In this special “breaking”-themed issue of the Argonne magazine, find out the ways that scientists and engineers “break” things (including batteries, atoms, and nuclear reactors) in order to find out how they work — and in many cases, how to make them work better.

You can also learn how towns are preparing for the storms, droughts, and floods of climate change to avoid infrastructure breakdowns; how scientists are tinkering with the basic chemistry of combustion (that is, breaking down fuel) to make cars cleaner and more efficient; and how supercomputers can help engineers recreate why a truck carrying 35,000 pounds of explosives blew up on a Utah highway and how to transport them more safely.

To subscribe to get your own free copy of the semiannual magazine, visit www.anl.gov/subscribe.