• The Real Reason Cats Absolutely Love Catnip

    Everyone knows that cat facts and cat videos make the internet go around. Some of the best revolve around the wacky, bizarre antics that cats get up to after indulging in their version of demon weed: catnip.

    By Karen Corday September 18th, 2020 Read More
  • How Many Words Do Dogs Really Understand?

    It's man's best friend, so of course you'd like to be able to communicate with them better. You hope they understand more than the basics, like heel, sit, and stay. But does your dog really understand you? Do they grasp the concept of roll over?

    By Emilia David September 16th, 2020 Read More
  • The Dangerous Ocean Phenomenon You've Never Heard Of

    Cross waves occur when wind blows two opposing sets of wave forms towards each other at an oblique angle -- diagonal, or 45-degree. The waves collide, but do not cancel each other out, as they would if they hit head-on. Instead, they pass through.

    By Richard Milner September 4th, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How The Atlantic Ocean Got Its Name

    The Atlantic Ocean is the Earth's second largest body of water. According to the National Ocean Service, the Atlantic covers approximately 41,105,000 square miles, or about 20% of the Earth's surface. Yet, the title itself, the Atlantic, sounds a bit impenetrable ...

    By Felix Behr July 20th, 2020 Read More
  • How A Volcano May Have Led To The Rise Of The Roman Empire

    A recent paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests a coincidental explosion at Mount Okmok, a volcano in Alaska, caused the extreme climate that decided the very end of the Republic and birth of the Empire.

    By Felix Behr July 15th, 2020 Read More
  • The Real Reason So Many Cats Have White Paws

    Socks or spats, the patter of white paws across the room requires either a musical accompaniment or an appropriate choir of "awws." But why white? Surely any cat in the wild would shun such attire, opting instead for something more camouflaged. So where did all these white-footed cats come from?

    By Felix Behr July 9th, 2020 Read More
  • The Sad Truth About The Nazi's Animals

    Whether it's the horrific experiments led by "angel of death" Josef Mengele, the horrors of concentration camps like Ravensbruck — or, you know, Hitler — you won't be hard-pressed to find examples of Nazis being unspeakably awful.

    By A. C. Grimes June 15th, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How Dogs Can Actually Detect Cancer

    Over the ages, dogs have been used to perform many odd jobs alongside humans. From working in public safety, mental health and criminal justice sectors, the addition of a canine pal can prove beneficial in many situations. Can dogs detect cancer, though?

    By Nicole Rosenthal June 15th, 2020 Read More
  • Myths About Black Cats You Can Stop Believing

    Cats might be the new kids on the block, when it comes to domestication — the world's oldest dog breeds were around a long time before the world's oldest domestic cats — but surely, thousands of years is plenty of time to shake off bizarre superstitions... like those legends assigned to black cats.

    By Eric Meisfjord June 11th, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How Long Dogs Can Go Without Food

    f a garden-variety dog could talk it'd probably inform humans that starvation sets in roughly five seconds after the plastic on a slice of processed cheese makes that distinctive crinkly noise. But how long can dogs really go without food?

    By Mark Lambert May 28th, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How Long Cats Can Go Without Food

    Let's start by establishing that this is a safe, judgement-free zone, and nobody is making any assumptions about anybody else, or the things that no one should ever be doing to their cat.

    By Tom Meisfjord May 27th, 2020 Read More
  • Whatever Happened To The Wallflowers?

    Throughout the later 90s, it seemed The Wallflowers and frontman Jakob Dylan were everywhere, after bursting onto the scene in the with songs "One Headlight". If you ask some people, they'd say the band was a one-hit-wonder. But The Wallflowers are still alive and kicking -- even touring.

    By Emilia David May 22nd, 2020 Read More
  • Here's How Dogs Could Help Detect The Coronavirus

    We know dogs are great at sniffing out all sorts of maladies, whether it's the bag of cocaine you accidentally shoved too far up your backside or cancer of the non-butt. Their otherworldly olfactory senses might even be useful in detecting COVID-19. Here's how dogs could help detect the coronavirus.

    By A. C. Grimes May 21st, 2020 Read More
  • The Reason Wasabi Is One Of The Hardest Plants To Grow

    In the wild, wasabi grows exclusively on the rocky banks of cold, freshwater rivers. The plants are as finicky as pandas: the water has a temperature range of only about 9 degrees; sun is important, but not too much sun.

    By Eric Meisfjord May 20th, 2020 Read More
  • The Real Reason Ancient Egyptians Worshiped Cats

    Felines, believed to be domesticated first in Egypt, were held in such high regard that anyone who killed a cat, even by accident, was in turn sentenced to death. What is up with Egyptians and cats?

    By Eric Meisfjord May 20th, 2020 Read More
  • What Happened To Siegfried And Roy's Animals?

    In 2003, Siegfried and Roy's time in the spotlight came to a tragic, if predictable, end. So what happened to the menagerie of performing creatures under the magicians' care? And what happened to Montecore?

    By Tom Meisfjord May 12th, 2020 Read More
  • What Colors Do Cats Actually See?

    Elegant and marble-like, cat eyes have a hypnotic quality to them and do a fantastic job of scaring the bejesus out of unsuspecting people when those peepers creepily glow in the dark. But what colors do they actually see?

    By A. C. Grimes May 8th, 2020 Read More
  • This Tree Lures And Kills Birds For Absolutely No Good Reason

    The Pisonia tree has super-sticky fruit that is super-delicious to many seabirds in the Pacific and Indian oceans. The tree also has super-sticky branches, so sticky that it can trap and kill birds who come for the seeds. Why does this happen? Scientists can't really say.

    By Nicholas Conley April 20th, 2020 Read More
  • The Dog Breed That Once Hunted Lions

    You can teach dogs to sit and speak, but good luck trying to get them to play the piano. Some dogs are even great hunting companions, but it's not like you can just take them to hunt lions. Anymore.

    By Pauli Poisuo April 16th, 2020 Read More