Features on ZME Science

Platycrinus saffordi, the sea lily that isn't a flower

Crinoids are sometimes referred to as sea lillies because of their resemblance to a plant or flower. But this fossil looks more like something straight from hell.

24 Vintage (but extremely useful) Life Hacks from the Early 1900s

In the early 1900s, cigarettes were living their golden years - something which millions of lungs regretted. But you can't charge the smoking industry of not being creative. Back in the day, manufactures used to insert stiffening cards into their paper cigarette packs, to make them more sturdy and last more; not long after that, companies started printing all sorts of quotes, trivia, artwork, and... life hacks.

Louis Pasteur, Spontaneous Generation, and Germ Theory

“For I have kept from them, and am still keeping from them, that one thing which is above the power of man to make; I have kept from them the germs that float in the air, I have kept them from life.” - Louis Pasteur

George Adamson -- the man who lived with lions

If you like lions, or watching nature documentaries, the odds are you've heard of George Adamson. Nicknamed "Baba ya Simba" (Father of Lions), Adamson lived an amazing life. Best known for his award winning documentary Born Free, he managed to live among lions and make them treat him as equals, resulting in a relationship of mutual trust.

How to make vodka, with science!

Vodka is awesome because it, along with moonshine, is probably the simplest spirit to make.

The Smelliest Creatures in the Animal Kingdom

Take a look at the smelliest animals in the world. Continue at your own risk...

Theremin: the electronic instrument you play without touching anything

The theremin is a unique musical instrument which involves two antennas and which you can play with your bare hands, without touching anything. We'll talk about its history, the working principle and how you can play/build your own.

How many people are younger or older than me?

To check where you stand among the age demographics in the U.S., Nathan Yau of Flowing Data made this interactive chart that's incredibly easy to use.

Ancient recipes: Pullum Numidicum (Numidian Chicken)

Perhaps one of the most underappreciated aspects of archaeology is cooking. We know surprisingly little about how people used to cook in ancient times, although a few delicious recipes managed to slip through the cracks and remain recorded. Such is the case with Pullum Numidicum (Numidian Chicken), a simple, delicious and authentic Roman recipe. The dish […]

Facts about left-handed people according to science

Pay gap, fighting, and over-achieving -- welcome to the world of lefties!

Artist uses plants as stencils for beautiful, delicate tattoos

It’s the perfect tattoo for people who forget to water their plants: Ukrainian illustrator and tattoo artist Rita Zolotukhina creates “botanical fingerprints”, using actual plants for designs. To create the tattoos, she dips the plants in ink, then presses them on the customer’s body, basing the tattoo on this imprint – much like a stencil. “We don’t […]

How to read the nutritional facts label

Nutritional labels can be daunting to read if you have no idea what to look for. Most of us don’t have the time and energy to work out what these mean, so we buy on impulse. Naturally, you’d think something as important as a product’s nutritional facts was presented in a more straightforward manner. But […]

Why we get goosebumps

Goosebumps are strange. We get goosebumps when we’re cold, when we’re afraid, and sometimes when we’re really excited – three very different situations. But no matter why we get them, goosebumps are tightly connected to a single hormone: adrenaline. The anatomy of a goosebump [panel style=”panel-success” title=”Goosebumps form:” footer=””]- when you’re cold – when you’re […]

Why you should microwave your sponges, according to science

The best way to keep your sponges clean is to microwave them.

9 Mathematical facts that will blow your mind [and a delicious bonus]

Many people believe math is boring, but in reality - it's anything but.

How much renewable energy does the world use?

Renewable energy is growing furiously fast.

Sea squirts: These cute "big-mouthed" underwater creatures digest their own organs

It's hard to believe that something so cute can lie at the bottom of the sea, but don't let the appearances fool you.

Why it's illegal to own one guinea pig in Switzerland

At first, it sounds like one of the silliest laws ever: in Switzerland, you’re not allowed to own just one guinea pig or parrot. The reason for this is that they’re social species, and they are considered victims of abuse if they aren’t able to regularly interact with others of their species. If you’re an […]

This football stadium in Brazil is located exactly on the Equator

Each team is defending one hemisphere!

Why is Ernest Hemingway Important? The Most Interesting Man in the World

Ernest Hemingway is famous for being one of the most appreciated American fiction writers. However, his personal life is no less interesting.

The locks of a goddess and solidified glass lava: Pele's hair

Believe it or not, this is actually lava.

Celebrating Diversity: Stunning Villages Around Europe

If you don’t travel a lot it’s easy to forget just how big and diverse the world really is – and sure, everyone knows about Paris, London or New York, but villages were where humanity’s culture and spirit was preserved for centuries. Here are just a handful of villages and small towns which brilliantly exhibit the serenity […]

The difference between silicon and silicone

It’s one of the most common confusions in the English language. In short, silicon is the chemical element Si, while silicone is a synthetic polymer. Although it appears like the words are synonyms and can be used interchangeably, they’re not and they designate completely different things. Let’s detail a bit on what each of them are, […]

Scientists published the 50 most incorrectly used terms in science

There's no "gene for" anything, and there is no "gold standard" or "scientific method" - you're using all those terms wrong.

Why depression makes you tired

Depression can be exhausting. Here's why.

