Have you ever looked at an electrical outlet and thought it looked like a face? Or looked at a cloud and seen a bunny rabbit? If so, you’ve experienced the phenomenon of pareidolia. But why does our mind create faces out of random shapes? Read this article to learn more.
Have you ever wondered why some products appear at the top or bottom of online shopping search pages? Or why some items appear twice? Or why you may see identical items with different prices? Artificial Intelligence is powering more and more online and it has a growing ability to influence consumer decisions—and to do so in ways the consumer is unaware of.
While scientists don’t believe there is a giant monster hiding out in Loch Ness, they are considering what creatures could live there based on DNA testing.
Trypophobia describes the fear of clusters of holes. While it’s not officially recognized, many are convinced they have it.
Disney is known for creating magical effects on-screen, but did you know they also use tricks and deception in their theme parks, too? This article discusses a few of the ways Disney–and other theme parks and entertainment venues–use optical illusions to create magical effects in real life.
A surgical robot originally intended for space has the potential to revolutionize surgery here on Earth.
In 2019, NASA announced that the agency’s efforts to return to the Moon would be named the Artemis program. The goddess Artemis was heavily associated with the moon, and she’s also the twin of Apollo, whose name graced NASA’s first lunar missions in the 1960s. But why does NASA choose mythological names in the first place?
A new discovery in the Amazon unveils more information about the vibrant and complex civilization of the Upano people, who populated the region thousands of years ago.
Magician David Kwong breaks down magic into what he calls the “7 Principles of Illusion” and explains what goes into the execution of a magic trick.
Beware: He does give some general spoilers for how some magic tricks are done.
Sometimes disasters strike in the strangest of ways. To get a sense of just how strange, take a look at the odd and impressive photographs that accompany this short article on sinkholes. Who’d have thought such a thing could happen—right outside our front doors?
Did you know that Buzz Lightyear has really been to space? Most of the more than 100 space trips have included an odd item or two on board. Read to find out more about the interesting, and sometimes wacky, items that have traveled to space.
In the 1990s, the U.S. Navy revealed that sea lions and dolphins were being used to find and retrieve valuable equipment from the sea floor. These animals are also being trained to help clear mines and to protect our harbors. Read to learn about the secret uses of marine mammals!
Researchers have found that people wearing heavy backpacks perceive the hills they are climbing as steeper than people who aren’t wearing backpacks do. Read this article to find out more about how our perceptions can become distorted.
Fear may be able to spread from person to person—just like a virus. Recent studies have indicated that humans can smell fear and disgust in the body odor of those nearby, causing the part of their own brain that processes those emotions to become active.
The Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) went on strike for 148 days this summer, demanding that studios put guardrails around AI’s encroachment on their work. The effects of their new contract will echo in industries far beyond Hollywood.
India recently made history by landing the Pragyaan rover on the surface of the moon. Learn more about the scientific and historical significance of this Moon mission.
There is a famous optical illusion with two gray lines inside a number of black and white bars. The gray bars are the same color, but they appear lighter or darker depending on which bars are around them. Science was never sure why, but it seems the answer lies in you brain’s neurons and how fast they can fire.
A middle-aged woman—known as SM—blithely reaches for poisonous snakes, giggles in haunted houses, and once, upon escaping the clutches of a knife-wielding man, didn’t run but calmly walked away. All because a rare kind of brain damage precludes her from experiencing fear of any sort.
There was a time when there was no written language and almost all communication was spoken. Even when language evolved, it was often written on stone and not very portable until the invention of paper. History is full of such advances. Even the now ubiquitous smartphone was thought to be science fiction just a couple of decades ago. But have you ever asked yourself what advances may come next?
Small objects sometimes lead to big discoveries. Learn how tiny, metallic spheres might point to alien technology in this short video clip.
