The effects of AI’s growth on global security could be difficult to predict.

Hard rock minerals like gold, silver, copper and lithium on public lands belong to the American public, but under a 150-year-old law, the US gives them away for free.

Cobalt is a critical component in the production of batteries, smartphones, jet engines and electric vehicles. Yet miners who risk their lives digging it up receive almost none of the profits.

Elevated levels of heavy metals in middle-aged women may lead to earlier arrival of menopause and its negative health effects.

Claims about the discovery of a coveted room-temperature superconductor peppered the news in 2023. We pulled three stories from our archives on what superconductivity is and why scientists study it.

Upcoming NASA missions will help scientists understand the composition of asteroids – which could inform companies one day hoping to commercially mine asteroids.

"We are finding this human-made material in what we consider a pristine area of the atmosphere," the stratosphere.

A new theory may explain how gold, platinum, and other precious metals found their way to shallow pockets within Earth’s mantle.

Women with a history of endometriosis have higher concentrations of the toxic metal cadmium in their urine, a new study shows.