Colloquially known as the "sunshine vitamin," our bodies make vitamin D when our skin is exposed to sunlight — a built-in production system that hints at just how essential vitamin D is for our health.However, modern lifestyles that keep us indoors don't lend themselves to getting enough sun for sufficient vitamin D production. As a result, experts estimate that nearly a quarter of Americans aren't getting enough vitamin D.Despite its significance, questions remain: How much is enough? Can s ...read more

Experts estimate that a new species of dinosaur is named every two weeks. While there is debate about whether these are all new species or, in some cases, previously discovered species being given new names, it's clear that there are a lot of dinosaur fossils out there. Scientists are digging them up and identifying them at a ferocious pace. As Riley Black, paleontologist and science writer, put it in a 2019 article in The New Scientist, we are in a "golden era of dinosaur discovery."Here a ...read more

Pity the poor pumpkin: Since its domestication by early farmers around 10,000 years ago, few cultivars have been more burdened by myth and misinformation than this unassuming winter squash. But pumpkins are good for much more than warding away evil spirits (when carved) or acting as a delivery system for nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and cloves (when pureed for pie).As it happens, pumpkins are nutritional powerhouses, pharmacological wonders and offer tasty treats for both humans and their pets. Here ...read more

Early people weathered the Last Ice Age in the significantly cooler uplands of central Spain, eschewing the warmer coastlines, according to a new archaeological survey. Its findings counter the prevailing wisdom that hunter-gatherers stuck close to the Mediterranean and Atlantic shorelines of the Iberian Peninsula, which include modern-day Spain and Portugal.The relative scarcity of evidence for inland settlement is not because the sites themselves are scarce, a statement from the researchers sa ...read more

In a world marked by the constant hustle and bustle of urban life, there exist communities that defy the norms of settled existence, embracing a lifestyle that revolves around perpetual movement. These enigmatic groups, often called nomads, have a rich history of following traditional lifestyles, and many of them still live as nomads all around the world.What Are Nomads?Nomads are communities of people who continually move (usually seasonally) rather than live in a permanent settlement. Experts ...read more

This story was originally published in our Nov/Dec 2023 issue as "Blowing Smoke?" Click here to subscribe to read more stories like this one.If you were to drown in the Thames River in the late 18th century, your best chance of survival would be for a good Samaritan to pull you from the water and carry you to a receiving house outfitted with basic medical equipment — possibly even located in the pub you had just stumbled out of — established by the local life-saving organization, the Roya ...read more

At first, it seems ridiculous — serial killers "retiring." After all, murdering isn't a career. And don’t serial killers have an innate urge to kill, a need that is overwhelming, complete and doesn’t falter throughout their lives? The truth is that the urge to kill can come and go in a serial killer’s life due to many factors. A number of murderers have taken long breaks from killing or even have stopped altogether. The Golden State Killer, Joseph James DeAngelo, for instance, appears ...read more

When someone nearby yawns, we often feel as if we've lost bodily control. Our jaws open involuntarily, overcome by some unseen force and compelled to mimic the gaping mouth in our midst. Merely thinking about yawning can cause you to yawn — an unrelenting problem for anyone pondering and writing about the subject.No one knows for sure what triggers this automatic (and often unconscious) response, but experts have proposed a few theories. Whether simultaneous yawning raises our collective aware ...read more

It's been 485 years since the last eruption at Italy's Campi Flegrei. As you might guess, a lot has changed. When Monte Nuovo formed in 1538, the population in and around Naples was a few hundred thousand people. Today, that number is closer to three million people. The 1538 eruption produced a small cinder cone in Pouzzuoli at the mouth of the Bay of Naples, burying parts of medieval villages. With increased restlessness under the Campi Flegrei, Italy has to contend with the fact that even a sm ...read more

With the gnawing emptiness that follows a skipped lunch, or a day of fasting in preparation for a big meal, you might wonder if that rumbling stomach of yours is actually capable of shrinking with hunger. After all, it sometimes feels like it.The idea that our stomachs can shrink is thrown around often, especially in the context of dieting to curb appetite or by medications promising weight loss. Sure, you can lose weight and body fat, but does that mean your stomach has changed sizes, too? To a ...read more