Play this crossword inspired by the May 2026 issue of Scientific American
How two mathematicians solved a cryptography mystery
The Diffie-Hellman key exchange secures everything from your text messages to government secrets
Mathematicians created an ‘impossible’ shape that shouldn’t exist
Scientists have designed a new kind of paradoxical shape
DARPA built an AI to fact-check enemy weapons claims
The SciFy program tests whether adversaries’ most outlandish scientific claims add up or fall apart
How to build a space hotel
With the rise of private orbital habitats, vacations in space are becoming a real possibility for the ultrawealthy
May 2026: Science History from 50, 100 and 150 Years Ago
Synchronous fireflies; Grand Canyon fossil footprints
Unlikely paths to discovery
Sometimes innovation can be traced back to bizarre places: a muddy streambed, a volcanic ash field or even a hotel-company boardroom
A hot pair of supplements, creatine and methylene blue dye, may not work together
Creatine does help build muscle, but social media claims for methylene blue dye are way overblown
How physicists found a new type of magnet hiding in plain sight
How the discovery of altermagnets could change physics and computing
Expensive versus affordable binoculars—what’s the difference?
Binoculars and other far-range optics span a gamut of price points. Here’s what separates top-tier from entry-level