Could we one day create sperm and egg cells from any human cell, even across the sexes? Plus, how BJ Novak from The Office’s face ended up on products all around the world without him knowing. And the latest drops from two o…
It turns out that melting permafrost could unleash Cold War-era radioactive waste and millions of years old antibiotic resistant bacteria. Cool cool cool. Plus, a look back at when picnicking in cemeteries was a common past …
Could a new generation of AI simulations help solve the mounting supply chain disruptions? Plus, the history and future of haunted houses. And Jeff Bezos is basically trying to start a WeWork in space.
The countercultural witchcraft music of the 1960s, and a study exploring what it is about certain songs that give us a spine-tingling chill. Plus, elephants in Mozambique have evolved to be born without tusks. And the guy wh…
Thanks to a collaboration between trees and the sun, we can now pinpoint an exact year that the Vikings were in North America. Plus, are sirens actually effective tools for emergency vehicles? And why are apples associated w…
Open captions are coming to the big screen as AMC Theaters takes a big step towards accessibility, and a look at captions’ growing popularity among the hearing. Plus, how some of the most popular memes are completely inacces…
A brief history of one of the most famous pizzas on the internet. Surgeons have successfully transplanted a kidney from a genetically-altered pig to a human. And how to watch the Orionid Meteor Shower this week, if the big o…
A look at the micronation of Westarctica, whose Grand Duke Travis started a nonprofit arm of the micronation to raise awareness about the consequences of the climate emergency in Western Antarctica. Plus, AstroAccess success…
How the push to search for signs of life on exoplanets fueled the development of the technology we use in our latest generation of smartphones. Plus, what your punctuation habits can say about you as a writer––and a new webs…
A proposal for approaching this next phase of the pandemic less like an epidemiologist and more like an engineer. Plus, new findings from the Mars Perseverance rover that has NASA breathing a sigh of relief. And product plac…
Should you read the spoilers for horror movies before you watch them? Plus, a butterfly species in Finland with parasitic wasps in its belly… and even more wasps inside of that one. And, what if instead of lamps we one day u…
How candy corn went from a year round candy marketed at farmers to the love-to-hate it Halloween treat it is today. Plus, a new interactive image gallery that starkly shows what effects three degrees of global warming will h…
What is it that makes spiders so frightening to us, and why do most of us kill them without sparing a second thought? Plus, a Scottish nightclub that’s using the body heat of their dancing patrons to heat and cool the venue.…
It’s Indigenous Peoples’ Day. More and more local governments are making it official, but why did we start celebrating Columbus Day to begin with? Plus, the impressive and gnarly competition to be crowned Miss Navajo Nation.…
The winners of the Nobel Peace Prize have been announced! As well as the winners in Chemistry and Literature. More on each winner, as well as a question about whether we really need the Nobel Prize. Plus, the remnants of the…
The WHO has officially approved the first-ever malaria vaccine. The United States Postal Service is trying out being a bank. And the story of a white-naped crane named Walnut who fell in love with a human named Crowe.
A Russian film crew have arrived on the International Space Station to shoot the first-ever feature length film in space. A woman has received a brain implant that is successfully treating her depression by painlessly zappin…
Are we prepared to reckon with how much of the world came to a stop when Facebook went down yesterday? Plus, thanks to a new discovery, you may soon be able to find out if you had an identical twin in the womb using just a s…
The sexist history of the rollerboard suitcases. Plus, the facts about Merck’s new COVID-19 antiviral pill, including its connection to Thor. And the return of Nick Lutsko’s absurdist Spirit Halloween music videos.
The persisting myth of tampered-with and tainted trick-or-treat candy, and why it’s an urban legend that will never die. Plus, how we humans produce speech and a website that shows you both the beautiful engineering and the …
The very American history of the Chinese takeout box, and a look at the new “Americancore” trend. Plus, archaeologists have uncovered a hidden neighborhood in the ancient Maya city of Tikal that sheds new light on the imperi…
What will happen to the bodies of people who die on Mars? Plus, AI has indicated that a famous painting at the National Gallery might be a phoney. And festival-goers at Glastonbury are endangering rare eels with their drug-a…
Could removing methane from the atmosphere be a viable strategy for slowing global warming? And are all of these disparate new ideas and strategies to solve the climate crisis going to lead to real solutions? Plus, pulling b…
How 19th century New Yorkers took advantage of a loophole in the strict drinking laws and ended up creating the world’s worst sandwich. Plus, a supernova that’s been missing since the twelfth century has been found! And how …