Science

Climate scientists are about to lose a satellite that helped show how global warming affects the Earth's polar ice caps. A replacement won't be in orbit until at least 2015, so NASA will use a DC-8 aircraft instead to track whether the process of melting and subsequent sea-level rise is accelerating.

Light from a star that died when the universe was about 600 million years old is only now reaching Earth. The gamma ray burst is 13.1 billion light-years away, and astronomers say it's the most distant object ever seen from Earth.

The unmanned Ares I-X made a spectacular debut as it soared into the sky Wednesday. This next generation manned space vehicle is set to be ready in 2015, but some question the future of the program.

After a one-day weather delay, the Ares I-X rocket rumbled away from a former shuttle launchpad Wednesday morning at Florida's Kennedy Space Center. It's the first step in NASA's effort to return astronauts to the moon.

The prototype of a new manned spacecraft was scheduled to launch Tuesday morning from the Kennedy Space Center, but weather delayed the unmanned test flight. The rocket is intended to carry astronauts into orbit after the aging space shuttles are retired.

At the 2009 International Genetically Engineered Machine competition, undergraduates from all over the world unveiled the living machines they'd created with snippets of DNA, from bacteria that change color when they detect pollutants to ones that secrete non-toxic superglue.

The U.S. Department of Energy is offering $10 million to the first individual or company to develop an energy-efficient LED replacement for the standard 60-watt incandescent bulb. DOE lighting program manager James Brodrick discusses the L Prize, and what makes a better bulb.

The state of New York is looking for ways to reduce the time the unemployed spend looking for jobs, and it's turning to a mathematical formula for help. Using an algorithm developed by a Boston technology company, the program directs resumes to the employers most likely to make a hire.

The Motorola Droid is an exercise in functionality. But does it really give the iPhone a run for its money?

October 29th marked the 40th anniversary of the Internet. We'll talk with Scott Fahlman, the computer researcher who invented the virtual smiley face, about how emoticons and abbreviations have changed electronic communication.

Consumers are spending to send computer images on social networks and to get an edge in online worlds.

The legal skirmish over eBay's sale of Skype has been resolved. What has it taught us?

The founders of Skype will drop their lawsuits against the company and a consortium of buyers who bid to purchase Skype. In exchange, the founders will get a 14 percent share in the new Skype.

Two Chinese government agencies are facing off over the right to regulate the popular online game World of Warcraft.

A camera-based device developed by an M.I.T. researcher turns walls into computer interfaces and allows users to issue commands through gestures. The technology is aimed at cellphone users.