History of Halloween By Benjamin Radford Halloween has its roots in a pagan harvest festival, while different traditions were added throughout the years.
What is RNA? By Michael Dhar RNA keeps some of life's most important processes humming, from building your body's proteins to silencing genes.
Orthorexia: Causes, symptoms and treatment By Isobel Whitcomb Eating healthily isn't a bad thing, but taken to the extreme, it can turn into a disorder called orthorexia nervosa.
What was the Black Panther Party? By Isobel Whitcomb The Black Panther Party was a revolutionary socialist organization that demanded equal rights for Black people and Black communities.
Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones: Earth's tropical windstorms By Tiffany Means Hurricanes and typhoons — or more broadly, tropical cyclones — begin as clusters of thunderstorms over tropical ocean waters, taking anywhere from several hours to days to become organized.
What is glyphosate? By Jen Monnier Glyphosate is the most commonly used herbicide chemical in the world, sprayed everywhere from farms to backyards.
Flu shot facts & side effects By Rachael Rettner The seasonal flu shot is a yearly vaccine administered to protect against the flu, or influenza. In the United States, flu shots are recommended for everyone ages 6 months and older.
What are stingrays? By Erin Banks Rusby Stingrays are an instantly recognizable fish. The graceful swimmers glide through the water by undulating the edges of their flat, pancake-like bodies.
What are locusts and why do they swarm? By Greg Uyeno Locusts are described by their two dramatically different behavior patterns: Either docile and solitary, or active and sociable, forming gigantic, ravenous swarms.
Honey badgers: Adorable but fierce little mammals By Baljeet Panesar Learn more about honey badgers, the small mammals with a big reputation.
Freemasons: Behind the veil of secrecy By Tom Garlinghouse Freemasonry is often misunderstood as a cult or a religion, but it's actually the world's largest fraternal organization with a long and complex history.
What is taxonomy? By Michael Dhar Taxonomy is the science of naming, defining and classifying organisms into evolutionarily related groups. It gives biologists a common language.
The Congo River Basin: Home of the deepest river in the world By Holly Secon The Congo River is a long, arcing river in West-Central Africa, featuring a rainforest and providing food and transport for 75 million people.
What is chemistry? By Alane Lim Chemistry is the study of matter, its properties, how and why substances combine or separate to form other substances, and how substances interact with energy.
Albatrosses: Facts about the biggest flying birds By Rachel Kaufman Albatrosses are big, majestic birds found soaring above most of the world’s oceans.
What are antibodies? By Tia Ghose These Y-shaped molecules can precisely target and neutralize viruses, bacteria and other foreign invaders.
Mummification: The lost art of embalming the dead By Tom Garlinghouse Mummification, or the process of preserving the dead, was once a widespread practice among many ancient societies.
What is herd immunity? By Joshua A. Krisch Scientists use herd immunity to describe the point at which a population is sufficiently immune to a disease to prevent its circulation.
The solar system: Facts about our cosmic neighborhood By Sarah Wild Take a journey through our solar system.
