Life's Little Mysteries

Is there a way to suppress unwanted thoughts that repeatedly pop into your mind?

What's the fastest an airborne animal can go?

The largest head in the animal kingdom likely belongs to the blue whale, while the largest relative to body size comes from an unlikely source.

The vast Roman Empire split into the Eastern Roman Empire and Western Roman Empire in the fourth century A.D.

The big stars make our sun look puny.

Black holes go boom in several ways.

With climate change, habitat loss, overhunting and more, which animals are at risk of extinction by 2050?

Although it's now familiar as candy, the origins of chocolate are much deeper.

Organisms that reproduce quickly can quickly evolve into new species, while geographic barriers can lead to new species formation over tens of millions of years.

There are a few contenders for the world's oldest known civilization.

Our brains don't get a break while we sleep. What happens to this major organ while we snooze?

A well-known expression says that Nero fiddled while Rome burned. But has history misrepresented this infamous ruler?

Here's the science behind why cats lick themselves, as well as other animals and even humans.

It's commonly said that walking will help to bring on labor. While it's no guarantee as it doesn't induce labor contractions, walking helps the cervix prepare for the birth.

Solar storms can mess with Earth, but can they kick up a tsunami?

Elephants gather round their dead, dogs go into decline and chimpanzees stop eating when their companions die. Is this grief, as humans know it?

How do cats navigate around rooms in the dark?

Here's how the Earth could theoretically leave the solar system.

Earth is constantly showered by space rocks, but how many of these actually land on Earth's surface?

That post-lunch slump is all too familiar, so we asked an expert: Why do I feel sleepy after eating?