The world is more interesting than you think.
Unexpected facts, big ideas, and little discoveries. Find something that sparks your curiosity today.
A little more wonder
How a save file can bring a game world down
As an RPG tracks more changes—even where dropped cups are left—the save file can grow so large that the game becomes unstable.
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How one-way mirrors actually work
A one-way mirror is partially reflective glass: the brightly lit room reflects the view, while someone in a darker room can see through it.
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The Supreme Court called tomatoes vegetables for a tax bill
In Nix v. Hedden in 1893, the dispute was about import duties, not botany. Tomatoes counted as vegetables under the tariff because people served them with…
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A healing facial nerve can make someone cry while eating
In crocodile tears syndrome, nerve fibers recovering after injury can activate the tear gland during eating. Signals associated with salivation end up taking…
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Specular highlights make digital skin look sweaty
Overly strong specular highlights—the bright reflections on a surface—can make digital skin look slick and sweaty, even when a character hasn't been exercising.
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A forest fire can prepare a giant sequoia's nursery
Hot air dries older cones so they open and release seeds. Fire also removes some competing vegetation and exposes ground where seedlings can establish…
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Mental time travel lets you cringe at your past self
Chronesthesia lets the mind revisit the past and imagine the future—which can mean replaying an embarrassing conversation years later.
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Niles Crane is a completely fictional television psychiatrist
On Frasier, the psychiatrist spends much of his time fretting over dirt, wiping down clean chairs, and hyperventilating at dinner parties.
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Modern game installations extract heavily zipped files
Game files arrive compressed and must be unpacked by your device during installation, which can take nearly as long as downloading them.
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The composer who plunged opera houses into darkness
Wagner wanted audiences watching the stage, not chatting or showing off their clothes, so he had the lights dimmed. The darkened house made listening to the…
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Cafe-racer folklore used a jukebox as a stopwatch
The famous story has riders racing to a landmark and back before a record finished. It captures the stripped-down speed culture around British motorcycle…
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Your brain can react to imagined events as if real
Your brain can run some of the same body responses to an imagined scene as to a real one. Picture biting a sour lemon and your mouth may water; replay a tense…
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Many early silent films are entirely lost to history
Studios sometimes melted down old reels to reclaim the silver in their film stock. An estimated 75% of silent films are now lost; some were treated less like…
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Electric unicycles make riders look like statues
The rider leans forward, the wheel rolls to keep up, and onboard sensors keep correcting the balance. From the sidewalk it looks like a person gliding without…
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A wheeled chair turns carrying a passenger into pushing one
The wheels support the seated person's weight while the attendant supplies the force to roll them. That changes the work dramatically on a suitable surface,…
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Why talk shows use those cramped couches
The cramped sofa puts guests close together, creating an easy on-camera sense of familiarity—even when they’ve only just met.
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The cheap beef filler made from meat scraps
Meat scraps can be processed into lean finely textured beef and blended into ground beef. That lets producers use more of the carcass while lowering costs,…
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Sweet peaches and plums officially belong to the rose family
Peach flowers share features with flowers of the rose family, even if the fruits look nothing alike. Plums, apples, cherries, and strawberries belong to that…
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Why giant cinema screens have tiny holes
Perforations let sound from speakers behind the screen pass through, so dialogue seems to come from the actors rather than from speakers beside the picture.
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Violins are typically constructed with exactly four strings
A violin’s bow sets its four strings vibrating, while small changes in finger placement alter the pitch—a reason accurate intonation takes practice.
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Display panels prioritize response over pure colors
Monitors tuned for fast pixel response may trade color accuracy for speed, making images look washed out.
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Drummers use wooden sticks to strike their percussive kits
Rather than striking with bare hands, drummers use rigid wooden sticks to deliver repeated hits to tightly tuned drumheads and create a rhythm.
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Why toothpaste tubes give you too much
A wider opening lets more toothpaste spill onto the brush with an ordinary squeeze. The extra paste is easy to miss, but it makes the tube run out sooner.
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Why Amazon river dolphins turn pink
Many Amazon river dolphins start life gray and become pinker as they age. Their gray pigmentation fades, while scrapes accumulate on the skin and let more…
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