Category Archives: The Natural World

Boy writes observations about classification of leaves on index cards

Science and Poetry: Predation or Symbiosis?

Though poets often draw on imagery from nature, science and poetry often appear to be set in opposition to each other. Can the world of facts mesh with the world of emotions? In this essay, poet and scientist Pireeni Sundaralingam analyzes the complex relationship between the two.

Rainforest in Cockscomb Basin in Belize

Brazilian Explorers Search “Medicine Factory” to Save Lives and Rainforest

We often think of cures for cancer as chemicals developed in laboratories, but nature may be the source of new remedies. Tom Phillips explains how researchers aim to tap into the medical possibilities of the Amazon rainforest—and at the same time protect this threatened environment from human development.