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
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Progress Without Morals
A scientist is trying to harness microbial properties to develop a fantastic tool. He believes he can; but should he?
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For Today’s Inspiration
- NASA Is Helping Bring Giant Tortoises Back to the Galápagos
Giant tortoises are returning to Floreana Island after more than 150 years, guided by NASA data that shows suitable areas for release.
- Artemis II Crew Trains on T-38
NASA astronaut Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen take off on a T-38 training flight from Ellington Field on Feb. 11, 2026, as a waning crescent Moon hovers above. Koch and Hansen, along with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, are part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight
- Power Plants Will Be Allowed to Release More Than Twice As Much Mercury Into the Air
At a 20 February event in Kentucky, the Trump administration announced plans to loosen pollution restrictions for coal-burning power plants, including limits on emissions of mercury, a hazardous neurotoxin.
- Why More Rain Doesn’t Mean More Erosion in Mountains
Erosion in mountain-basin systems driven by long-period climate variations is buffered by an erosion saturation effect, which weakens peak erosion and leads to reduced sediment flux.
- Unorthodox ‘universal vaccine’ offers broad protection in mice
Immune-stimulating cocktail could shield against diverse bacterial and viral infections
- A little-known flu virus is sickening cattle around the world. Are humans next?
Features of recently identified influenza D point to possible pandemic threat
- In This Issue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 7, February 2026. <br/>
- Gradience as a cognitive principle for evaluating numerical notations
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 7, February 2026. <br/>SignificanceThis study presents a cognitive principle, gradience, for comparing the communicative efficiency of numerical notations, along with two indices for measuring gradience, jitter and inversion. In general, larger numbers require more signs than …
- Five ways increased militarization could change scientific careers
Nature, Published online: 20 February 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-04168-0Scholars working on defence, conflict and science funding consider the impact on research careers and budgets, highlighting five broad trends.
- Author Correction: Natural behaviour is learned through dopamine-mediated reinforcement
Nature, Published online: 20 February 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10199-yAuthor Correction: Natural behaviour is learned through dopamine-mediated reinforcement