As mass-produced artificial spider silk looks more and more feasible, scientists speculate on possible applications: body armor, sutures, and more.

Terrorism is a symptom of global insecurity brought on by poverty, disease, and environmental degradation, the State of the World 2005 report says.

December's tsunami clogged shipping lanes, rearranged coasts, and created new islands. Now geographers are helping redraw the region so relief can reach ports in need.

Two weeks after the tsunami swamped the Indonesian city of Banda Aceh, thousands of bodies still cover the area. Looters are picking through the debris, and survivors wait for medical help, photographer Chris Rainier reports.

At 12, Oscar Torres joined a guerrilla movement to fight in El Salvador's civil war. Torres has co-written a film based on his experience, which spotlights the plight of child soldiers.

When the December 26 tsunami struck Abdul Razzak's island in the Indian Ocean, he remembered what he had seen on National Geographic documentaries—and helped save some 1,500 lives.

The great tsunami of 2004 was one of the worst disasters in history. Read our latest news stories and learn how tsunamis are generated, where they can strike, and what you can do to protect yourself.

Was Tutankhamun murdered? In an effort to solve that mystery and others, scientists CT-scanned the 3,000-year-old mummy of the ancient Egyptian king yesterday.

Shepherds on an island off Africa whistle to communicate across great distances. Their brains, a new study says, interpret the sounds just as if they were spoken words.

Giant tsunamis are more likely to hit the U.S. Pacific coast than to hit Asia, scientists say. Coastal residents may have only 15 minutes' warning.

No longer an exclusive asset for the upper classes, second-home ownership has exploded in recent decades, becoming an integral part of global tourism.

Get the basics on tsunamis: what they are, what causes them, how they can be avoided, and more.

The earthquake that generated the great Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 is estimated to have released the energy of 23,000 Hiroshima-type atomic bombs. Find out what happened and how it was unleashed on millions of unsuspecting people.

Famous for their haggis and single-malt whiskies, Scots now have an appetite for deep-fried Mars bars and other bizarre, calorie-crammed foods, say worried public health experts.

Anthony Brandt continues his series on the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804. Christmastime two hundred years ago the Corps of Discovery was wintering in present-day North Dakota, in constant contact with Indians.