Laura Helmuth

Laura Helmuth

 

Laura Helmuth is the science and health editor at Slate. Previously, she was a senior science editor at Smithsonian magazine.

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Your Brain, By the Numbers

Somehow, the brain is greater than the sum of its parts

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How Do Birds Find Their Way Home?

Birds must be geniuses because they use quantum mechanics to navigate

Far from the mainland and one another, the Galapágos Islands host animals with distinctive traits, such as the notched shell of Pinzón Island’s saddleback giant tortoise.

Evolution World Tour: Galápagos Islands, Ecuador

The exotic locale, home to tortoises, cacti, iguanas and finches, was a source of inspiration for Darwin's theory of evolution

Cristián Samper, evolutionary biologist and the director of Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, discusses his favorite evotourism sites.

Cristián Samper on Appreciating Evolution

The director of the Natural History Museum discusses why understanding evolution is so critical

Koalas, kangaroos and wallabies are abundant on the island and not particularly fearful, so it’s possible to have close encounters with these distant mammalian kin.

Evolution World Tour: Kangaroo Island, Australia

Mammals come in three types and the best place to see them all in one place is this small island off the southern coast of Australia

King of the Hill by photographer James Kasher

Photo of the Week: Anemone and Shrimp

One appeared on the very top of one of the highest fingers and grasped the tip in what appeared to be a moment of victory: King of the Hill

Perhaps the weirdest and most intimidating creature in this spectacularly otherworldly place is the American alligator.

Alligators in the Everglades

The swampy nature preserve is home to many of southern Florida’s infamous reptile natives

The earth is splitting apart in the middle of Iceland along a ridge that runs north to south through the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

Iceland’s Volcanoes

Set atop a tectonic hotspot, the small island is home to breathtaking eruptions and other geologic sites

A T. rex sighting in South Dakota

Dinosaur Sighting: Wall Drug

The ultimate roadside attraction features a T. rex that shakes its head, snaps its jaws and RAWRs

Visitors and artists interact under the guadua (bamboo) tents in the Colombia program area.

Cooking With Colombian Beans

There are endless variations on frijoles, and each family has its own distinctive recipe

Eyjafjallajökull

What’s the Most Dangerous Country?

Iceland is pretty much the least habitable of all the places that people have inhabited. But visiting it is like hiking through a geology textbook

Ask Your Questions about Fossilized Colors

Just a quick note that Science magazine's website is running a live chat this afternoon at 3:00 about new techniques to reveal color in fossils

One of Will Walker's demotivational posters for scientists

Science Humor: Anti-Inspirational Posters

"I was learning for the first time about all the gremlins that stand between the researcher and The Answer."

Repeated in pop culture for a century, the notion that humans only use 10 percent of our brains is false. Scans have shown that much of the brain is engaged even during simple tasks.

Top Ten Myths About the Brain

When it comes to this complex, mysterious, fascinating organ, what do—and don’t—we know?

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Make Room for 10 Billion People

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Sarah Zielinski Wins Writing Award

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Dinosaur Sighting: In Our Nemesis' Front Yard

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How Can Seedless Fruit be Fruitful and Multiply?

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What's the Most Important Invention?

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A Birds vs. Cats Blog Showdown

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