SCIENCE

Certain smells become less pungent in cold air.

What’s Really Happening When You “Smell” Snow?

The sensation is real, but it doesn't have to do with odor.

A scene from the La Brea Tar Pits with models of Ice Age animals.

10 Fascinating Facts About the La Brea Tar Pits

There’s a gooey time capsule in the heart of Los Angeles, left over from an era when saber-toothed cats, dire wolves, camels, and giant sloths prowled southern California.

Feeling like garbage? That’s your immune system at work.

12 Fantastic Facts About the Immune System

Without our immune system, we wouldn't last very long: this complex network of organs and cells fights off pathogens and helps maintain our health.

Meet Bathynomus Vaderi, the Foot-Long Sea Bug Named After Darth Vader

Bathynomus vaderi is a supergiant isopod that can grow 12.7 inches in length.

Gabriel Ugueto‘s illustration of Ahvaytum bahndooiveche.

Dinosaurs Arrived in the Northern Hemisphere Earlier Than We Thought, Fossil Suggests

A surprising discovery in Wyoming has challenged long-held ideas about dinosaur migration.

The 5500-year-old trepanned skull of a woman now displayed in a Swiss museum.

A Brief History of Trepanation, One of the World’s Oldest Surgeries

The practice of drilling or scraping a hole into the skull’s cranial vault has been performed for thousands of years.

Can You Put the First 25 Elements of the Periodic Table in Order?

Here’s hoping you paid attention in science class.

Roman coins from the Hoxne hoard, buried in the 5th century in Hoxne, Suffolk, UK.

Lead Pollution May Have Lowered IQs in Ancient Rome, Study Finds

The mass production of silver coins in the Roman Empire had an unintended effect: spewing so much lead into the atmosphere that it may have lowered citizens’ IQs.

MRSA bacteria bound to a neutrophil, a type of infection-fighting white blood cell.

What Is Antibiotic Resistance?

Public health officials are concerned that we could move back into a situation like that of the early 20th century, before antibiotics were discovered.

Here‘s how people are able to stay warm in igloos.

How Do Igloos Keep People Warm?

The interior of an igloo can be 40 to 60 degrees warmer than its surrounding environment.

Thank your butt for your ability to stand up straight.

6 Quick Facts About Your Butt

You can thank your butt for a number of physical actions you take every day: moving your hip and thigh during walking or running, rising from a sitting position, climbing, and even just standing upright.

Otters Are Keeping Invasive Crabs Under Control in Monterey Bay

A new study shows that hungry sea otters are keeping Monterey Bay’s green crab population in check, one bite at a time.

15 Surprising Facts About Snow

Get to know the flurries and flakes on a deeper level.

The Zavaritskii Caldera on Simushir Island, the site of a climate-altering 1831 volcanic eruption, as seen from the International Space Station.

Solved: The 200-Old Mystery Behind a Colossal Volcanic Eruption

Scientists have long suspected that a gigantic eruption was behind the strange atmospheric phenomena of 1831. Scientists have finally figured out which volcano blew its top.

13 Enlightening Facts About Body Fat

Body fat is not just something to get rid of. It plays important roles in the human body, from regulating metabolism to storing energy.

Volunteering may help you to feel more fulfilled (and shelter pups will appreciate your efforts, too).

10 Scientifically Proven Ways to Stick to Your New Year’s Resolutions

New Year’s resolutions have a habit of being broken more than any other goals. This year, arm yourself with the best methods for making your resolutions a reality.

101 Things We Learned in 2024

Let’s celebrate another year in the books with a look back at how our knowledge grew over the past 12 months.

Velvet ants aren‘t actually ants. They‘re fluffy wasps.

‘Ultra-black‘ Velvet Ant Reflects Less Than 1 Percent of Light

Meet the insect with an exoskeleton so dark it absorbs almost all light.

Absolutely the last thing you want to see in your hotel room.

Study Identifies Genetic Mutations That Make Bed Bugs Hard to Kill

The bloodsucking hitchhikers have good reason to scoff at insecticides—they’re freakishly resistant to them.

“Treat” is probably one of the more popular buttons.

Do Those Dog “Talking” Buttons Really Work?

According to viral videos on TikTok and Instagram, pet dogs are expressing their demands using button boards instead of barking. But is the communication legit?

14 Gifts That Changed the World

These gifts made a huge impact.

1 Trillion-Ton “Megaberg” Is Roaming the Ocean Once Again

The mammoth iceberg first broke off in 1986. Roughly the size of Rhode Island, A23a is on the move once more.

13 Facts About the Spinal Cord

It’s less than an inch in diameter.

Don't believe everything you've been told about lightning.

Wild Misconceptions About Weather

From the color of snow to the shape of rainbows, weather breeds a lot of misconceptions.