In what universe would anyone want to whip out a debit card with the name of a credit bureau on it? For the past year, Experian has been testing this question with its Smart Money debit card, which it advertises as a way to “build credit without the debt.” TransUnion …

Last month, Michele Francis, an environmental scientist at Stellenbosch University in South Africa, relocated to central Connecticut only to discover that her new home showed signs of termite damage. When an exterminator suggested setting out traps, Dr. Francis demurred. “I wondered if I could persuade the termites to eat the …

When the education superintendent of Oklahoma, Ryan Walters, ordered this year that every public school classroom in the state must have a Bible in the classroom, he didn’t mention any special requirements. But bid specifications for the Bibles, released this week, contain several narrowly drawn and unusual details. They must, …

The soil beneath our feet, home to fungi, bacteria, beetles and worms, may not seem like the most jazzy environment. But if you stuck a powerful enough microphone in the soil, you’d be surprised at how hopping it is, acoustically speaking. That has led some microbiologists to wonder: Are there …

It’s not uncommon for our minds to unleash a torrent of difficult feelings under the cover of darkness: sadness and negative thoughts may surface at night, making sleep hard to come by. On social media and elsewhere people often refer to this as “nighttime depression.” But is that really a …

As marijuana legalization spreads across the country, people are consuming more of the drug, more often and at ever-higher potencies. Most of the tens of millions of people using marijuana, for health benefits or for fun, don’t experience problems. But a growing number, mainly heavy users, have experienced addiction, psychosis …

Sonya Liakh was 2 years old when she was diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine interrupted her chemotherapy. The lapse in treatment allowed the cancer to spread. Soon new tumors emerged. Sonya lost both her eyes. Ukrainian children with long-term illnesses and severe disabilities …

Two more people were diagnosed with bird flu this week, even as scientists in Missouri continued to investigate a possible cluster of infections in that state, federal health officials said at a news briefing on Friday. In California, two farmworkers who were exposed to infected dairy cattle at different farms …

A federal judge in Missouri temporarily blocked a Biden administration plan to cancel student debt less than a day after another judge had allowed it to proceed, throwing into uncertainty the fate of a program that could affect more than 27 million borrowers. The decision, which came down late Thursday, …

As higher education becomes ever more expensive, some states are giving employers incentives to contribute to 529 college savings accounts for their workers. Fifteen percent of employers with 500 or more employees now help workers fund 529 plans, either by letting them deposit their own money through paycheck deductions or …