If you’re familiar with the word “chimera,” it’s probably from Greek mythology, where it refers to a fire-breathing, three-in-one monster — lion-like overall, with a goat’s head protruding from its back and a snake’s head at the tip of its tail.The modern, scientific worldview leaves little room for these grotesque creatures, but it has replaced them with something just as strange and wonderful: human chimeras.Most of us are the product of a single genetic code. When our parents co ...read more

Anyone who spends their time in a messy office has likely heard it before: “I don’t know how you can work like this.” And in some ways, it seems to make sense. Piles of junk have a way of capturing our attention, whether it’s the half dozen sticky notes, the empty coffee cup or the collection of bobbleheads behind your laptop. Then again, others swear they can’t operate without the pile of business cards and scores of open browser tabs. Some of us thrive in chaos.But what does the scie ...read more

The heat signature from lava erupting on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula is seen in this image captured by one of the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites on Feb. 8, 2023, less than 10 hours after the event began. (Credit: European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-2 imagery)Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula has cracked open again, creating a nearly 2-mile-long volcanic dyke that has allowed lava to shoot up as high as a 20-story building. The Feb. 8 eruption sent molten rock sluicing across a snow-covered lands ...read more

In the qualifying matches for the FIFA World Cup of 1970, Honduras won the first match in its capital Tegucigalpa, and El Salvador won the second in San Salvador. Violence broke out at both matches between the visiting and home fans, and thousands of Salvadorans left Honduras after their victory in the second match, avoiding persecution. At the time, there were historical tensions between Honduras and El Salvador that escalated within the matches.This soccer war isn’t the only example of an ex ...read more

In the diverse world of arachnids, black widow spiders, scientifically categorized in the genus Latrodectus, stand out for their distinct appearance and the notorious potency of their venom. But you could argue that the iconic black widow gets a bit of a bad rap.What Is a Black Widow Spider?(Credit: Mark Kostich/Shutterstock)Black widow spiders, known scientifically as Latrodectus, are instantly recognizable by their glossy black bodies and the iconic red hourglass marking on their abdomens (at ...read more

The great white shark is a formidable oceanic hunter. Its powerful jaws are capable of exerting over 4,000 pounds per square inch (PSI) of bite force — enough to shatter a human femur. But compared to the megalodon, a giant prehistoric shark that roamed the oceans from 15 million to 3.6 million years ago, the great white seems like a mere minnow. The megalodon had a sleek body estimated to exceed 60 feet in length, according to a 2024 paper published in Palaeontologia Electronica, dwarfing it ...read more

It is the most abundant metal in the universe. By mass, it is the most common element on our planet, making up much of Earth’s core and some of its crust.As minerals go, humans — indeed, most living things — can’t make it themselves and don’t need very much of it. But without even that little bit, we’d all be dead. That’s the irony of iron.What Is Iron?How hemoglobin works. (Credit: Designua/Shutterstock)Iron is one of several essential nutrients (meaning we have to get it from the ...read more

Heaps of dinosaurs had feathers. But only a handful developed those feathers for flight. In fact, determining which feathered dinos flew and which feathered dinos didn’t has historically posed a problem for paleontologists. A new study, however, suggests that the problem isn’t as tricky as previously thought.In the study, published in PNAS, a pair of paleontologists present an assortment of traits that they say all feathers built for flight share. Based on the feathers of the only surviving ...read more

The tombs at Tuna el-Gebel are ornate. Dating back to the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt, one chamber in the massive necropolis offers a curious glimpse into ancient Egyptian belief. Square windows, framed with ornate script, open into vaults holding mummified remains — but not from any human. Inside, the treated cadavers of long-dead baboons sit up in these niches, animals once thought to have a rare connection with Egyptian deities. A pair of stone steps sits underneath the windows, wh ...read more

In The History of the Kings of Britain, medieval chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth tells the story of how a shooting star foretold the death of Ambrosius and the coming of King Arthur. Long ago, shooting stars were commonly thought to be omens, prophecies, or messages from the gods. Today, we know shooting stars aren’t really omens; they’re not even stars. They’re meteors. Why Do Meteors Glow?When seen from Earth, a meteor looks like a star zooming across the sky in a blaze of white, so it� ...read more