Imagining Science

Imagining…

Where Science Meets Creative Writing

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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.

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For Today’s Inspiration

  • Look Up!

    Astronauts Sophie Adenot of ESA (European Space Agency) and Jack Hathaway of NASA, both Expedition 74 flight engineers, look out a window in the cupola, monitoring the automated approach and docking of the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station on May 17, 2026. The orbital outpost was soaring 259 miles above the

  • NASA Testing Wastewater Treatment Facility for Future Moon Base      

    A mobile wastewater treatment system built at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida that can help prepare for long-duration missions on the Moon and Mars departed the spaceport and arrived at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. Graduate students at the university will test the technology under conditions designed to closely mimic the

  • 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: …