A lot of people (IFLScience included) rely on Wi-Fi every single day, for our jobs, accessing the news, accidentally spending three hours on TikTok – and we can now do so in more places than ever before. But while it might be heading towards ubiquity, how many of us actually know what the term stands […]
News
How To Tell If A Conspiracy Theory Is Probably False
Conspiracy theories are everywhere, and they can involve just about anything. People believe false conspiracy theories for a wide range of reasons – including the fact that there are real conspiracies, like efforts by the Sackler family to profit by concealing the addictiveness of oxycontin at the cost of countless American lives. The extreme consequences […]
Where Does The Idea That Crystals Are Healing Come From?
This article first appeared in Issue 19 of our digital magazine CURIOUS. Advertisement It’s a busy Saturday morning in the local New Age store. Everywhere I walk, I have to maneuver around islands of individuals and families eagerly examining everything from candles and Tarot cards, to dream catchers and incense (I had no idea there were so many […]
The “Gateway To The Underworld” In Siberia Is Splintering Open
The Batagay megaslump, better known as Siberia’s “gateway to the underworld,” is up to its usual tricks. New research shows that the giant geological scar has grown up to 1 million cubic meters (35 million cubic feet) each year since 2014, pumping out thousands of tons of carbon as it fractures. Advertisement The 1-kilometer-long (0.62-mile) […]
Ultrasonics Make Cold Brew Coffee In Minutes Not Hours
Coffee that matches the taste profile that usually takes a day to achieve through cold brewing can now be produced in 1-3 minutes using ultrasound, with more caffeine to boot. The technology could make the cold brew experience available to the impatient and the housebound, making most coffee fans happy and forcing coffee snobs to […]
When Can Wildlife Photographers Intervene?
This article first appeared in Issue 19 of our digital magazine CURIOUS. Advertisement Fans of the David Attenborough BBC series Dynasties may remember a particularly harrowing scene in which a group of penguins got stuck in a ditch during a storm and couldn’t get out. It was a memorable episode, not only because of the desperate plight of […]
Archaeoraptor: The Dinosaur-Bird “Missing Link” And One Of Science’s Greatest Hoaxes
Heralded as the “missing evolutionary link” that proved modern-day birds evolved from feathered dinosaurs nearly three decades ago, the Archaeoraptor liaoningensis fossil was a discovery thought to change how the world saw evolution. Advertisement The fossil, so-named in its unveiling, appeared to be a combination of a bird and theropod, or two-footed dinosaur. On publication, […]
Are There Really Places On Earth Where It Is Illegal To Die?
Have you heard that it’s illegal to die in the cold distant reaches of Svalbard, Norway? The reasoning is that, due to the permafrost, bodies laid to rest in this Arctic territory will not decompose and so present a biological risk for future generations. However, this is not really true, especially the part about dying […]
This Curious Black Garlic Doesn’t Give You Garlic Breath And Is Healthy Too
Do you like garlic? Of course you do, and now you can enjoy everyone’s favorite ingredient without having to worry about garlic breath as a University of Queensland collaboration is trying to make black garlic happen. Black garlic was first developed in regions of Eastern Asia, and it’s created by aging garlic in controlled humidity. […]
Meat Tax: Could A Charge On Steak And Sausage-Lovers Save The Planet?
Whether you like the idea or absolutely loathe it, some believe that a “meat tax” is almost inevitable in the near future. While it’s sure to anger die-hard carnivores with libertarian leanings, there’s decent evidence that suggests a levy of high-emission foods could have many benefits for the planet, people, and animals – although it’ll […]
The Platypus Doesn’t Have A Stomach, And Probably Never Will
It’s honestly no surprise that the first people to see platypuses thought they were fake; they look like someone woke up one day and decided to bung together a bizarre-looking mishmash of a duck, beaver, and otter. Take a peek inside a platypus, however, and they get even stranger – they don’t have a stomach. […]
How To Make A Million Dollars (With Math!!)
According to the latest figures, there are more than 5.5 million people in the US who have more than a million dollars to hand. That sounds like a big number, until you realize it equates to about 1.65 percent of the population – or to put it another way, fewer than one in every 60 […]
How Did Prehistoric People Extract Metal?
The metal alloys used today in everything from smartphones to spaceships are simply the latest outputs of a metallurgic tradition that stretches all the way back to the Bronze Age, when the first metal mixtures were created. These days, metal mining and processing is a massive industry, yet the first humans to get their hands […]
Incredible Fusion Record Set By Tungsten-Clad Donut-Shaped Reactor
Nuclear fusion has the potential to deliver an enormous amount of energy. Many challenges in creating a stable fusion reaction are being overcome, but there are other technical issues that require solutions. One of them is about shielding the reactor from the fusing plasma. A new record has now been set for a tungsten-clad tokamak. […]
As RFK Jr Claims He Would “Eat 5 More”, Here’s What You Should Know About Parasitic Brain Worms
US presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr, known to many as RFK Jr, hit headlines this week after a decade-old deposition emerged in which he talked about “a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died.” No prizes for guessing that brain worms are not a great thing […]
AI Ethicists Highlight Three Horrifying Scenarios In Which Griefbots Could Stalk The Living
Speaking to the dead is now a reality as artificial intelligence (AI) technology has made “deadbots” and “griefbots” possible. These chatbots can simulate the language and personality of our deceased nearest and dearest, providing comfort for those who are grieving, but University of Cambridge scientists warn that griefbots could cause more harm than good, creating […]
NOAA Issues Warning Strongest Geomagnetic Storm In 20 Years Is About To Hit Earth
We do not know exactly when the peak of activity for this current solar cycle is going to be, but we are really close to it – and the Sun is not disappointing with its activity. For the first time since January 2005, the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a severe Geomagnetic Storm […]
Doctor Who Falsely Claimed COVID Vaccines Make You Magnetic Has Medical License Restored
After losing her medical license following a series of false claims about COVID-19 vaccines – amongst other bizarre comments – during testimony to state lawmakers, Ohio physician Sherri Tenpenny has reportedly had her license reinstated. Advertisement Cast your mind back to June 2021. Conspiracy theories about COVID-19 vaccines were no longer limited to the internet […]
The Longest-Running Laboratory Experiment In The World Is Streaming Live Right Now
At the University of Queensland, there is a display containing the longest-running laboratory experiment in the world. It has been running so long that two of its custodians have died before they ever saw any results. Advertisement The experiment was initiated in 1927 by Thomas Parnell, the University’s first professor of physics. Intended as a […]
SpaceX Reveals Spacesuit For First Commercial Spacewalk Taking Place This Summer
SpaceX has unveiled its new Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Suit, an important development in commercial space flight. The suit is very different from what we are used to seeing from NASA and Roscosmos. It’s a lot less bulky and it is designed with flexibility and comfort in mind. Advertisement The design is based on (so very […]
