Unless someone happens to have had an unusually extreme early bedtime for the entirety of their life, we’ve all seen plenty of sunsets in our time. Given the wealth of them that end up on Instagram stories, they look pretty great too – but have you ever wondered what they look like from space? Advertisement […]
First Ever “Mini-Brains” With Cells From 5 People Show How Drugs Affect Us Differently
In a world first, scientists have grown 3D brain organoids using cells from more than one person. Called “Chimeroids”, the intricate systems contain cells from up to five people; but future versions could push this into the hundreds, allowing scientists to create models that capture the wealth of human genetic diversity. Advertisement Organoids, often referred […]
508-Million-Year-Old “Pompeii” Trilobite Fossils Show Never-Before-Seen Features
Trilobites that date back 508 million years have been found preserved in volcanic matter, revealing never-before-seen details in 3D form. Their fossilization was so rapid that tiny shells have been preserved in situ, and soft tissues including mouthparts and internal organs can still be seen. Advertisement The trilobites were entombed in pyroclastic flow, which is […]
The Gross Reason Why Putting Your Luggage In The Bathtub Is Actually A Good Idea
You’ve just arrived at your hotel room. Still got your passport? Check. Sun cream on? Check. Luggage in the bathtub? Sorry… what? It might sound strange but putting your suitcases in the bathtub when you go on holiday is actually a good idea. Why? Because nobody loves an extended stay in a hotel or hostel […]
Why October Is Missing 10 Days In The Year 1582 On Your Phone
Folks on social media have noticed a strange quirk in the iPhone calendar: if you scroll to the year 1582, you’ll notice it jumps from October 4 to October 15, seemingly missing 10 days in the middle. This isn’t a bug or an Easter egg inserted by a bored programmer – those 10 days did […]
Time Team Archaeologists Discover Fragment Of Famous 6th Century Byzantine Bucket At Sutton Hoo
After a month of excavating, archaeologists with Time Team, a long-running British archaeology TV show, have discovered missing pieces of a 6th-century Byzantine bucket at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, England. The fragments, along with other finds, reveal more about this site’s prehistoric past. Advertisement Over 80 volunteers from across the world were taking part in […]
Fly Through The Pillars Of Creation In Stunning New 3D Visualization
When we look at things in astronomy, we see them projected onto the vault of heaven. Often we cannot appreciate that they are three-dimensional structures spanning mind-boggling distances. But combining observations at different wavelengths with cutting-edge visualization tools let us bridge that gap. The latest beautiful example focuses on the Pillars of Creation. Advertisement These […]
What Was The First Human Species, And What Makes It Human?
What makes a human human? Is it underpants? Whatever it is that sets us apart from the rest of the animal world, it’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment in history when we became fully human, and there are a few different candidate species that could have been the first. Advertisement Planet Of The Apes […]
Magnitude 7.2 Quake Hits Coastal Region In Peru – No Tsunami Expected
A strong earthquake, reported by the USGS as magnitude 7.2, has struck the region of Arequipa on the coast of Peru. The epicenter of the tremor was 54 kilometers (34 miles) southeast of the small town of Yauca according to the Instituto Geofísico del Perú. The quake hit just after half past midnight local time, […]
Astronauts Take Shelter As Debris From Russian Satellite Breakup Swarms
It’s been an eventful week on the International Space Station (ISS). First, a spacewalk was canceled when coolant water spread everywhere in the airlock. Then astronauts had to take shelter in the spacecraft they used to travel into space because of a report of potentially dangerous space debris approaching. Advertisement The cause of the debris […]
Popsicle Wolves, Primordial Black Holes, And A Fleshy Robot’s Smile
This week on Break It Down, a puppy gets a post-mortem 44,000 years after being frozen in permafrost, altruism found among Neanderthals in Down Syndrome case, the world’s largest terrestrial mammal migration is recorded in East Africa, a robot’s fleshy smile that will haunt your nightmares, NASA is being sued, and the Tunguska Event may […]
What The 3.2 Million-Year-Old Lucy Fossil Reveals About Nudity And Shame
Fifty years ago, scientists discovered a nearly complete fossilized skull and hundreds of pieces of bone of a 3.2-million-year-old female specimen of the genus Australopithecus afarensis, often described as “the mother of us all.” During a celebration following her discovery, she was named “Lucy,” after the Beatles song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” Advertisement […]
Turns Out Texas’ State Small Mammal Is Actually 4 Different Species
In news that’s likely to be awkward for whoever decided that the nine-banded armadillo should be the state small animal of Texas, scientists have discovered that it’s actually four different species – and the only one that’s kept the name doesn’t even live in the state. Advertisement At least until now, nine-banded armadillos were considered […]
Meet The Latest Dark Matter Detector: Jupiter’s Night Side
The stuff that makes up animals, planets, and stars is just a small part of the matter scientists believe is out there. Five-sixths of all matter in the universe is believed to be an invisible substance known as dark matter. We do not know what it is because it doesn’t interact with light, only with […]
China Opens Up First Ever Samples Of Far Side Of The Moon
Chinese scientists have opened up the first ever samples taken from the far side of the Moon. Advertisement On June 1, Chang’e 6 touched down softly on the far side of the moon. This was the second time China achieved this feat, and they remain the only nation to have done so. Advertisement ⓘ IFLScience is […]
Over 97 Percent Of Bleached Coral Died At Lizard Island Reef After This Year’s Event
The Great Barrier Reef was struck by an extremely harsh mass beaching event this year, and it looks like parts of the reef are struggling to bounce back. Drone imagery of Lizard Island’s North Point Reef shows that 97 percent of the bleached coral has died since the event earlier this year. Advertisement “This is […]
“Tantalizingly Beautiful” Rocks Yield More Evidence That Asteroid Bennu Came From A Wet World
The sample collected by OSIRIS-REx on asteroid Bennu continues to deliver unique insights into the history of this small space rock and the early Solar System. In the first few weeks following the opening of the sample, evidence began to show that Bennu might have had a wet past. A new discovery now adds to […]
A 44,000-Year-Old Wolf Frozen In Permafrost May Still Contain Living Bacteria
A prehistoric wolf that’s been frozen like a popsicle for over 44,000 years has undergone a post-mortem in Russia, set to reveal all kinds of insights into its life as an apex predator in the Ice Age. Advertisement The wolf was discovered in 2021 beneath around 40 meters (131 feet) of permafrost on the Tirekhtyakh […]
World’s Smallest Elephant Is Now Officially Endangered
Bornean elephants, best known as the world’s smallest living elephants, have now been classified as “Endangered” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), following decades of habitat destruction, conflict with humans, and debate over their status as a subspecies. Advertisement Unique to the island they’re named after, Bornean elephants are characteristically small […]
Livestock Burps Are Set To Be Taxed In Denmark In World First
In a world first, Denmark will tax farmers for the greenhouse gas emissions belched out by their cows, pigs, and other livestock. Advertisement The agreement was announced on June 24 by the Danish government after months of discussions between politicians, farmers, business leaders, and other parties. Advertisement “Agriculture is Denmark’s largest emitter of CO2. It […]
