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The last time I experienced kama muta was – rather fittingly, as it turned out – while I was conducting an interview about kama muta. Alan Fiske, a psychological anthropologist at UCLA and researcher in the international institution-spanning Kama Muta Lab, was telling me a story about his grandson as a toddler, and I just […]

Students at the University of Exeter in the UK have broken a peculiar world record: levitating a soap bubble for 84 minutes, beating the previous record by over an hour. They created the bubble using an acoustic levitation device, a machine that can make small objects float in midair thanks to ultrasound.  ADVERTISEMENT GO AD […]

If you’ve ever opened a band-aid in a darkened room, you may have noticed something a little unexpected. If you have the right type of band-aid, it may emit visible blue light. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE The phenomenon can also be seen if you unfurl adhesive tape, crush a sugar cube in the dark, or […]

After thousands of years in the afterlife you might expect to stink like a moldy old scrotum, but as it turns out, ancient Egyptian mummies are still surprisingly easy on the nose. A credit to their embalmers, the shriveled bodies retain many of the pleasant odors emanating from the aromatic oils and waxes with which […]

Trihydrogen cations, or H3+, are not common molecules in our everyday lives – you might not have heard of them before this article, but we are probably here because of them. This peculiar type of ion is likely a crucial ingredient in the formation of stars as well as a catalyst in chemical reactions in […]

Rare black wolves have been captured crossing a stream in Poland, marking the first time that black wolves have ever been filmed in the country. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE Recorded on a camera trap that was originally set up to record beavers by the conservation charity SAVE Wildlife Conservation Fund Poland, the footage shows first […]

Two fossils suggest that birds were thriving and diversifying in China as the Jurassic Period closed, new research reveals. Given the contentiousness of avian origins, however, the debate may have a fair way to run. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE Early bird evolution is shrouded in mystery partly because their thin bones fossilize badly, but also […]

The natural world is full of things that glow, but there’s more than one way that they can do so. Some are biofluorescent and others are bioluminescent – but what’s the difference between the two? What is biofluorescence? ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE Biofluorescence is a phenomenon in which an organism absorbs light at a certain […]

According to all climate metrics, 2024 was a terrifying year. It was so hot that it led to a declaration by the UN that we were witnessing climate breakdown in real-time. January 2025 has not bucked that trend – quite the opposite. January 2025 was the hottest January on record. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE Data […]

A robot hand powered by lab-grown muscles is challenging you to a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors – do you accept? Here’s hoping you choose rock, because a new remarkable biohybrid has just perfected the scissors sign thanks to multiple muscle tissue actuators (MuMuTAs) that are bringing us closer to larger biohybrid limbs (and in […]

Listening to the right tune can get our hairs standing on end thanks to “frisson”, but can it move us to focus more on something we’re working on? Flow playlists are all over streaming platforms like Spotify, and now new research has backed up their efficacy as a study tool. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE The […]

Using advanced telescopes, scientists have looked at light that left galaxies 13.5 billion light-years ago, from the distant galaxy JADES-GS-z14-0. So why do we have such trouble looking the other way, down to the tiniest scales? Can’t we use lenses to see atoms? ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE The short answer is; no. We will never […]

Fish are often held up as the poster child for poor memory, and yet some fish have passed the mirror test – something that’s considered the benchmark for self-awareness. It seems we’ve been a bit quick to assume their smarts, so who is the brainiest fish swimming in the brine? What is the most intelligent […]

With February 14 around the corner, what better time to assess your satisfaction in your relationship? Luckily for you, researchers at Stockholm University have just the test – designed to assess key aspects of your relationship such as emotional intimacy, trust, and conflict resolution, in seven simple questions. They even provide helpful tips and tricks […]

When it comes to a broken heart, sometimes there’s no better remedy than being incredibly petty. Luckily, zoos have come in clutch with some deliciously vindictive ways to insult your ex (or enemies) this Valentine’s Day, while also doing some good for our animal friends. 1. Dedicate a pile of poop Give someone the gift […]

Who is responsible for creating and spreading misinformation? The subject has become increasingly concerning in both the public and academic spheres since 2016, where social media is often seen as the driver behind its proliferation. However, a new study takes a different view: misinformation is actually a political strategy adopted by radical right-wing populist parties. […]

What is the most heinous act a person can commit? There are probably many contenders, but one that is felt keenly by many cultures across the world is the idea of eating human flesh. Cannibalism is often referred to as the ultimate taboo and its violently snackish practitioners – from iconic cinematic villains like Hannibal […]

Information has been released on a neutrino estimated to have an energy of 220 peta electron volts (PeV). The previous record-holder was 6.05 PeV, and while there is a wide error bar on the latest discovery, even at the lower end of estimates it’s an order of magnitude above anything we’ve seen before. The source […]

New research has demonstrated the powerful impacts the reintroduction of predators can have on an ecosystem. The presence of wolves in Yellowstone National Park has driven a cascading effect that has literally changed the landscape. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE The new study used data from previous studies on 25 riparian (streamside) sites collected over a […]

Search giant Google has officially changed the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America” on Google Maps, following an order by US President Donald Trump to rename the oceanic basin. Rather than a change seen only by users in the USA, the change will affect almost all Google Maps users. ADVERTISEMENT GO AD FREE […]