• Will Mt. Kilimanjaro Ever Erupt Again?

    In many ways, the majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania, is in a category of its own. As National Geographic reports, the 19,340-foot colossus is the tallest mountain in Africa, and since it is not a part of any mountain range, it's also the largest freestanding mountain in the world.

    By Pauli Poisuo July 20th, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How The Founders Of Google Actually Met

    Sometimes, a chance meeting can become the most important event in your life. Occasionally, it can change the world, too. That's what happened when grad student Sergey Brin met Larry Page. The two eventually co-founded Google, now one of the largest and most influential technology companies in the world.

    By Emilia David July 15th, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How To Survive An Encounter With A Rattlesnake

    If you're being charitable, it'd be fair to characterize some people as having more enthusiasm than common sense. For instance, Rachel Levin wrote about the one the guy who decided it'd be cool to pick up the rattlesnake he found on the trail, and hold it in a pose. You know, for Instagram.

    By Eric Meisfjord July 12th, 2020 Read More
  • The Real Reason Camels Have Humps

    Camels are notorious for the humps on their back, so much so that Wednesday, also known as "hump day" is associated with the camel in present-day pop culture. But how did Joe Camel really get his lovely humps?

    By Allison Matyus July 7th, 2020 Read More
  • The Real Reason Dire Wolves Went Extinct

    Besides giving everybody the theatrical genius of Peter Dinklage on a regular basis, Game of Thrones also popularized dire wolves, those large, toothsome beasties that seem to be the size of a decent pony ... and, if you've got a problem with dogs, the stuff of nightmares.

    By Eric Meisfjord July 6th, 2020 Read More
  • Hobbits Might Actually Have Existed. Here's Why

    It's been speculated that in the middle of the earth, in the land of the Shire, there was, at some point, a brave little hobbit with qualities that a lot of people find admirable. Then, in 2003, according to the Smithsonian Magazine, a discovery was made on the Indonesian island of Flores.

    By Tom Meisfjord July 6th, 2020 Read More
  • What Happens To Your Body When You Compulsively Lie

    We all have had an occasion to lie -- sometimes about cherry trees, like George Washington, and other times, just to be polite. There is a difference between social niceties and pathological lying, though. But where is the line, and what happens when we cross it?

    By Felix Behr June 29th, 2020 Read More
  • What Really Happens To Your Body When You Take A Polygraph Test

    Although they lack the pizzazz of lightsabers, polygraphs — better known as lie detectors — work on the equally fantastical premise that a machine can definitively say whether the subject of the test is lying or not ... and the Supreme Court ruled against them in 1998.

    By Felix Behr June 28th, 2020 Read More
  • Myths About Flex Tape You Can Stop Believing

    Duct tape — or as its commercially known, Flex Tape — can do many things. Flex Tape even has commercials talking about everything it can stick together. And while it's true some things can be fixed with duct tape... don't believe everything.

    By Emilia David June 26th, 2020 Read More
  • The Truth About The Great Dane With Two World Records

    It's rare to beat a world record, let alone have two, unless you're that guy with the record for most world records. However, one dog in the UK managed this feat. Freddy the Great Dane is not just the tallest dog in the world (and one of the largest), but is also now the oldest living Great Dane.

    By Emilia David June 17th, 2020 Read More
  • The Real Reason A Tesla Was Launched Into Space

    Thanks in large part to Brad Pitt, society bumped up their Latin vocabulary last year. Added to "et cetera" and "in vino veritas," everyone now knows "ad astra," the title of Pitt's movie about space travel, meaning "to the stars."

    By Eric Meisfjord June 17th, 2020 Read More
  • Should You Get A Bed For Your Dog?

    Genuine, committed, dyed-in-the-wool dog owners are like golfers: They're really easy to shop for. But there's one thing dog owners are split down the middle about -- dog beds? To buy or not to buy?

    By Eric Meisfjord June 9th, 2020 Read More
  • Why The Coronavirus Isn't Going To Disappear Like SARS Did

    SARS came and went -- which seems like a real glass-is-half-full potential outcome for the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. Unfortunately, there's a small pile of reasons why it's unlikely that we'll see the same miraculous contagion disappearing act this time around.

    By Tom Meisfjord June 8th, 2020 Read More
  • The Truth About The Deadliest Octopus In The World

    "Small and kind of cute" doesn't necessarily mean "small and kind of cute and harmless," as any Peter Dinklage fan knows. Add "kind of cute, for something boneless" and it doesn't change. Case in point: the blue-ringed octopus. Small, and kind of cute, but astonishingly deadly.

    By Eric Meisfjord June 8th, 2020 Read More
  • The Truth About The Animal That Spends Its Whole Adult Life Pregnant

    Between overwhelmed aunts, the folks at your church, and coworkers who won't stop pumping in the break room, there's a good chance you know somebody perpetually pregnant. Now, researchers have found a marsupial that double-bunks its pregnancies like it's running a shady hostel in its womb.

    By Tom Meisfjord June 8th, 2020 Read More