The Atlantic

The Microbes That Supercharge Termite Guts

With these microscopic organisms in their bodies, the insects can digest the indigestible.
Source: China Photos / Stringer / Getty

The 19th-century American scientist Joseph Leidy has been described as the “.” An extraordinary polymath, Leidy was a scholar of parasites, a , a collector of gemstones, a curator of museums, an exceptional illustrator, and the first person to use a microscope to solve a murder mystery. But learned though he was, he was still shocked by what we saw when he cut

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Atlantic

The Atlantic4 min read
Hayao Miyazaki’s Anti-war Fantasia
Once, in a windowless conference room, I got into an argument with a minor Japanese-government official about Hayao Miyazaki. This was in 2017, three years after the director had announced his latest retirement from filmmaking. His final project was
The Atlantic7 min readAmerican Government
The Americans Who Need Chaos
This is Work in Progress, a newsletter about work, technology, and how to solve some of America’s biggest problems. Sign up here. Several years ago, the political scientist Michael Bang Petersen, who is based in Denmark, wanted to understand why peop
The Atlantic5 min read
The Strangest Job in the World
This is an edition of the Books Briefing, our editors’ weekly guide to the best in books. Sign up for it here. The role of first lady couldn’t be stranger. You attain the position almost by accident, simply by virtue of being married to the president

Related Books & Audiobooks