Mine spiders have seen a surge in popularity recently as many are realizing for the first time that some of the planet’s most impressive arachnids live their whole lives in dark and remote places. While there isn’t just one genus of cave-dwelling arachnids, there’s a host of impressive spiders to be found in caves and […]
Blackout Zones: The Places On Earth Where Magnetic Compasses Don’t Work
Compasses were the trusted companions of sailors, explorers, and travelers for centuries, offering a simple way to find north. A small magnetized needle is set on a tiny pivot, allowing it to move and align itself with the invisible force of Earth’s magnetic field. But this simple tool has a major flaw. In certain places […]
What Is Actually Happening When You Get Blackout Drunk? An Ethically Dubious Experiment Found Out
According to several surveys, a large number of people (66 percent, in one conducted on students) have experienced getting “blackout drunk”, where chunks of time are forgotten after consuming alcohol – yet this is a topic that, until relatively recently, we didn’t understand a lot about. One of the problems with finding out about the […]
Koalas Get A Shot At Survival As World-First Chlamydia Vaccine Gets Approval
Great news for koalas in Australia: a new chlamydia vaccine has officially been approved by Australia’s Veterinary Medicine Regulator (yay!). Developed over more than a decade at the University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC) as part of a global collaborative effort, the vaccine is designed to protect the tree huggers from chlamydia, a bacterial infection […]
We Could See A Black Hole Explode Within 10 Years – Unlocking The Secrets Of The Universe
Black holes can lose mass and energy over time. They release Hawking radiation. The smaller they are, the more radiation they emit, so the hotter they get. The end scenario is the black holes exploding into nothing. Could we observe such an exploding black hole? Maybe, if a bunch of conditions are met. If they […]
Denisovan DNA May Make Some People Resistant To Malaria
When our prehistoric ancestors mated with Denisovans, they may have picked up some highly advantageous genes that continue to benefit our health today. According to a new study, some human populations may even carry Denisovan DNA that enhances their resistance to a range of parasitic diseases, including malaria. The rest of this article is behind […]
Beware The Kellas Cat? This “Cryptid” Turned Out To Be Real, But It Wasn’t What People Thought
Beware the Kellas cat! That’s what you might’ve heard back in the 1980s when some people in Scotland started to attribute large cat sightings and the violent deaths of sheep to an elusive predator. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content. The Kellas […]
“They Simply Have A Taste For The Hedonists Among Us”: Festival Mosquito Study Has Some Bad News
If you live in or visit an area with mosquitoes, you are probably well aware that the little bastards insects have a tendency to snack heavily on some people, whilst leaving other individuals unscathed. Scientists have attempted to figure out if this is true, and why this might be the case. There have been suggestions, […]
What Is The Purpose Of Those Lines On Your Towels?
When looking at a towel, you may have wondered a few things, such as, “Why do I have to wash my towel when I only use it when I’ve literally just been cleaned?” and, “Huh, what the hell are those lines for?” The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or […]
The Invisible World Around Us: How Can We Capture And Clean The Air We Breathe?
Take a deep breath of air. Seems fresh, right? Unfortunately, air isn’t just oxygen and other gases. Every lungful of air contains tiny, suspended particles called aerosols. Some are harmless, but some… not so much. Thanks to advances in air sampling and filtration technology, we have techniques to detect aerosols and reduce their presence indoors, […]
85-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Eggs Dated Using “Atomic Clock For Fossils” For The First Time
What could be more exciting than finding a dinosaur egg? The tiny shells from which some of the largest animals ever to walk the Earth emerged, incredible stuff! Thing is, it’s not always easy to work out what you’re dealing with when all you have to study is the egg itself. In fact, it’s not […]
Why Shouldn’t You Kiss Babies? New Study Shows Even Healthy Newborns Can Become Severely Ill With RSV
They say it takes a village to raise a child, and that village is very excited when a newborn comes into the world. Friends and relatives will flock to see the baby bearing gifts, hugs, and kisses – some of the popular ways we humans like to show our affection. Only problem is, can we […]
Earth Has A New Quasi-Moon – And It Has Probably Been Around For Decades
The total number of quasi-satellites of our planet has gone up by one. There are now 8 small asteroids going around the Sun at the same time as our planet, acting almost like moons, hence the term quasi-satellite or quasi-moon. Meet the newest entry, 2025 PN7. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. […]
Want To Kill Your Prey? Do It Feather-Legged Lace Weaver Spider Style And Vomit All Over Them
Few things can make you go “ewww” like the phrase “regurgitation of digestive fluids” but that’s exactly how one spider species goes about tackling its prey. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content. Forget fancy injections of venom, the best way for a […]
IFLScience The Big Questions: Are We In The Anthropocene?
In March 2024, geologists rejected the proposal that we are in a new geological era: the Anthropocene, a time dominated by human activity on the planet. And yet, the evidence of our impact on the Earth’s ecology and climate continues to mount up around us. So how could this decision make sense given everything going […]
The Wildfire Paradox Affecting 440 Million People Has As Worrying A Solution As You’d Expect
When you think of wildfires, your mind may turn to the devastating, headline-grabbing blaze that swallowed up parts of Los Angeles at the start of this year. California in general is no stranger to occasionally going up in flames, especially since humanity has rigged the state’s fire season into more of a fire always. “The […]
AI May Infringe On Your Rights And Insult Your Dignity (Unless We Do Something Soon)
With every significant breakthrough in technology, humanity has had to reckon with equally significant drawbacks – and artificial intelligence (AI) is definitely no exception. We’re all aware of many of its downsides by now: it’s bad for the environment; it’s bad for our brains; increasingly, it’s even turning deadly – and let’s face it, it’s […]
How Do You Study Cryptic Species? We’re Finally Lifting The Lid On The World’s Least Understood Mammals
It’s been said that there are many benefits to being a marine biologist, but there is one insurmountable obstacle we humans simply can’t overcome: we are, in fact, primates. Terrestrial ones at that, meaning we don’t have the upper hand when it comes to tracking animals like whales in their natural environment. For this reason, […]
Once-In-A-Decade Close Encounter With Hazardous Asteroid 2025 FA22 Approaches
The world is set for a once-in-a-decade event as the large and potentially hazardous asteroid 2025 FA22 makes a close approach to Earth. As it does so, the object should be visible to amateur astronomers equipped with small telescopes. 2025 FA22 was discovered on March 29 this year by the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid […]
With 229 Pairs, This Beautiful Animal Has The Highest Number Of Chromosomes Of Any Animal
It’s official: the animal with the highest number of chromosomes is the Atlas blue butterfly, boasting a record 229 pairs. This is a pretty unusual finding since many of its closest relatives have just 23 or 24 pairs. The Atlas blue butterfly (Polyommatus atlantica) is native to the North African mountain ranges of Morocco and […]
