ALS is a fatal neurological disease that kills motor neurons. Even though it was first described more than 150 years... more

In 1973 a bombshell study appeared in the premier scientific journal Science. It was called “On Being Sane in... more

For more than 100 years, biologists who suggested that some cancers may be caused by viruses were the pariahs of... more

In 1973 biochemist Bruce Ames created a simple test that showed if chemicals had the potential to cause cancer. The... more

Ozempic and others in this family of drugs are nothing short of miraculous. Meant to treat Type 2 Diabetes, the... more

The impact of cars on wildlife extends beyond roadkill, affecting species that never venture near roads. Car noise disrupts bird... more

In 1856, Henry Perkin's attempt to synthesize quinine led to something very different: a vibrant purple dye. Perkin’s mauve revolutionized... more

The color pink has long been in vogue, and when Barbie hit theaters in 2023, its appeal only increased. But... more

For centuries people have been drawn to the potential healing powers of colored light. From a civil war general to... more

In his epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer mentions the colors black, white, red, and yellow. But despite numerous mentions of the... more

Check out our new season, dropping weekly on Tuesdays, starting June 4th.

In the wake of the murder of George Floyd and the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a new public interest... more

Of all wealthy countries, the United States is the most dangerous place to have a baby. Our maternal mortality rate... more

Certain medical instruments have built-in methods of correcting for race. They’re based on the premise that Black bodies are inherently... more

When the plague broke out in San Francisco in 1900 the public health department poured all of their energy into... more

In 2005 the FDA approved a pill to treat high blood preassure only in African Americans. This so-called miracle drug... more

The word “Tuskegee” has come to symbolize the Black community’s mistrust of the medical establishment. It has become American lore. However, most people... more

In 1991, as crews broke ground on a new federal office building in lower Manhattan, they discovered human skeletons. It... more

In 2019, Abdul-Aliy Muhammad, a community organizer and journalist, learned that the Penn Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology had a... more

In the 1990s a liberal population geneticist launched the Human Genome Diversity Project. The goal was to sequence the genomes... more

In the 1970s Barry Mehler started tracking race scientists and he noticed something funny: they all had the same funding... more

In 1793 a yellow fever epidemic almost destroyed Philadelphia. The young city was saved by two Black preachers, Richard Allen... more

In 2018 ancient DNA researchers revealed their analysis of a 10,000 year old skeleton called Cheddar Man. He was the... more

It might seem as though the way we think about race now is how we’ve always thought about it—but it... more

Our new season, Innate: How Science Invented the Myth of Race, drops on February 7th.

What comes to mind when you think of a chemistry lab? Maybe it’s smoke billowing out of glassware, or colorful... more

The Disappearing Spoon, a podcast collaboration between the Science History Institute and New York Times best-selling author Sam Kean, returns... more

In this episode of The Disappearing Spoon, Sam Kean talks about Alessandro Moreschi, the so-called Angel of Rome. His voice... more

In this episode of The Disappearing Spoon, Sam Kean talks about the strange origin story of the American Medical Association.... more

In this episode of The Disappearing Spoon, Sam Kean talks about Hermann Muller, a geneticist who in the 1920s discovered... more