Rachel Crowell

All Stories by Rachel Crowell

  1. Tech

    Horses are inspiring this roboticist to build trustworthy robots

    Computer scientist Eakta Jain is looking at human-horse interactions for ideas about how to design robots that work well with people.

  2. Physics

    Why some icicles become scallops not spikes

    The newfound — and at times quirky — shapes reflect the density of water surrounding submerged ice.

  3. Life

    From icebergs to smoke, forecasting where dangers will drift

    Smoke drifts. Fish eggs float downstream. Where such drifting things end up may seem a mystery. But research can predict where they’ll end up.

  4. Animals

    Endangered or just rare? Statistics give meaning to the head counts

    Whether studying tiny birds or massive whales, researchers collect a lot of data. The field of statistics helps them make sense of those data.

  5. Math

    Explainer: What is statistics?

    Scientists use statistics to design studies, analyze data and evaluate uncertainty. You’ll find it in biology, climate change, medicine and more.

  6. Space

    Meet ‘Pi’ — a new Earth-sized planet

    Searching through data from NASA’s K2 Mission, researchers found a new planet. Some call it K2-315b, others smile and refer to it as “Pi Earth.”

  7. Math

    Science is helping kids become math masters

    Some researchers study video games, students’ posture and more as a means to help kids become better and more comfortable with math.

  8. Math

    Cool Jobs: The art of paper folding is inspiring science

    See how bringing art and math together led to the development of robo-roaches, self-folding papers and medical implants.

  9. Computing

    Math + teens + practice = a winning competition

    Training for an Olympics of math helps students stretch their creativity and learn problem solving skills. If you like puzzles, you might want to check out these events.

  10. Math

    Math isn’t just for boys

    The United States won the International Mathematical Olympiad in 2015 and 2016. The big question: Why wasn’t there even one girl on either year’s team?

  11. Math

    Cool Jobs: Motion by the numbers

    What do car crash testers, video game creators and scientists who study athletic performance have in common? All use geometry in their cool jobs.

  12. Math

    Explainer: The basics of geometry

    From points and lines to complex three-dimensional shapes, our world is made of shapes and spaces. The math used to understand most of these is known as geometry.