Black, white, and orange – the signature colours of a calico cat. Subtract the white and you’ve got tortoise shell colouring. But there is gender colour discrimination at play: calico and tortoise...
In 1862, over 6 million visitors flocked to the “Great London Exposition” where they were astounded by the electric telegraph, watched an early refrigerator make ice, gawked at Charles Babbage’s ...
These days we are accustomed to pressing the delete key and a word on the screen disappears, ready to be replaced by a few keystrokes. But that doesn't mean pencils and erasers have disappeared. On...
Tattoos are a way to express creativity, individuality, even loyalty (though in the latter case designs often end up getting removed if loyalty fades). Sounds appealing but the idea of permanence...
The recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) is a touchstone in anatomy education and evolutionary biology research, known for its unnecessary U-turn in the neck. But can we learn something intelligent from...
The young mother was surprised by the doctor’s question. “What does your little girl eat for breakfast?” “Only hot oatmeal with milk,” she answered. “Does she put any sugar on it?” the doctor...
Summer is almost here! Tans will get darker and hair will get lighter. If you really want to get blonder this year, many brands sell hair lightening sprays – a way to heighten the sun’s natural...
What if your significant other gifted you baking powder instead of chocolates? What if they invented baking powder? In 1843, British chemist Alfred Bird did just that for his lucky, yeast-allergic,...
One of the questions I’ve been asked recently with increasing frequency is how to avoid exposure to those “forever chemicals” that we are being warned about in numerous newspaper articles, books,...