Science & Tech

Harvard researchers are among the co-authors of a new study saying that the increase in life expectancy in the past two decades has been accompanied by an even greater increase in years free of disability, thanks in large measure to improvements in cardiovascular health and declines in vision problems.

CIO Bryson Koehler outlined the Weather Company’s data-driven overhaul in his keynote at the Harvard IT Summit.

A cross-disciplinary team at Harvard has created a system that uses solar energy to split water molecules and hydrogen-eating bacteria to produce liquid fuels. 

Jiyoo Jye, a recent student at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, created a research archive of her discoveries, progress in soil-less agriculture.

The Sustainability Science Program celebrates its 10th birthday by welcoming back previous fellows to discuss progress in the field and the challenges ahead.

A RoboBee equipped with an electrode patch is supplied with a charge, allowing it to stick to almost any surface, from glass to wood to a leaf. The patch requires about 1,000 times less power to perch than it does to hover, extending the operational life of the robot.

The famed Glass Flowers gallery will reopen May 21 after the most extensive renovation in its history.

Researchers at Harvard’s Wyss Institute have developed a laser-assisted direct ink writing method that prints microscopic metallic, free-standing 3-D structures in one step.

Scientists from Harvard Forest joined a group of experts calling for new regulations and stepped-up surveillance to stem a flood of invasive forest pests whose costs are borne by U.S. homeowners, cities, and towns.

By turning waste fryer oil into biodiesel, Harvard undergraduates turned a chemistry class into a living lab for understanding the multifaceted problems posed by global climate change and sustainable development.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry helped launch a new Harvard climate change and global health initiative Thursday, saying that climate change impacts almost always affect human health.

Visiting professor Sasha Kimel examined whether information about genetic links can influence groups in conflict.

Between academic discovery and product development lurks a lull in research funding that inventors call the “chasm of death,” where a prototype or a proof of concept can feel just…

William Clark, co-author of a new book on sustainable development, discusses connecting science and practice, balancing conservation with use.

Philippe Cousteau talked about carrying on the family legacy of environmental advocacy in delivering the Extension School’s Lowell Lecture.

If emission rates continue unchecked, regions of the United States could experience between three and nine additional days of unhealthy ozone levels each year by 2050, according to a new study from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

After a flood threatened to destroy the Harvard College Observatory’s trove of glass plate negatives, staff members and students from around the University showed up to help move the plates to safety.

Acclaimed theoretical physicist and cosmologist Stephen Hawking discussed the mysterious qualities of black holes during his lecture at a packed Sanders Theatre.

A Wyss Institute robot named Root is designed to teach computer coding to anyone from a 5-year-old to an intermediate programmer.

Harvard Astronomy Department chair Abraham Loeb played an important role in drafting initial plans announced Tuesday for a proposed trip to the nearest star, Alpha Centauri. Loeb talked about the plan and its biggest challenges.

New HBS research finds that avoiding sticky questions leaves a far worse impression on others than simply coming clean with unflattering answers.

Former Vice President Al Gore brought a dose of optimism about climate change to Harvard on April 7, saying the problems are severe, but the solutions are emerging.

The Weatherhead Center continued its series of discussions on inequality, focusing on the mixed progress of efforts to advance fairness and social inclusion. The talk touched on discrimination against the Roma people and the disabled, and the rise of inequality in an era of support for human rights.

Students, faculty, and fellows are fanning out across the Boston area to take measurements aimed at determining where and how much natural gas is leaking and where the worst carbon dioxide emissions occur.

Phoebe DeVries, a Ph.D. candidate in earth and planetary sciences and a 2016 Harvard Horizons Scholar, will deliver a five-minute talk about predicting seismic hazards on April 5 at Sanders Theatre.

In a new study, researchers from Harvard University and the National Center for Atmospheric Research have identified sea surface temperature patterns that help predict extreme heat waves in the Eastern United States up to 50 days in advance.

By examining more than 500 years of harvest records, researchers found that wine grape harvests across France, on average, now occur two weeks earlier than in the past, largely due to climate change. While earlier harvests are normally associated with higher quality wines, researchers caution the trend likely won’t last.

According to a new Harvard study, our ancestors between 2 and 3 million years ago started to spend far less time and effort chewing by adding meat to their diets and using stone tools to process food.

Harvard researchers have designed a new type of foldable material that is versatile, tunable, and self-actuated. It can change size, volume, and shape; it can fold flat to withstand the weight of an elephant without breaking, and pop right back up to prepare for the next task.

“This latest work extends the capabilities of our multi-material bioprinting platform to thick human tissues, bringing us one step closer to creating architectures for tissue repair and regeneration,” says the study’s senior author, Jennifer A. Lewis of both the Wyss Institute and Harvard’s Paulson School for Engineering and Applied Sciences.