Nicola Twilley
Nicola Twilley, a frequent contributor to The New Yorker, co-hosts “Gastropod,” an award-winning podcast that looks at food through the lens of science and history. Her most recent book, "Frostbite: How Refrigeration Changed Our Food, Our Planet, and Ourselves," will be published in June.
How the Fridge Changed Flavor
From the tomato to the hamburger bun, the invention has transformed not just what we eat but taste itself.
America’s Last Top Models
For decades, U.S. inventors sent in models with their patent applications—gizmos that reveal a secret history of unmet needs and relentless innovation.
The Man Painting America’s Wars
For years, Adam Cvijanovic has been making giant murals in the military’s financial headquarters. The result is at once beautiful and unsettling.
Africa’s Cold Rush and the Promise of Refrigeration
For the developing world, refrigeration is growth. In Rwanda, it could spark an economic transformation.
How the World’s Foremost Maze-Maker Leads People Astray
Adrian Fisher has devoted the past four decades to bringing back mazes, long regarded as historical curiosities. He has created more than seven hundred—including one on a skyscraper in Dubai and another that’s now reproduced on Britain’s five-pound note.
When a Virus Is the Cure
As bacteria grow more resistant to antibiotics, bacteriophage therapy is making a comeback.
The Race to Redesign Sugar
Forget artificial sweeteners. Researchers are now developing new forms of real sugar, to deliver sweetness with fewer calories. But tricking our biology is no easy feat.
A Trailblazing Plan to Fight California Wildfires
Throughout the twentieth century, federal policy focussed on putting out fires as quickly as possible, but preventing megafires requires a different approach.
The Hidden Air Pollution in Our Homes
Outdoor air has been regulated for decades, but emissions from daily domestic activities may be more dangerous than anyone imagined.
The Neuroscience of Pain
Brain imaging is illuminating the neural patterns behind pain’s infinite variety.
A Field Farmed Only by Drones
According to the engineers behind Hands Free Hectare, the future of agriculture belongs to self-driving tractors.
St. Louis’s First Total Solar Eclipse Since 1442
“Holy cow, can you believe it?” the county parks director said, as four thousand people held their faces up to the sun.
Seeing with Your Tongue
Sensory-substitution devices help blind and deaf people, but that’s just the beginning.
Can Hypothermia Save Gunshot Victims?
A new procedure freezes trauma patients who are bleeding out in order to buy time to operate.
How the Fridge Changed Flavor
From the tomato to the hamburger bun, the invention has transformed not just what we eat but taste itself.
America’s Last Top Models
For decades, U.S. inventors sent in models with their patent applications—gizmos that reveal a secret history of unmet needs and relentless innovation.
The Man Painting America’s Wars
For years, Adam Cvijanovic has been making giant murals in the military’s financial headquarters. The result is at once beautiful and unsettling.
Africa’s Cold Rush and the Promise of Refrigeration
For the developing world, refrigeration is growth. In Rwanda, it could spark an economic transformation.
How the World’s Foremost Maze-Maker Leads People Astray
Adrian Fisher has devoted the past four decades to bringing back mazes, long regarded as historical curiosities. He has created more than seven hundred—including one on a skyscraper in Dubai and another that’s now reproduced on Britain’s five-pound note.
When a Virus Is the Cure
As bacteria grow more resistant to antibiotics, bacteriophage therapy is making a comeback.
The Race to Redesign Sugar
Forget artificial sweeteners. Researchers are now developing new forms of real sugar, to deliver sweetness with fewer calories. But tricking our biology is no easy feat.
A Trailblazing Plan to Fight California Wildfires
Throughout the twentieth century, federal policy focussed on putting out fires as quickly as possible, but preventing megafires requires a different approach.
The Hidden Air Pollution in Our Homes
Outdoor air has been regulated for decades, but emissions from daily domestic activities may be more dangerous than anyone imagined.
The Neuroscience of Pain
Brain imaging is illuminating the neural patterns behind pain’s infinite variety.
A Field Farmed Only by Drones
According to the engineers behind Hands Free Hectare, the future of agriculture belongs to self-driving tractors.
St. Louis’s First Total Solar Eclipse Since 1442
“Holy cow, can you believe it?” the county parks director said, as four thousand people held their faces up to the sun.
Seeing with Your Tongue
Sensory-substitution devices help blind and deaf people, but that’s just the beginning.
Can Hypothermia Save Gunshot Victims?
A new procedure freezes trauma patients who are bleeding out in order to buy time to operate.