Back in the 1960s, government scientists thought it was a good idea to make artificial hearts powered by the radioactive element plutonium-238. This isotope of plutonium is the same one that NASA has ...

The human heart is the ultimate timepiece. And yet it's not always the most reliable one. So an estimated one million people per year get back-up systems, pacemakers, implanted to restore the heart's ...

We are at a critical time and supporting climate journalism is more important than ever. Science News and our parent organization, the Society for Science, need your help to strengthen environmental ...

Recycling plutonium is dangerous and costly. Britain should take the lead on direct disposal, say Frank von Hippel, Rodney Ewing, Richard Garwin and Allison ...

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. When the United States broke off cease-fire talks with Russia over ...

Plutonium is a radioactive, silver metal that can be used to create or destroy. While it was used for destruction soon after it was made, today the element is used mostly for creating energy ...

It's been a quarter century since the US stopped producing plutonium-238, but shrinking worldwide stockpiles and the need for a suitable deep space power source led NASA and the DOE to begin ...

FOR THOSE whose hearts occasionally go off rhythm, pacemakers are, quite literally, life savers. By providing a small electrical jolt at the right moment, they can keep a heart working at the ...