Elizabeth Peterson

This year's Nobel Prize in chemistry was awarded to three scientists whose research helps explain how human beings continue to thrive despite an invisible disadvantage — their totally unstable DNA.

Who would you rather have in your pocket, Siri or Sherlock?

A few slices of bacon a day seem to keep the doctor away (at least for one woman).

Hundreds of new species have been discovered in the Himalayas in recent years, but many face danger as climate change and overdevelopment alter their habitats.

A piece of paper that survived the sinking of the Titanic was recently sold at auction for the price of a fancy sports car.

Highly efficient robots on wheels could soon be hauling trash in a neighborhood near you.

It might seem odd, but scientists have a lot to say about supernatural beliefs.

If you're guilty of phubbing, you may want to change your ways sooner rather than later.

A serendipitous deal between a history museum and a smuggler has provided new insight into one of the most famous stories ever told: "The Epic of Gilgamesh."

Why do we have fingernails, anyway?

They might look like rusty old guns, but these 150-year-old cannons offer locals an important connection with their history.

The king crab could soon take over a whole new kingdom, and it has global warming to thank for the conquest.

Lockheed's newest military vehicle works just as well on land as it does in the water.

From sky bears duking it out with the moon to coital relationships between celestial bodies, people have been making up cool stories to explain lunar eclipses for a very long time.

This Sunday's supermoon eclipse doesn't mark the end of the world as we know it.

The ongoing civil war in Syria has led to the first-ever withdrawal from the Svalbard "doomsday" Global Seed Vault.

A female water snake in Missouri can do something that no human woman can (no matter how badly she might want to).

The health of heart disease patients might be improved by technology that they're already carrying around in their pockets ¬— cellphones.

You don't have to leave home to hang out with one of the world's most beloved tusked mammals.

Helicopters of the future could use insectlike robotic legs to land in unlikely places — like the slopes of steep hills or the decks of rocking boats.

The U.S. Air Force is offering $2 million to whoever can design a new and improved engine to power its airplanes.

Maybe you've seen a double rainbow, but what about a double meteor strike?

Bad news for apiphobes: Killer bees are on the move in the United States, but that may be helpful to the besieged European bee.

Do you love surprises? What about surprises involving venomous spiders?

When it comes to science, some Americans are better informed than others, according to a new survey.