Grace Levy, 95, of Lunenburg, quit school at 13 to clean houses: "My Dad said you've gotta work."

Puzzle of the Century

Is it the fresh air, the seafood, or genes? Why do so many hardy 100-year-olds live in yes, Nova Scotia?

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No Place Like Home

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Sherlock of Spuds

In a case that could reveal the villain behind the Irish Potato Famine, the gumshoe is a plant scientist

They pop their heads out of the water to keep track of family members.

Otterly Fascinating

Inquisitive, formidable and endangered, giant otters are luring tourists by the thousands to Brazil’s unspoiled, biodiverse waterscape

Calhoun tends some 450 apple varieties, more than four times the number commercially cultivated in this country.

Apples of Your Eye

Fruit sleuths and nursery owners are fighting to save our nation’s apple heritage…before it’s too late

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Requiem for a Heavyweight

Science meets shamanism at a gathering to ponder the fate of the Pacific Ocean leatherback

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Lasting Impressions

Scientists cast tall shadows but find themselves hard pressed to explain the blues to Mongolians

Scientists believe the bacteria may hold clues to the origins of life itself.

Subterranean Surprises

Scientists are discovering that caves more complex than we ever imagined may yield vast riches about the origins of life

Kakapos eat many fruits but particularly enjoy rimu fruit, which seems to encourage breeding.

Going to Extremes

Without the extraordinary dedication of a few conservationists, New Zealand’s kakapo would likely have gone the way of the dodo

A star in stripes: Paul Rhymer and John Matthews prep a zebra for display in the new mammal hall.

Bats Will Scatter

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Net Gains

A California biologist discovered a new insect species and then caught evolution in the act

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Rain Man

Snow, sleet, hail or volcanic eruption cloud physicist Peter Hobbs will find a way to fly into it

Star formation in the constellation Orion as photographed in infrared by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope

Astronomy’s New Stars

Thanks to new technology, backyard stargazers have traveled light-years of late to join professionals in mapping the heavens

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Palm Plight

Assaulted by myriad threats to their survival, palm species around the world face the likelihood of extinction

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Thar They Blow!

Gentle giants? New research suggests that male sperm whales may butt heads over females

"I can Monday-morning quarterback, but no one knew that [starvation killed the animals] until after they were dead," says beleaguered rescue leader Becky Arnold."

Incident at Big Pine Key

A pod of dolphins stranded in the Florida Keys reignites an emotional debate over how much human “help” the sea mammals can tolerate

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Second Nature

More and more, innovative scientists are turning to the natural world for inspiration…and design solutions

American ginseng—whether wild or cultivated (for sale at left in New York)—commands higher prices than Asian varieties.

Getting to the Root of Ginseng

Questions about the herb’s health benefits haven’t cooled the red-hot market in wild American ginseng

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Stimulants

Both ginseng and dolphins evoke passionate emotions

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Peewee Power

The invention of a gas-fueled generator the size of a quarter heralds a future of ever-smaller machines

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