I was in Washington, D.C., over the weekend to attend memorial services for my old boss, Justice Antonin Scalia.

As one of his former clerks – 15 years ago now – I met his casket on the steps of the Supreme Court on a chilly Friday morning and witnessed thousands of people standing in line for three hours or more to get a brief glimpse...

Congress is rattling its saber at colleges and universities with endowments worth U$1 billion or more. Committees from the House and Senate have sent a joint letter to 56 private colleges and universities, asking for comprehensive information about...

Remember those big black disks with holes in the middle that used to be played on “turntables?”

They’re not actually ancient history. This past year, worshipers at what novelist Michael Chabon calls “the Church of Vinyl” bought 9.2 million records....

In Paris late last year, the countries of the world pledged to reduce emissions to keep global warming “well below a 2 degree Celsius” rise in global average temperatures...

A pallid version of a peace agreement is supposed to go into effect in Syria February 27. We wait with bated breath to see if the aid convoys can deliver relief to thousands of starving Syrians who have been awaiting food for months.

In principle, it should be a time for a degree of optimism, if not rejoicing. But, as we know, few of the parties to...

The mosquito-borne Zika virus has been declared a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern” by the World Health Organization.

The virus not only appears to severely harm unborn children but is also hurting the economies of many Latin American and Caribbean countries. The World Bank estimates Zika will cost the world US$3.5...

While researchers work to develop a Zika virus vaccine to combat the outbreak spreading through South America, efforts to control the spread of the virus are focusing on the mosquito Aedes aegypti.

This particular mosquito is especially good at transmitting disease from one human to another. Besides Zika, this mosquito is also a vector for dengue,...

The United States is facing a shortage of prescription drugs, ranging from antibiotics to cancer treatments. These shortages are putting the medical profession in the frequent position of deciding who will get the drugs that are in short supply and, more importantly, who will not.

Physicians and hospitals always have had to make rationing decisions...

The climate talks that convened in Paris at the end of 2015 produced a historic agreement, giving negotiators and climate activists good reason to celebrate. Now the task is to ensure that the ambition shown in Paris is matched by...

Asking whether there are sex differences in the human brain is a bit like asking whether coffee is good for you – scientists can’t seem to make up their minds about the answer. In 2013, for example, news stories proclaimed differences in the brain...