A view from the top of Hurricane Irma last year, the strongest Atlantic storm on record. U.S. Air Force photo/ Staff Sgt. Corban Lundborg An Air Force unit celebrated the start of hurricane season early this year, with a flight over the Yucatán Penin

Keto flu is real—is the diet really worth it? Pixabay The internet is covered in keto flu germs. Keto, the nickname fans have given to the ketogenic diet, has swept the country in a fat-burning storm and left many a groggy dieter in its wake. The so-

Kīlauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone USGS The distinction between lava and magma is a fine one. Both terms refer to molten rock, but once magma leaves the earth’s interior and flows out the open air, it becomes lava. It’s sort of like the alchemy o

Early on the morning of January 25, 1944, eight young American airmen strode across the gravel of an airfield in Kunming, China, toward a B-24J bomber. Their mission was to fly the 67-foot-long aircraft, its nose bedecked with a picture of a pinup gi

Exploding ants attack a weaver ant. Alexey Kopchinskiy, TU Vienna In the rainforests of Borneo, there lives a reddish brown ant by the name of Colobopsis explodens that really knows how to go out with a bang. When locked in battle with ants from anot

Restored statue platform with standing moai on the south coast of Rapa Nui. Note that one of the moai is adorned with a red scoria pukao. Sean Hixon Almost a thousand stone figures—each weighing tons—dot Easter Island, known also as Rapa Nui. These m

An artist's illustration of the Cassini Spacecraft and the magnetic field around Saturn. ESA Here on Earth, the mesmerizing lights of the aurora are usually only seen at night—but on Saturn, they can show up near high noon. A new study published toda

Pigs can't naturally digest nitrogen, a dangerous climate pollutant. Pixabay Scientists have been tinkering with the genes of plants and animals for years to cure diseases, make fruits and vegetables heartier or tastier, produce crops that are resist

Tethered Save your battery to avoid phone-charging emergencies. Depositphotos Keeping your phone’s battery alive is a constant battle. To thwart misbehaving apps and excessive drain, Google has added a number of energy-saving features to Android over

Fossil-hunting fail. Julia Rothman ↑ Ryan C. McKellar, Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology, Royal Saskatchewan Museum I study insects trapped in amber—the only remains of long-dead creatures that lived up to 100 million years ago. One of the few pla

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances contaminate water and build up in the body over time. DepositPhotos Local, state, and tribal regulators met with the Environmental Protection Agency May 22 and 23 for a national two-day summit on how to limit a cla

Fresh fruit will be easy—it's the processed stuff that will get hard. Deposit Photos While there’s currently no evidence that genetically modified organisms harm human health, that isn’t to say there aren’t legitimate reasons to avoid them. Perhaps t

WWDC 2017 WWDC 2018 starts on Monday. Apple The 2018 developers conference season is coming to a close. We’ve heard from Microsoft and Google already, Monday, June 4th is Apple’s turn to trot out its plans for the next year or so. Apple typically sav

Rockpool prawns like this one can have different personalities. Nicky Dobson When it comes to survival, you might think that creatures who boldly seek new resources and new habitats stand the best chance. For some animals, that’s true. But for others

Where does space actually start? Is it near where the Dragon capsule is re-entering the atmosphere in the center/left of this image? Is it closer to the ISS, where this picture was taken? Or is it somewhere else entirely? NASA Where’s the edge of spa

Teeth and bones can tell something about age – but not someone’s birthday. Journal of Forensic Dental Sciences, CC BY-NC-SA A teenager’s father is murdered in Somalia, and the boy travels to the United States seeking asylum. Another teen’s father and

The Hemingway Home and Museum in Key West. Deposit Photos With Hurricane Irma bearing down on Florida, the team at the Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum in Key West had an important decision to make: What should be done to protect the 54 historic cats

Tough to swallow. DepositPhotos Even if you’ve never heard of it, you’ve almost certainly come across triclosan. A highly effective antibacterial and antifungal ingredient, triclosan is found in all kinds of toothpastes, hand sanitizers, deodorants,

The Citadel Minimal backpack is waterproof and intended for urban commuters. Black Ember Urban commuters who like to bike, or ride a motorcycle, through all kinds of weather and want a backpack with a special-ops, seemingly-bombproof type feel to it

An artist's illustration of what Planet nine might look like. Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC) In 1992, the discovery of a small object unlocked a big secret: that the solar system was far more vast than we’d ever imagined. Before, we’d only confirmed the exis

He comes in peace. Matt Bertone, CC BY-ND I know it may be hard to convince you, but let me try: Don’t kill the next spider you see in your home. Why? Because spiders are an important part of nature and our indoor ecosystem—as well as being fellow or

Reboot your router Unplug your router, wait 30 seconds, then plug it back in. Pixaby I typically only reboot my router when my internet starts moving at a crawling pace. The simple act of turning it off, waiting ten seconds, then turning it back on i

Sugar high. Holly Exley Any middle-schooler groks the fundamentals of photosynthesis: Fueled by sunlight, plants turn carbon dioxide and water into sugar and oxygen, which they use to grow stems, roots, leaves, and other tasty bits. As CO2 levels con

The Eldgja volcano in Iceland Clive Oppenheimer/Cambridge University In the late tenth century, the pagans and Christians of Iceland were gathering at Þingvellir (pronounced Thingvellir), a region in the Western part of the country surrounded by lava

Grim trippin'. Julia Rothman ↑ Dinah Bazer, ovarian cancer survivor and ice skating coach In May 2010, doctors diagnosed me with ovarian cancer. As I went through surgery and six rounds of chemotherapy, I kept a tight hold on myself. I figured I’d ce

Mesoloft in action. Mesoloft This summer, Alex Clements will once again make his way from the densely-wooded state of Kentucky to the flat desert landscape outside of Bend, Oregon. There, for about a week, he and his colleagues at Mesoloft will launc

If you watch a professional basketball game closely, you'll notice that players on the same team often move in sync. There's a reason for that. Deposit Photos Forget highlight reels of 360-degree dunks and half-court shots, these videos of NBA player

Make your social media apps quieter. David Nield Sure, you love your friends and family—but that doesn't mean you need to hear absolutely everything they post on social media. Just a few too-chatty contacts can hog all of your attention on Instagram,

Gotta catch 'em all. Deposit Photos Here’s the confusing thing about vitamins: your life literally depends on them—but that doesn’t mean you need to take them. The best scientific evidence to date says you probably don’t need vitamins in pill form. A