Science News releases Top 25 list of most important science stories of 2015
Editors select New Horizons mission to Pluto as top story of the year
Science News, a publication of Society for Science & the Public, today announced the Top 25 most important science stories of the year. Stories were selected based on their potential to transform how people understand themselves and the world around them.
"It probably comes as no surprise that the New Horizons mission to Pluto takes the top spot in Science News' list of 2015's most important stories," said Elizabeth Quill, Enterprise Editor, Science News. "Since New Horizons awoke last December, we've devoted more than two dozen stories in the magazine and on the website — upwards of 10,000 words — to this first-ever visit. No other science news this year garnered so many headlines."
Editor in chief Eva Emerson notes that the new gene editing technology, called CRISPR, ran a close second to Pluto. But, "for all its promise, CRISPR is a method. It's a story still being written. The practical benefits are yet to come. It could change the world, or not. Pluto, on the other hand, is about expanding knowledge, about seeing what we have never seen before, about discovery at its most basic," Emerson writes in her accompanying editorial.
Other top picks included recent hominid finds highlighting Homo naledi; a roundup on advances in aging research, and news debunking the so-called climate "hiatus."
This is the fourth year that Science News has released its Top 25 list. Past top stories include the discovery of the Higgs boson (2012), new findings about the microbiome (2013), and the Ebola outbreak (2014).
Full list and articles available online at: https://www.sciencenews.org/2015-sn-top-25
About Science News:
Science News has been published by Society for Science & the Public since 1922. It offers readers bold, contemporary, award-winning editorial content, detailed imagery, a blog network, and access to archives going back to 1924. Concise, current, and comprehensive, the magazine provides an approachable overview from all fields and applications of science and technology and is available in print, Kindle, iPad, and updated continually online.
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About Society for Science & the Public:
Society for Science & the Public is one of the nation's oldest non-profit membership organizations dedicated to public engagement in science and science education. Established in 1921, the Society is a leading advocate for the understanding and appreciation of science and the vital role it plays in human advancement. Through its acclaimed education competitions, including the Intel Science Talent Search, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, and the Broadcom MASTERS, and its award-winning publications,Science News and Science News for Students, the Society is committed to inform, educate, and inspire. The Society reaches more than 15 million people online each year, has more than four million followers across its social media channels, and recognizes more than 50,000 alumni of its competitions. The Society is supported each year by about 90,000 subscribing members and donors as well as by leading corporations, foundations, and other institutions.
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Sarah Wood
swood@societyforscience.org