Science
Discover facts about science. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Science
Some starfish can rebuild far more than a missing arm
Regenerative abilities differ among species: many need part of the central disk to regrow a whole animal, while a few can regenerate from an arm. The feat…
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Armadillos routinely rest inside extensively dug deep burrows
The ground changes temperature more slowly than the surface, and an armadillo’s burrow takes advantage of that delay. Soil slows heat moving in, making the…
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Opossums are opportunists at the dinner table
Their diet ranges from insects and snails to fruit, carrion and food left around human homes. That flexibility helps them use very different environments…
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Cranberries strictly thrive inside deeply flooded muddy bogs
Flooding cranberry beds is a harvesting trick, not the vines’ year-round living arrangement. Air pockets inside the berries make them buoyant, and the flood…
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A narwhal's tusk is an enormous tooth
A narwhal’s tusk grows out through its upper lip from a tooth, and it even contains sensory pathways. Those nerves may help the animal detect changes in its…
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Why shoppers once rejected sliced bread
A sliced loaf has more soft interior exposed to air than a whole loaf does, so it can dry out faster. The crust acts like a cover; cut more surfaces, and more…
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Peanuts securely develop underground alongside similar legumes
A peanut flower blooms aboveground, then sends a stalklike peg down into the soil after pollination. The pod forms at the buried tip, so the plant grows its…
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When canned water became a Cold War product
Canned water became a Cold War survival product because people worried that a nuclear disaster could make everyday water supplies unavailable. Companies…
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Why strawberries wear their seeds outside
Those little dots on a strawberry aren’t seeds sitting bare on the surface. Each is a tiny fruit called an achene, and a seed is tucked inside it. The juicy…
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Why bubble gum is pink
Walter Diemer’s successful bubble-gum formula became pink because that was the coloring available for the batch, according to the familiar account of its…
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Hot chili sauce was originally bottled in a beach town
The sauce’s coastal story is a production story: as more people wanted it, a facility by the shore blended and bottled it. Demand turned a place into part of…
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Millipedes curl into tight defensive spirals when threatened
When danger appears, a millipede curls its soft underside inside a ring of hard body segments. Its many legs tuck away too, leaving an attacker a mouthful of…
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Why cheetahs run on permanent cleats
A cheetah’s claws stay partly exposed, so their tips can dig into the ground as it accelerates or cuts a corner. That extra grip helps the cat keep its…
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Velociraptors were more like giant predatory turkeys
Velociraptor was a feathered predator closer in size to a turkey than to the enormous movie “raptors.” The films borrowed their giant hunters more from larger…
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Hippos don't swim—they run underwater
Hippos push off the riverbed to move underwater instead of paddling along the surface like typical swimmers. After staying submerged for several minutes, they…
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Yankees pinstripes appeared before Babe Ruth arrived
The striped uniforms debuted in 1912, eight years before Ruth became a Yankee in 1920.
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A bank's pneumatic tube brings the counter to your car
A small carrier moves cash or documents between the customer and the teller, pushed or pulled through a tube by air pressure. The teller stays indoors while…
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What Megalodon's bite marks reveal
Megalodon’s teeth could leave marks in the bones of marine mammals, preserving evidence of a meal. Because shark skeletons are mostly cartilage, they rarely…
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When iguanas escape predators by belly-flopping
An iguana can turn a fall from a branch into a getaway. It hits the water, sweeps its strong tail from side to side, and powers away from danger. The drop…
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Snails eagerly consume enormous amounts of essential calcium
Snails scrape calcium-rich soil and old shells because they need the mineral to build and repair their own shells. As they grow, that supply helps keep the…
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Elephants can use their trunks as snorkels
An elephant’s trunk is its nose, with the nostrils right at the tip. Keep that tip above water and it can keep drawing air while the rest of the elephant…
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Why margarine was once dyed bright pink
The pink wasn’t a flavor choice: it was part of a fight over margarine’s appearance. Customers could mix a yellow dye capsule into pale margarine at home, but…
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Beavers meticulously build intricate protective wooden lodges
Beavers enter their lodges through underwater tunnels, then climb into a raised chamber that stays dry. It’s a home with a moat built into the front door—and…
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A pineapple grows once per fruiting shoot, not once per plant forever
After the main shoot fruits, side shoots can develop and produce a later crop. Growers can retain such growth for a ratoon harvest or use shoots to start new…
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