Lie Detectors Are Junk Science, but We Keep Using Them
Amit Katwala’s Tremors in the Blood explores how unreliable technologies have been used in our criminal justice system.
Science
The Luddites' Veto
Beware of activists touting "responsible research and innovation." The sensible-sounding slogan masks a reactionary agenda.
Be Skeptical of the New Artificial Sweetener Scare
Plus: Liberal teens are more depressed than conservative ones, the outsize role of immigrants in U.S. innovation, and more...
Where Do We Go To Get Our Mask Apology?
Plus: The editors reveal their favorite issues and articles from the Reason magazine catalog.
Innovation Drives Down the Cost of Powering Electric Cars
Americans are increasingly buying electric cars. Electrochemists and their innovations will drive down the cost of powering them.
The Shameless Attack on a Climate Change Dissenter
We couldn't find any negative review of physicist Steven Koonin's Unsettled that disputed its claims directly or even described them accurately.
Masks Make 'Little or No Difference' on COVID-19, Flu Rates: New Study
The Cochrane Library's review of masking trials should sound the death knell for mask mandates everywhere.
Democrats Say They Support Green Energy. Why Do Their Policies Say Otherwise?
If you look closely, you'll find a lot of contradictions.
Mark P. Mills: Get Ready for the Roaring 2020s!
Pessimism is everywhere, but the author of The Cloud Revolution says we're entering a golden age of abundant, ubiquitous, and liberating technology.
A Medical Journal Retracts a 2022 Study That Linked Vaping to Cancer
The obvious problems with the article reflect a broader pattern that suggests a peer review bias against e-cigarettes.
The Myth of Wild Nature and Creating a New Form of Paradise
A review of the new book Tickets For The Ark, by Rebecca Nesbit
Diseases That Studies Linked to E-Cigarettes Generally Were Diagnosed Before Subjects Began Vaping
The failure to consider the timing of diagnoses makes it impossible to draw causal inferences.
A Law That Facilitates Cannabis Research Exemplifies the Modesty of the Reforms We Can Expect From Congress
Making it easier for scientists to study marijuana is a far cry from the liberalization that most Americans want.
California Law Strips Licenses from 'Misinformation'-Spreading Doctors
"You have this looming power over you that essentially can end your career," says Stanford's Jay Bhattacharya.
Whoa! You Helped Reason Blast Through Our $400,000 Webathon Goal!
Find out why people have donated a half-million dollars so far, and then please consider joining them before time runs out!
Come Next Thanksgiving, We Might Be Giving Thanks for Government-Approved, Lab-Grown Turkey
Regulators are beginning to smile on the sci-fi project of creating real meat products without the typical death and environmental destruction.
At the U.N.'s Climate Change Conference, Nuclear Power Is Finally Getting Some Respect
The bigger problem now is that outmoded regulations stand in the way of deployment.
Why We Should Terraform the Galaxy
One critic calls it "arrogant vandalism," but advocates say it might be a necessary form of self-preservation.
How To Use Drugs in Space
It's best to avoid sparking up a doobie on a spaceship, but there are other ways to consume substances in the cosmos.
Doctors Say a California Law Targeting Clinicians Who Share COVID-19 'Misinformation' Is Unconstitutional
The law authorizes regulators to discipline physicians who deviate from the "contemporary scientific consensus."
That Fuzzy Blob Is Not a UFO
Science writer Mick West examines alleged UFO sightings. He finds that they almost always have far more obvious explanations.
Gregor Mendel, the Father of Genetics and a Tax Resister, Turns 200
Mendel had a history of run-ins with the state.
It's Long Past Time for the FDA To Approve Over-the-Counter Birth Control
Despite experts recommending that birth control be sold over the counter, the U.S. still treats the pill like it's 1960.
Federal Report Adds to the Evidence That Bitemark Analysis Is Nonsense
Forensic techniques are nowhere near as reliable as cops shows pretend.
The Fight To Stop Research Into a Cheap, Effective Backup Plan for Climate Change
Why are activists trying to stop research into a promising backup plan to handle climate change?
Are Paper Bags Really Better for the Environment Than Plastic Bags?
New Jersey is the first state to ban single-use bags made from both plastic and paper, but one is actually worse for the environment than the other.
FDA Approves Updated COVID-19 Booster Shots
But does everyone really need to get boosted?
Leana Wen Accused of 'Unsafe, Ableist, Fatphobic, and Unethical Practices' for Opposing COVID Mandates
The left-leaning commentator wants to get back to normal. So more than 600 experts want to censor her.
When Scientists Are Gullible Activists
Here are some reasons trust in science has been dwindling.
Michael Shermer: 'Women Are Not Just Tits and Ass. There's More to It Than That, a Lot More.'
The best-selling author of Why People Believe Weird Things sees a fundamental clash between wokeness and scientific inquiry.
Michael Shermer: How Scientific American Got Woke
The science writer and journalist talks identity politics, wokeness, trans athletes, and why his goal is to find out what is true rather than to "be right."
Researchers Create Artificial Eggs, Chimeric Sperm, and Synthetic Embryos
All of these advances are in mice for now, but maybe these breakthroughs can one day be adapted as human therapies.
Immortality in the Metaverse
The metaverse platform Somnium Space plans to let its users' personas live on.
Updating Coronavirus Vaccines Is Good, But a Universal Coronavirus Vaccine Would Be Better
Time for a new Operation Warp Speed?
The Case for Drinking
Alcohol facilitates human cooperation and creativity on a grand scale, says Edward Slingerland, a philosophy professor at the University of British Columbia.
COVID-19 'Lab Leak' Origin Theory Merits Further Investigation, Says New WHO Report
But the Chinese government continues to stonewall independent investigations.
Destroying Islamic Fundamentalism With Books
Ideas Beyond Borders is bringing ideas about pluralism, civil liberties, and critical thinking to hotbeds of Islamic extremism.
The FDA Completely Botched Its Response to the Baby Formula Shortage
Plus: Resurrecting an extinct tiger, reviewing the police response to the Uvalde shooting, and more...
The Slaughter-Free Future of Cultured Meats
Real factories are beginning to replace factory farms.
Civilization Runs on Ammonia, Plastic, Steel, and Cement—for Now
Vaclav Smil’s How the World Really Works offers hope and despair for techno-optimists.
America's Nuclear Reluctance
The first innovative nuclear reactors designed by American companies may well begin operation in Eastern Europe before they get built in Idaho.
How 'Cranks' Advance Science
A major lesson of the pandemic is that science is "not a priesthood," says Dr. Jeffrey A. Singer, a general surgeon and senior fellow at the Cato Institute.
Facing Fauci's Fury: Q&A with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya
The Stanford professor and Great Barrington Declaration coauthor stands up to COVID-19 autocrats and disastrous lockdowns by following the science.
The Feds Spent $22 Million Researching Invisibility Cloaks, UFOs, and a Tunnel Through the Moon
However wonderful it is to imagine a world in which these things are possible, the government shouldn’t be shelling out millions to entertain speculation.
Weather Is Not Climate. Or Is It?
For years, experts warned that any given hurricane or heat wave cannot be attributed to long-term changes in average temperatures. But it turns out that climatologists and meteorologists sometimes can establish such causal relationships.
The Fake-Meat Revolution Has Stalled
Consumer trends suggest a meatless near future is increasingly unlikely.
The American Medical Association Should Help Patients. Instead, It's Policing Language.
Protectionist policies are why the U.S. has few physicians and high prices.
