Deborah Bloomfield

Just like their human neighbors, the rats of New York City have their own distinctive vocalizations, or “accent”, something akin to an urban dialect shaped by the chaos of noisy subways, busy sidewalks, and an abundance of dropped pizza slices. Likewise, these city-slicking rodents have a unique social life that’s significantly different from their lab-living […]

The JWST has found “dark beads” and unexpected structures inside the atmosphere of Saturn – strange features never seen before in the Solar System. On November 24, 2024, the JWST turned to observe Saturn for 10 hours, seeing the gas giant in unprecedented detail in the near-infrared spectrum. An international team looking at the data […]

The human brain is a hefty thing. Weighing well over a kilo, its an electrified lump that’s been compared by neuroscientists to the texture of silken tofu, and yet within its innumerous connections is coded everything that we are.  That wasn’t always the case, however. In fact, among the earliest lifeforms, eyes actually evolved before […]

If you believe certain, odder, corners of the Internet, scientists are either too arrogant to investigate the possibility of alien life visiting Earth, or actively involved in a cover-up.  But what do scientists really think about UFOs, and aliens more generally? Are they interested in the phenomenon, and do they think it worthy of further […]

A new species of predatory dinosaur has been described from fossils found in South America, and to say they are intimidating is an understatement. With a thumb claw that makes the human hand look puny, it’s safe to say that Joaquinraptor casali would’ve been much feared in its ecosystem, back when it was munching crocodiles around […]

Imagine the situation: you walk into an interview, and they hit you with an unexpected question. Which number is bigger, they ask: 3.14π, or π3.14? Now, other than being annoyed that this is being asked for an entry-level job at a gas station, what’s the answer? Don’t worry, we don’t expect you to work it […]

There are two great mysteries at the heart of console gaming: Why are there people out there who don’t invert their controllers? And why on Earth would the makers of such games label this perverse layout as “normal”? For those of you who aren’t gamers, a brief explanation. The so-called normal layout of a controller […]

We all love a mathematical brainteaser here at IFLS. Monty Hall? Done it mate. Two circles shoved into a quadrilateral of unknown size? Been there, solved that. Some Singaporean kids’ seemingly impossible homework? Debunked it, found the real answer. It’s kind of our thing. So, when we saw a new probability puzzle making the rounds […]

It’s beginning to look a lot like fall, and with the crisp sound of a crunchy leaf underfoot and the smell of pumpkin spice in the air, it’s time to tackle some of the more unwanted aspects of the third season. What can we do about the spiders? The rest of this article is behind […]

High-tech tags are revealing a side of the Hector’s dolphin the world rarely sees – its showstopping acrobatics beneath New Zealand’s waters. At just 1.4 meters (4.5 feet) long, Hector’s dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori) are the smallest marine dolphins in Earth’s seas. They are not to be confused with other record-holding small cetaceans, like the vaquita, […]

A large asteroid strike on the Moon could have negative consequences for the artificial satellites we now depend on. That being the case, a NASA-led team has looked into the options for preventing Asteroid 2024 YR4 from making such an impact in 2032. Contrary to the usual conclusions that asteroids should be diverted, not destroyed, […]

Prior to the start of the Ice Age, a period of global warming may have led to a northward shift of the monsoon rains, allowing prehistoric hominins to migrate out of Africa before crossing the Kazakh Steppe and the Hindu Kush, finally reaching northern India almost 3 million years ago. At least, that’s the theory […]

While keeping tabs on the whale sharks around the US coast, scientists came across one individual with an unusual bent back, curved like a curly S towards its tail. They believe the animal might have a form of kyphoscoliosis, making it the first whale shark with a spinal deformity ever recorded. The 6-meter (nearly 20-foot) […]

There’s a strange phenomenon reported among some recipients of organ transplants whereby people report altered memories, tastes, and personality changes. A particularly curious example included a woman who, having never much liked chicken nuggets, found herself compelled to eat them after receiving an organ from a man who had nuggets on his person when he […]

Across North America, elk are gearing up for their annual breeding season, known as the rut. As exciting a spectacle as it may be to behold, visitors to a number of national parks are being warned to keep their distance from the amorous elk, which are especially unpredictable during this time. The rest of this […]

Practice, the saying goes, makes perfect. And, if you believe a common piece of wisdom, it’s a specific amount of practice: 10,000 hours. Make that threshold, the advice goes, and you will achieve expertise, no matter how low your skill level at the start. It’s an attractive idea, not least because it implies that greatness […]

For some ophiophobes, even the thought of a snake is enough to set pulses racing. But while there might be something to fear from the pythons and king cobras of the world, surely most people could be persuaded to enjoy the world’s smallest snake? Meet the Barbados threadsnake. The rest of this article is behind […]

The man who first unified China in 221 BCE was so determined to live forever that he commanded a group of alchemists to venture to a mythical mountain in search of the source of eternal youth. Evidence of this harebrained mission has now been discovered on the shore of Gyaring Lake on the Tibetan Plateau, […]

Two centuries ago, a French inventor gazed out of his window in Saint-Loup-de-Varennes and captured a defining moment in the history of science (not to mention art). As the sunlight poured down on the rooftops ahead, Nicéphore Niépce set up a peculiar contraption on his windowsill: a darkened box holding a pewter plate coated with […]

Fifteen years after launch, Japan has announced the end of the “Planet C” mission, leaving humanity with no presence around Venus. In May 2010, Japan’s Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched the “Planet C” spacecraft – also known as “Akatsuki” or the Venus Climate Orbiter – towards Earth’s “sister planet”. The early stages of the mission […]