Read the latest articles from Popular Science (Page 658)

China is betting big on electromagnetic railguns and catapults
Military

China is betting big on electromagnetic railguns and catapults

Just as the U.S. Navy is pulling away from the technology.

Knievel Flight Path
Science

The Devils And The Deep Blue Sky

Evel Knievel crash-landed his most famous jump. Forty years later, stuntmen are racing to succeed where the legend failed.

The 10 Most Important Aerospace Innovations Of The Year
Aviation

The 10 Most Important Aerospace Innovations Of The Year

These are the Best Of What's New

China’s showing off its new helicopters
Military

China’s showing off its new helicopters

A peek into the China Helicopter Expo.

drone
Drones

25 Reasons To Love Drones

And 5 reasons to fear them

Highlights from the Biodesign Challenge Summit
Biology

Highlights from the Biodesign Challenge Summit

A year of BDC culminates at the Museum of Modern Art

Bionic Bird Drone May Fool Actual Birds
Drones

Bionic Bird Drone May Fool Actual Birds

This biomimetic flying device can be controlled by a smartphone, to entertain people and cats alike.

Spotify iOS
Tech Hacks

The best Spotify add-ons and tricks

Become a streaming music pro in no time

A person sitting at a coffee shop, using a phone while wearing headphones and a cap.
Tech Hacks

Easily convert a PDF to an image on your phone

Don't download an app you're going to use once. Save yourself the trouble.

A tangle of macaque monkeys.
Animals

Laughter is a key part of play for many animals

Laughing says, "I'm only play-biting you, not real-biting you."

Person with long black hair and in silver sequin hat at microphone
Psychology

Why your voice sounds weird on recordings

That recording might sound funny to you, but others tuning in might not think so unkindly.

Can industrial farming be a force for good?
Agriculture

Can industrial farming be a force for good?

Big Ag is ruining our air, water, and land. Where do we go from here?

mother masked holding her baby
Vaccines

How should parents with unvaccinated kids handle the CDC’s new mask guidelines?

Vaccinated parents and guardians are no longer required to wear masks everywhere they go. But should they?

Megaport
Technology

Megaport

The robot-staffed, windmill-powered Dutch port poised to become the most efficient cargo handler ever.

MQ1-predator UAV drone in flight
Drones

Fact Check: Ex-Cop Fugitive Christopher Dorner Is Not Being Hunted By Drones

A tale of drones hunting Dorner may have made headlines, but it isn't true. What is true is that police have used drones to hunt suspects before.

pendulum power
Technology

A brief, 20,000-year history of timekeeping

As clocks got more accurate, we had to redefine the second.

How You’ll Die On Mars
Mars

How You’ll Die On Mars

Many hopefuls have signed up for a one-way ticket to the red planet. But if they aren't prepared, the trip may be a short one.

Why Thousands Of People Are Willing To Die On Mars
Mars

Why Thousands Of People Are Willing To Die On Mars

More than 200,000 aspiring space explorers volunteered for a one-way trip to Mars. Are they insane?

The Man Who Fixed Hubble
Space Telescope

The Man Who Fixed Hubble

Spaceman documents Mike Massimino's unlikely journey from fire inspector's son to elite astronaut

Two divers collect coral samples from reef.
Ocean

How divers found 4 new coral species, hidden in plain sight

There may be much more coral diversity out there than previously thought.