Why vote?

Tuesday marks the U.S. midterm elections — and political experts predict that Republicans will gain seats in both the House and the Senate. Why should you care, when even American journalists are relatively quiet about this week’s vote? 3 ideas behind the news.

The Danger of Ebola Paranoia

It’s Halloween — and the only thing scarier than Ebola this week is Ebola paranoia. Should you panic in bowling alleys? How justified is your fear of hospitals? Are mandatory quarantines even legal in the U.S., anyway? 3 ideas behind the news.

William Gibson in 2012. Photo: Gilly Youner

We called Gibson at home in Vancouver to chat about the looming apocalypse, what he was like as a student, and what advice he would give a young science-fiction writer today.

Would you like to learn more about every single element on the periodic table? We’ve got you covered

Ready to match wits with a 19th-century student? Read on.

Jorge Soto and Fay Christodoulou have built a simple, noninvasive, open-source test that looks for early signs of cancer.