Imagining Science

Imagining…

Where Science Meets Creative Writing

Find a story within the topics above

How can we look at fossils and understand what creatures roamed the Earth millions of years ago?

How can we predict the behavior of materials deep within planetary interiors?

How can we reverse humanity’s impact on the global climate?

How can we predict habitats for life on other planets?

Doing impactful, innovative research requires training our brain to imagine the elusive unknown, even when bounded by scientific evidence. Now, more than ever in the history of human civilization, there is a pressing need to exercise our imagination muscles. Writing scientific fiction while accounting for the real science is a powerful way to do just that—to learn what is possible, what is probable, how we can change the future, and what our responsibility is to the future generation of our species.

Most Recent Stories

For Today’s Inspiration

  • NASA Awards Modification Contract for Reduced Gravity Test Aircraft

    NASA selected Denmar Technical Services of Nevada to provide aircraft modifications, maintenance, and testing services to the Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, and Johnson Space Center in Houston. The award is a firm-fixed-price contract and will be time and material for any over and above and unforeseen

  • NASA Invites Media to See Roman Space Telescope Arrive at Kennedy

    Registration is open for media to cover the arrival of NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in the coming weeks. The observatory will arrive aboard NASA’s Pegasus barge from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, where teams completed its construction, assembly, and testing. Credentialed media

  • Judge Blocks NSF From Dismantling NCAR

    “NSF’s failure to provide any explanation for its decision—let alone a reasonable one—thwarts meaningful judicial review and renders the challenged action arbitrary and capricious,” the judge wrote.

  • White House Proposes Sweeping Changes to Grantmaking Process

    The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposed a new rule on 28 May that, if finalized, would give political appointees approval power over scientific grants, reduce support for international collaboration, limit funding for publication fees, and make other extensive alterations to the federal government’s funding review process.

  • In This Issue

    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 21, May 2026. <br/>

  • Indoor thermoregulatory homeostasis using hydrodynamic instability

    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 21, May 2026. <br/>SignificanceIndoor temperature management underpins the sustainability of nearly every global sector, from agriculture to power generation and residential housing. However, optimal temperature management remains elusive due to an unresolved tradeoff: …

  • Obesity doesn’t equate to ill health: why the ‘disease’ label doesn’t always fit

    Nature, Published online: 01 June 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-01729-9Excess body weight affects individuals’ health differently. Taking this variation into account is crucial for effective health care, policy and research.

  • Smartphone camera takes users’ pulse passively during device use

    Nature, Published online: 01 June 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-01488-7A machine-learning system has been developed that can monitor heart rate using facial video clips that are captured passively by the user-facing camera during everyday smartphone use. The system meets industry accuracy standards for heart-rate measurement and is as accurate as wearable technology for measuring daily resting heart rate.