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
Battlefield lets you demolish skyscrapers
A blast can turn a wall into a shortcut—or bring down a tower that was giving the other team a perfect perch. Because the map changes as players fight, the…
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Male fetuses can have erections before birth
Ultrasounds can capture male fetuses having erections before birth. It’s an involuntary reflex, driven by automatic body signals rather than conscious…
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Scientists studied what made Freddie Mercury sound like Freddie Mercury
Researchers analyzed recordings rather than relying on stories about his range. They found a remarkably rapid vibrato—the recurring fluctuation in pitch that…
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Habbo trolls turned their avatars into a locked door
During the 2006 raids, coordinated users crowded identical avatars across entrances, including the pool. The obstruction exploited the world's own movement…
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Ingesting certain artificial dyes turns human urine green
After large amounts of certain dyes are ingested, some can leave the body in urine and change its color. Blue mixed with the urine’s yellow tint can appear…
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The pope who died three days after his election
He suffered a stroke before his consecration ceremony could take place.
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Beethoven's late masterpieces outlasted his hearing
By the time he composed works such as the Ninth Symphony, severe hearing loss had transformed his daily life. He could still work with musical structures and…
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Understanding sarcasm means hearing more than the words
When someone says great job after a disaster, the literal sentence points in the wrong direction. Tone, context, and expectations help you infer the speaker's…
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Justin Timberlake's leftover French toast sold for $1,025
A radio station put the unfinished breakfast on eBay in 2000, and a fan bought it. The value lay in who had left it behind, not in the food itself. An…
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Tony Hawk landed the trick before the game
Hawk pulled off the two-and-a-half-spin at the X Games months before his skateboarding game came out. The timing helped build excitement: people had already…
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Waiting to marry and staying married aren't the same statistical question
People who marry young often have higher divorce rates, but age also travels with differences in education, circumstances and partner choice. A study using a…
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Lucid dreaming takes more than just falling asleep
Lucid dreaming takes more than just falling asleep. In a lucid dream, part of your awareness catches the fact that the dream is a dream while the story keeps…
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Milli Vanilli had their massive music award revoked
After it emerged that Milli Vanilli had lip-synced and never sung on their recordings, the duo had major music awards revoked.
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Benedict IX gave up the papacy in a financial deal
In 1045, Benedict IX relinquished the office in an arrangement involving payment, and John Gratian became Pope Gregory VI. The controversy became part of a…
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France elects a president—and gives Andorra a co-prince
Andorra's shared rule began with a 1278 agreement involving the bishop of Urgell and the count of Foix. The count's rights passed through later rulers to the…
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Huge cities dramatically boost resident social interactions
A crowded city puts more kinds of people within reach of one another. When their skills and ideas meet, useful knowledge can spread through those everyday…
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The Dark Side of the Moon stayed on the chart for years
Pink Floyd’s 1973 album accumulated more than 700 weeks on the Billboard 200 during its original chart run. Its audience kept renewing itself rather than…
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Iron Maiden's singer also flew its tour plane
For the band's 2016 tour, licensed pilot Bruce Dickinson flew the chartered Boeing 747 known as Ed Force One. The aircraft carried the band, crew, and…
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Commercial jet windows feature curved oval edges
A pressurized cabin pushes outward on an airplane’s fuselage, and sharp window corners concentrate that stress. Oval edges spread the load more smoothly, so…
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A real family's breakup became television in 1973
PBS's An American Family followed the Loud family through everyday life and a marital separation. Viewers were watching people rather than actors play out a…
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MSN Messenger let you shake someone else's chat window
A nudge made the conversation window shake and played a sound to demand attention. It turned an unanswered message into an interruption. Before read receipts…
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The V&A kept a fig leaf ready for royal visits
Its full-size cast of Michelangelo's David arrived in 1857. A removable leaf could be hung from hooks to cover the figure when distinguished visitors came.…
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Todra Gorge, where the sky nearly disappears
The limestone walls rise hundreds of feet, leaving the path squeezed into a narrow, shadowy passage.
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Breast sizes wildly fluctuate during the menstrual cycle
Across the menstrual cycle, hormone shifts can change how much fluid the body retains and how much blood flows through breast tissue. That extra fluid and…
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