Culture

The brain weighs factors based on their importance to oneself and one’s social world as part of a complex calculation that shapes behavior

Writers, artists, photographers and researchers share the stories behind the stories

Inside this double issue of SciAm, you’ll find black holes that burp up their stellar meals, metal detectorists that hit pay dirt, hope for psychopathy, the truth about testosterone and a consumer guide to sustainable clothes shopping

Letters to the editors for the March 2025 issue of Scientific American

Behavioral ecologist David Hughes, who consulted on the video game that inspired the hit TV show The Last of Us, speaks about how our experience with the COVID pandemic changed the way we relate to zombie fiction

Fifty years ago the movie Jaws scared beachgoers and demonized sharks. Now, however, the public is evolving a better understanding

Research has shown ways parents can help children cope with the stressors of modern life

Writers, artists, photographers and researchers share the stories behind the stories

The June 2025 issue of Scientific American is packed with exciting features, from magnificent mitochondria and a plan to refreeze the Arctic to the universe’s first light and recent human evolution

Letters to the editors for the February 2025 issue of Scientific American

The social and psychological consequences of yearning for the past are starting to come into focus

Many people believe AI will one day cause human extinction. A little math tells us it wouldn’t be that easy