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Understanding Uncertainty

Build Confidence in Science by Embracing Uncertainty Rather Than Chasing Reproducibility

Despite calls to fund reproducibility studies, resources would be better spent on developing tools that enable efficient collection and sharing of experimental protocol details and metadata to enable study comparisons.

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intelligent design in science class

Science Education

Of Pandas and Science Curricula

Twenty years ago, a landmark court case held that intelligent design cannot be taught in science classrooms. What lessons does it offer for conflicts in education?

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Future Tense Fiction

Future Tense Fiction is a speculative fiction series that uses imagination to explore how science and technology will shape our future. It features short stories written by acclaimed authors across a wide range of styles. Each story is paired with original artwork by Rey Velasquez Sagcal and a response essay from an expert who connects the fictional narrative to real-world policy debates.

  • workers and artificial intelligence

    Workers’ Hands Tell a Story. What If We Listened?

    In industries like meatpacking and textiles, human hands do strong, precise, and irreplaceable work. What happens when we pretend technology can replicate them?

    Response

  • Coser y Cantar

    Coser y Cantar

    What does ethical fashion look like? Gabriela Damián Miravete’s story explores transborder labor and the future of the textile industry.

  • Rey Velasquez Sagcal's illustration for "Bigfeet" by Torie Bosch

    Inside the Human Urge to Tinker With Other Species

    A conservation researcher responds to Torie Bosch’s “Bigfeet.”

    Response

  • Rey Velasquez Sagcal's illustration for "Bigfeet" by Torie Bosch

    Bigfeet

    An eccentric billionaire claims he has a chance encounter with Bigfoot. When he decides to offer a reward to anyone who can bring him proof of the creature, he opens the floodgates to Bigfoot sightings—and is stuck with the dilemma of how to classify an animal that isn’t supposed to exist.

  • Rey Velasquez Sagcal's illustration for "The Way Out/" by Pippa Goldschmidt

    The Way Out

    Drover, a weather analyst, tracks bat data—including heart rate, flight patterns, food intake, and other behavior—to predict extreme weather events. When the bank where his partner works introduces a system that allows people to bet on weather events, he’s forced to reckon with the line between predicting climate catastrophe and profiting from it.

  • Rey Velasquez Sagcal's illustration for "The Disaster Flaneur" by Kate Gordon

    The Disaster Flaneur

    Insurance involves betting on catastrophe, and it’s the main way our economy interacts with short-term disaster and long-term risk. As climate catastrophes accelerate, what happens when insurers walk away from the table?

    Response

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