Scientists Say

A weekly word defined, in a sentence and in context. Click here to find the alphabetized list.

  1. Math

    Scientists Say: Möbius strip

    Möbius strips may be easy to make, but they have some pretty mind-bending properties.

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  2. Microbes

    Scientists Say: Virus

    A virus must take over a living cell's machinery to make more viruses.

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  3. Chemistry

    Scientists Say: PFAS

    Non-stick coatings, stain-resistant cloth and other common materials leach long-lived PFAS into soil and water.

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  4. Earth

    Scientists Say: Altitude

    Altitude is used to describe heights in geography, astronomy and math.

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  5. Space

    Scientists Say: Accretion Disk

    Cosmic swirls of gas, dust and plasma, accretion disks reveal the shadowy silhouettes of black holes and more.

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  6. Physics

    Scientists Say: Magnetism

    Magnetism is an aspect of one of the four fundamental forces of nature: electromagnetism.

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  7. Computing

    Scientists Say: Hardware and Software

    Hardware includes all the physical parts of a device you can hold. Software includes all the coded instructions to make that hardware work.

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  8. Health & Medicine

    Scientists Say: Kidney

    The kidneys remove waste and excess water from the blood, forming urine.

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  9. Brain

    Scientists Say: Anxiety

    Some nervousness, or anxiety, is normal. Too much can be harmful.

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  10. Earth

    Scientists Say: Equinox and Solstice

    Equinoxes and solstices mark the maximums, minimums and mediums of hours spent in daylight.

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  11. Math

    Scientists Say: Calculus

    Calculus is math that deals with curves, from their changing slopes to the areas they enclose.

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  12. Computing

    Scientists Say: Code

    Writing code allows people to tell computers and other smart devices what to do.

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