Arnie Cooper
What Happens to All Those Hotel Soap Bars?
The Global Soap Project aims to tidy those slivers’ trip to the landfill by sending reclaimed soap to poor countries.
That's Disgusting: Researcher Studies Gag Reflex
In a revolting development, research psychologist Rachel Herz has cornered the market on discussing what disgusts us.
Conservation’s Earnest Message Could Use Some Levity
Lions, gorillas, and wolves, oh my! Two on-the-ground proponents of saving the tropics think a great way to both engage and enlighten the West is to deploy a dollop of satire.
Simon Johnson Critiques Democracy vs. Financialization
The former chief economist for the IMF discusses the unfairness of the existing American financial infrastructure and the complex policy prescriptions that seek a remedy.
Obamacare: No Friends in Free-Market, Single-Payer Camps
It's the president of the free-market-minded Galen Institute versus a pediatrician/activist for a single-payer system in spirited debate on improving American health care.
Solutions to Water Supply Issues Surface in the West
In the quarter-century since Marc Reisner issued a grim prognosis for water in the American West, various entities have made efforts to reverse what once seemed inevitable.
Water Shortages Threaten the American West Lifestyle
While not every dire prediction has come true, amid swimming pools and thirsty crops, the hard truth remains that the American West cannot maintain its spendthrift ways of using fresh water.
Arid West’s Water Woes Obvious Well Before Boom Times
On The 25th anniversary of the book "Cadillac Desert," we look at the work of an earlier Cassandra of Western water shortages, explorer John Wesley Powell.
As Environment Degrades, Our Well-Being Grows?
The environment is faltering even as measurements show human well-being is improving. How long can that last?
Comparing Europe’s Muslims of Today to Europe’s Jews of Yesterday
Issues swirling around Europe’s non-assimilation of its Muslim population recall its anti-Semitic past, according to scholar Reza Aslan.
Islam and Anti-Muslim Fear in America, Reza Aslan
Scholar Reza Aslan discusses anti-Islamic feelings in the U.S. and reflects on how other faiths have faced down feelings of "otherness."
Solar Power Fueled by the Purple Pokeberry
A dye made from the purple pokeberry — a common weed — proves uncommonly effective at juicing up the prospects for solar power.
Learning from the Ancients
A leading archaeologist's take on the pre-European Maya discounts 'ecocide' and suggests the people were actually astute stewards of the jungle who could teach us a thing or two.
Are You Normal or Finally Diagnosed?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is a list that can be abused to the detriment of patients and benefit of drug companies.
Who Benefits? DSM Conflicts of Interest
Conflicts, whether over ties to the pharmaceutical industry or fights over new categories of illness, come with the turf in revising psychiatry's most important reference.
Infallibility and Psychiatry's Bible
The latest "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" is being revised and, by some, reviled.
Straw Homes That Would Have Foiled the Wolf
Demonstration farm in rural California draws attention with its crop of unique building experiments.
Monitoring Systems Will Create Smart Bridges
New monitoring systems should make smart bridges that let on when they're feeling fatigued.
Guidance from Above on Food Insecurity
An American-led famine early warning system uses satellite technology to predict where best to stave off future starving in the rest of the world.
Gecko Feet and Adhesives
Scientists are adapting the gecko's 'sticky feet' to create bonding materials for sporting equipment and robots.
The Lotus as Water Repellant
Sto Corp's self-cleaning Lotusan exterior paint uses the plant's micro-structural qualities to remove dirt just after a rain.
Bumblebees for Crash Avoidance
Engineers at Nissan creating a buzz with their 'Safety Shield.'
Five Products From a Famous Multinational — Nature
A growing number of scientists, ecologists and entrepreneurs have begun to incorporate 'biomimicry' across a vast spectrum of enterprises.
Flowers and Solar Panels
MIT students use the concept of phototropism to design a sun-tracking solar panel that requires no motor or electronic control system.
Termites and Climate Control
An African skyscraper built in 2007 features a unique climate-control system inspired by the gigantic termite mounds found in the Zimbabwean bush.
Slow Money to the Rescue
Venture capitalist Woody Tasch has a down-to-earth approach — literally — for fixing what's eating the economy.
Going Up? Vertical Farming in High-Rises Raises Hopes
An angry Mother Nature and increasing urbanization have led Columbia's Dickson Despommier to urge agriculturalists to consider tilling vertical farms in high-rises. A Miller-McCune.com interview.
Harnessing the Power of the Oceans
A new generation of machines, some based on nature's own designs, is mobilizing to draw cheap and carbon-free renewable energy from the seas.
The Nature of Design
Biophilic concepts are gradually working their way into the design mainstream, helping humans thrive by bringing the outdoors in.