Science Dictionary
Do you know what a meteor is, or what scientists mean when they are talking about cryogenics? Our collection of science terms explains the meaning of some of the most common scientific ideas.
10 Scientific Words You're Probably Using Wrong
Can a planet float on water?
Can You Nominate Yourself for a Nobel Prize?
How Do You Win a Nobel Prize?
What Are the Masons?
Quiz: How Much Do You Know About Stephen Hawking?
10 Cool Things About Carl Sagan
10 Cool Things About Neil deGrasse Tyson
How do polymer crystals work and why do they absorb so much water?
Is a Karat the Same as a Carat?
4 Quantum Physics Misconceptions, Busted
Chaos Is Not Randomness: A Complex Systems Scientist Explains
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The kilometer (km) is a standard unit of measurement used in the metric system. Derived from the French "kilomètre," the unit is used to measure length and distance along a straight path.
By Mitch Ryan
In any scientific research, there are typically two variables of interest: independent variables and dependent variables. In forming the backbone of scientific experiments, they help scientists understand relationships, predict outcomes and, in general, make sense of the factors that they're investigating.
By Marie Look
Physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking was a fierce spirit who symbolized the foibles and complexities inherent in human nature. Learn more about him by taking our quiz.
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The world often seems chaotic and events appear to occur randomly, but what's the difference between chaos and randomness?
Everyone knows that nothing travels faster than the speed of light, but how does the speed of dark compare? Read on to find out!
By Bambi Turner
If you have a theory that potato chips are making you fat (with the proof being your expanding waistline), you've just used two scientific terms in a very unscientific way.
By Beth Brindle
He built President Eisenhower an indoor golf-training machine, analyzed the Zapruder film and searched for an Egyptian pyramid's treasure chamber using cosmic rays. Aren't you dying to meet this wide-ranging scientist?
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The man who had some theories about relativity was also an eccentric who gleefully eschewed socks, dodged German military service and spurned social conventions.
So much about galaxies remains a mystery. We know what they're made of and that we live in one (the Milky Way), but how many galaxies are in the universe?
You've heard of the big bang, of course, but do you have any idea as to what was happening during that massive flurry of activity billions of years ago?
By Robert Lamb
So much of our cosmological history starts with the much-discussed Big Bang, but what led up to that cataclysmic moment? And did time even exist back then?
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Space collisions are the universe's car wrecks. Only in outer space, it's stars, asteroids and even galaxies doing the smashing.
By John Fuller
Frequency has to do with wave speed and wavelength is a measurement of a wave's span. Learn how frequency and wavelength of light are related in this article.
We take much for granted about our universe, like it's getting bigger. What if the universe stopped expanding and started collapsing inward with a giant crunch?
Payne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia Helena (1900-1979) was a British-born astronomer who became an authority on variable stars (stars that change in brightness) and the structure of the Milky Way Galaxy.
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Al-Tusi, Nasir al-Din (1201-1274) was one of the greatest scholars of his time and one of the most influential figures in Islamic intellectual history.
Aberration of Light is a phenomenon in which a star or other celestial body, as viewed from the earth, appears to be slightly displaced from its true position.
Chronometer, a timepiece that is exceptionally accurate. Traditionally, the term refers to the marine chronometer, a rugged mechanical instrument used at sea to keep time for navigational purposes.
Cosmogony, the study of the origin and development of the universe as a whole and of the individual bodies that compose it.
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Hourglass, a device for measuring time. In its usual form it consists of two cone-shaped or oval glass receptacles joined by a narrow neck.
Midnight Sun, a name given the sun when it can be seen at midnight during the Arctic or Antarctic summer.
The nebular theory, also known as nebular hypothesis, presents one explanation of how the solar system was formed, proposed by Pierre Simon de Laplace in 1796.
By Yara Simón
Planetarium, is an educational device for showing the locations and movements of the planets and other objects in the universe.
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Planetesimal hypothesis is a theory of the origin of the solar system. It was proposed by Forrest R.
Solar wind is a continuous stream of mostly hydrogen and helium that flows outward from the sun in all directions. It does everything from disrupt GPS signals to create the aurora borealis.
By Mark Mancini