Mark Fischetti

1 week ago | aol.com | Mark Fischetti

1975Kennedy Protects Science Funding“When a scientist seeks public financing for research, the request is judged by the review panels for the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and other Federal granting agencies. The 94th Congress has given numerous signs that it might like to make such judgments itself.

2 weeks ago | scientificamerican.com | Mark Fischetti

At least 79 people have been sickened by a salmonella outbreak linked to organic and cage-free eggs, distributed under various brand names across seven U.S. states. The eggs were processed by the August Egg Company in Hilmar, Calif., according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). On June 6, after FDA tests discovered the bacteria, the company issued a wide recall. The recall is just the latest in a string of callbacks linked to salmonella contamination.

1 month ago | scientificamerican.com | Mark Fischetti

1975Slavery by Ants Is Self-Destructive“The institution of slavery is not unique to human societies. No fewer than 35 species of ants depend to some extent on slave labor for their existence. The techniques by which they raid other ant colonies to strengthen their labor force rank among the most sophisticated behavior patterns found in the insect world. Most of the slave-making species are so specialized as raiders that they starve to death if deprived of their slaves.

2 months ago | booboone.com | Mark Fischetti

The New Tornado Alley Has Been Hyperactive this YearMore tornadoes than usual have already struck the U.S. in 2025-and many of them have been touching down farther east than they had in the pastBy Mark Fischetti edited by Dean Visser By last Saturday, the National Weather Service reported that 552 tornadoes had occurred in the U.S. this year-well above the average total of 337 for the period of January through April in 1991-2020.

2 months ago | scientificamerican.com | Mark Fischetti

By last Saturday, the National Weather Service reported that 552 tornadoes had occurred in the U.S. this year—well above the average total of 337 for the period of January through April in 1991–2020. Then an outbreak struck Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday night, killing at least three people. Parts of those two states were at the center of the twister-prone “tornado alley” for most of the 1900s, but this well-known corridor has been shifting steadily eastward in the past three and a half decades.