Life's Little Mysteries

The amount of energy released in an earthquake is controlled by how much of the crust breaks. The good news is, we're not likely to see a magnitude 10.

Elephants are known for their extraordinary memories, but is it true that they never forget?

Did Thomas Crapper actually create your commode?

If you have the right vantage point, a rainbow might look circular. Here's the science behind why some rainbows look like arches and others don't.

What happens to wild horses that don't have shoes?

Yellowstone's supervolcano last erupted 70,000 years ago. Will it erupt again anytime soon?

Humans aren't the only species that has entered the Stone Age. Who else is in the club?

Mental fuzziness can be frustrating and can be caused by lack of sleep or even an underlying illness.

In regressive evolution, organisms lose complex features and can appear to evolve "in reverse." But evolution doesn't retrace its steps, experts said.

The characteristic zigzag pattern of lightning is caused by a highly conductive form of oxygen that builds up as the bolt travels toward the ground.

In the context of a disease, the transition from "epidemic" to "endemic" means a pathogen is no longer causing outbreaks but isn't disappearing.

And do the rodents live in these wooden structures?

It's easy to fold a piece of paper in half once, twice or even three or four times. But what's the highest number of times one piece of paper can be folded in half?

Once a person is dead, their body usually starts to decay immediately, although a good embalming job can delay decay.

In some interpretations of quantum mechanics, such as the Many-Worlds interpretation or the Pilot Wave Theory, parallel universes may form every time a subatomic particle goes through any interaction.

There is only one specimen of the rarest mineral on Earth, and it's from Myanmar.

The largest hot desert and cold desert in the world are anything but boring and barren.

A wild theory suggests that consciousness may explain quantum mechanics, by forcing the subatomic particles to choose one concrete outcome.

Coal takes tens if not hundreds of millions of years to form; it all starts with living plants that eventually fossilize.

The average life expectancy of a dog is more than 10 years, but life span varies greatly among different breeds.