Science touches so many aspects of modern life that it's hard to keep up. Through our programs and this website, Science for the Public provides up-to-date information about scientific innovations, discoveries, and issues that are shaping modern knowledge.
Section #1 explains the AI basics: GenAI, AGI, ASI; GPT; how AI is "trained"; AI errors, AI "consciousness"; and AI hype
Section #2 explains the multiple impacts of AI: AI databases; copyright; jobs; cognition
Section 3 discusses important AI threats: AI deceptions; political AI; military AI; and AI disobedience
Section 4 describes the warnings of many AI leaders and experts: that the potential damage of AI is very real, and that governmental controls are absolutely necessary.
Most of the mass of the universe is invisible and undetectable and is known only by its effects....
A concept that was originally treated with skeptism is widely accepted today
Mounting evidence suggests a link between chemicals in consumer products and breast cancer.
What's so important about an atmosphere? Find out here.
Many of the most important advances in scientific understanding were initially rejected or ignored.
In an era of global science, other nations are increasing their science budgets. Why aren't we?
Hibernation, dormancy, suspended animation, revival from apparent death; the line between life and death...
05/14/24 WGBH Forum Network Webinar. The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), specifically designed to measure the universe's expansion, has now produced the largest and most precise 3D map for the expansion analysis. And the first results of the survey are amazing. Paul Martini
06/18/24 WGBH Forum Network webinar. CERN’s Large Hadron Collider has made very significant discoveries (including the Higgs boson), but physicists now need to expand the probe. Tulika Bose
10/23/24 The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and other advanced technologies are providing unprecedented data about the early universe. Astronomers are developing a new understanding of how the earliest stars and galaxies emerged. Julian Muñoz
12/02/14 How do scientists investigate exoplanet atmospheres --and what are they discovering? Mercedes Lopez-Morales
01/04/21 The human body requires a gravity environment. So how do aerospace engineers plan for the colonization of space? Developing artificial gravity is a major objective. Ana Diaz Artiles
08/09/16 An investigation of the two major questions about the origin of life, and their relevance in search for life elsewhere in the universe. Zachary Adam
08/30/18 Boston-area artists Susan Heideman and Michelle Lougee discuss their fascinating exhibit, "The Life of Forms."
11-28-23 GBH Forum Network webinar: 12 Noon (EST) Our planet is subject to more than 50 earthquakes a day. How do scientists analyze this activity and can they predict the most threatening quakes? Brendan Meade
10/25/16 A combination of climate change, industrial fishing, and seafood trade now threaten basic health in many developing nations. Christopher Golden
10/07/14 A distinguished leader in genetic research discusses his dual commitment to science and ethics. Jon Beckwith
08/21/12 Endocrine disruptors such as BPA cause developmental problems and disease. How does this damage occur? Ana Soto and Carlos Sonnenschein
11/10/15 What we can do to speed up the transition to renewable energy, despite Big Oil's well funded resistance. Jeff Deyette
05/14/13 Why public acceptance of wind power can differ from one community to another. Maria Petrova
A writer who also teaches science-technical writing (as well as literature)
A member of the international CMS project at the Large Hadron Collider discusses his fascinating work