Plains.
How AI and a popular card game can help engineers predict catastrophic failure – by finding the absence of a pattern
Humans are very good at spotting patterns[1], or repeating features people can recognize. For instance, ancient Polynesians navigated across the Pacific by recognizing many patterns[2], from the stars’ constellations to more subtle ones such as the directions
TikTok’s duet, green screen and stitch turn political point-scoring into an art form
Since its astronomical rise in popularity[1] during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns, TikTok has played an increasing role in all aspects of American life, including politics, from the White House briefing key TikTok creators[2] on the war in Ukraine to Joe
Generative AI could leave users holding the bag for copyright violations
Generative artificial intelligence has been hailed for its potential to transform creativity[1], and especially by lowering the barriers to content creation[2]. While the creative potential of generative AI tools[3] has often been highlighted, the popularity of
An eclipse for everyone – how visually impaired students can ‘get a feel for’ eclipses
Many people in the U.S. will have an opportunity to witness nearly four minutes of a total solar eclipse[1] on Monday, April 8, 2024, as it moves from southern Texas to Maine. But in the U.S., over 7 million people are blind or visually impaired[2] and