Hundreds of thousands of leaked emails reveal appalling corruption and bribery in the oil industry

An investigation undertaken by the Huffington Post and Fairfax Media has revealed that billions of dollars of government contracts were awarded as the direct result of bribes. The company names which pop up on this list include British icon Rolls-Royce, US oil-service company Halliburton, Australia’s Leighton Holdings and Korean heavyweights Samsung and Hyundai. The bribe factory If […]

A radioactive couple: the glowing legacy of the Curies

Together, these two brilliant people forever changed how we understand the world we live in. They did so at a huge cost, with incredible levels of radiation exposure, that would in the end claim Marie's life. But by tackling some of the deadliest forces known to man with their bare hands, they earned life unending in the scientific community.

Returning the world's last wild horses to the wild

Przewalski's horses are the only breed which was never domesticated. They were once common across Russia's and Mongolia's steppes, but were slowly hunted down. Now, coming back from the brink of extinction, these wild horses are slowly returning to their habitat.

Disappointed Babylonian trader writes oldest complaint letter 3,766 years ago

It tells the story of a disappointed Babylonian customer who was shipped low-quality copper ore. The letter, written in cuneiform on a clay tablet, is nuanced with very detailed accounts of the trade, but also threats of ceasing business relations. Not all that different from the complaint e-mails we send nowadays when we're serviced badly.

10 Beautiful Visual Mathematical Proofs: Elegance and Simplicity

"Beauty is the first test; there is no permanent place in the world for ugly mathematics," G. H. Hardy (1877-1947)

This is how one French power plant produces electricity using cheese

The town of Albertville in southeastern France has begun using cheese to generate electricity. Their power plant, build in the Savoie region, uses the byproduct of the local Beaufort cheeses as the base for its biogas power generation system.

Eerie musical instruments played by the wind from around the world

A wind or Aeolian harp is exactly what the name implies: the only musical instrument played by the wind.

This is the oldest song in history: a 3,400-year-old hymn

Music etched in clay tablets more than 3,400 years ago in Syria marks oldest song thus far.

How planetary rings form and what they're made of

Learn more about how they formed billions of year ago.

Surreal crooked trees shaped by Antarctic winds

Wind gusts are so unforgiving that the trees themselves molded into weird and crooked shapes. There's an almost surreal beauty to their shape, though -- it brings harshness to life. You won't find anything like it anywhere else in the world.

How long different drugs stay in your body: what you need to know

How long marijuana, cocaine, LSD, and other drugs stay in your urine, hair or blood.

Why some countries drive on the left and some on the right

If you’re from countries like the UK or Australia, you probably can’t understand why other countries drive on the right. If you’re from the rest of the world, you might think the Brits are crazy for driving on the left. But where does this striking difference come from? The history of driving on the left […]

This man went into Japan's 'No-Go' radioactive area to save abandoned animals

When Fukushima’s nuclear accident unfolded, people fled the area without looking back. But one man realized that humans aren’t the only victims of the tragedy. Naoto Matsumura went back to Fukushima’s 12.5-mile exclusion zone to care for the abandoned animals. In 2011, one of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history struck Japan. The 9.1 temblor took even […]

When Science and Poetry go out for lunch: the Best Science Limericks

Limericks are a very specific type of poetry that emerged in England in the early years of the 18th century. It was popularized by Edward Lear in the 19th century although curiously, he didn’t coin the term “limerick”, and we don’t know where it came from. Your units are wrong! cried the teacher. Your church weighs […]

An incursion in the colorful world of fluorescent proteins

The discovery of green fluorescent proteins heralded a revolution in cell biology, enabling researchers to monitor cellular processes by applying themselves to a variety of protein and enzyme targets. Over the years, they’ve enabled thousands of successful experiments, triggering events that ultimately saved many lives. In 1961, Osamu Shimomura and Frank Johnson, working at the Friday Harbor […]

What are tornadoes and how do they form?

Tornadoes are associated with the strongest and most violent storms, reaching winds of up to 300 miles per hour (480 km/h).

How old is the Earth and how do we know it?

The age of the Earth is 4.54 billion years - plus or minus 1% (0.05 billion years). But how do we know this?

A Dozen Scientific Facts That Seem Incredible But Are Actually Real (+ bonus)

With all the information floating around on the internet, it's sometimes hard to figure out if something is real or not. These are some of those things - real, but crazy enough to make you go "what?!".

These photos from NASA's Cassini Probe look incredibly awesome

The Cassini shuttle is a flagship sent to Saturn to conduct observations of Saturn and its moons. The mission started 18 years ago, and since then Cassini has sent over some mind-bending pictures. Here are just some of them, courtesy of NASA. Rhea and Titan Here we see Rhea, the second-largest moon of Saturn passing in […]

Rotten Teeth, village football, and no baths: The Hard to Believe Realities of Life in Tudor England

The Tudor period started in 1485 and ended in 1603. Many people idealize Tudor England, but life in those Medieval times was rough — and oftentimes brutal. In fact, in some regards, it seems almost impossible to believe how people lived at the time. Here are just some of these strange facets of the medieval […]

Antibiotics – the end of an era?

Antibiotics have potentially saved more lives than any other human invention. But bugs are catching on...

Japan's North coast is riddled with ancient carved stones - tsunami warnings

“High dwellings are the peace and harmony of our descendants,” the rock slab says. “Remember the calamity of the great tsunamis. Do not build any homes below this point.” Stones with messages like this one are surprisingly common on Japan’s coast; they tell a long forgotten story, a story of danger, tragedy and tsunamis. They […]

The photo that no one gets right at first

Look at this photo. What do you see? A bunch of camels, right? Well, that's right... but look closer - where are the camels?

How hearing works and other eary functions

Hear all about it here.

Why cats love boxes so much

They're basically the opposite of claustrophobic.

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