The myth of Cupid and Psyche - Brendan Pelsue
AdultsHistoryRelationshipsReligion...Psyche was born so beautiful that she was worshipped as a new incarnation of Venus, the goddess of love. But human lovers were too intimidated to approach her, and Apollo recommended her father abandon her on a crag where she would marry "a cruel and savage, serpent-like winged evil." But Psyche's story ended up being much more interesting. Brendan Pelsue shares the myth of Cupid and Psyche.
When is water safe to drink? - Mia Nacamulli
AdultsEcologyHealthScience...Water is refreshing, hydrating, and invaluable to your survival. But clean water remains a precious and often scarce commodity - there are nearly 800 million people who still don't have regular access to it. Why is that? And how can you tell whether the water you have access to - whether from a tap or otherwise - is drinkable? Mia Nacamulli examines water contamination and treatment.
Does Your Dog Respond Better When You Use a Baby Voice?
AdultsPetsPsychologyAnimalsMost people make their voices higher pitched when talking to their pets. But does this Pet-Directed Speech have any influence on animals?
Binging with Babish: Courtesan au Chocolat from Grand Budapest Hotel
AdultsCreativityFoodEntertainmentWes Anderson's films are rife with clashing color schemes, furrow-browed pedantry, and rich character development set against an oddly symmetrical backdrop. In the case of The Grand Budapest Hotel, it's also home to a pastry as precious as its parentage.
How To Forgive
AdultsRelationshipsSocietyPsychology..."It can be so hard to forgive because - so often - we simply are in the right and the scale of the folly, thoughtlessness and meanness of others seems utterly beyond our own measure. But there are two inviolable ideas which should nevertheless, in the face of the grossest behaviour, be kept in mind to increase our chances of cutting others a little slack..."
Will we ever be able to teleport? - Sajan Saini
AdultsScienceTechnologyFuture...Is teleportation possible? Could a baseball transform into something like a radio wave, travel through buildings, bounce around corners, and change back into a baseball? Oddly enough, thanks to quantum mechanics, the answer might actually be yes... sort of! Sajan Saini explains.
How To Be A Genius
AdultsCultureHumanSociety..."We hear a lot about genius. We are taught to admire the minds of those infinite, baffling but astonishing geniuses like Einstein, Tolstoy or Picasso. Quite what genius might actually be is left a little vague. It's a codeword for 'brilliant but perhaps too other-worldly ever really to fathom.' We are invited to stand in awe at the achievements of geniuses but also to feel that their thought processes might be quasi-magical and that it is ultimately simply mysterious how they were ever able to come up with the ideas they have had..."
Lasers Are Great, But Diamond Superlasers Are Better, Here's Why
AdultsNatureScienceTechnologyScientists have discovered how to create a real life 'superlaser' using an ultra-pure diamond. How exactly does it work?2
Best of Sideshow Collectibles at Comic-Con 2017
AdultsArtCreativityEntertainment...Visiting Sideshow Collectiblers's massive booth at Comic-Con is always a treat, because the collectibles company puts stunning prototypes of figures and statues on display. We pick our favorite things at this year's booth, including a sixth-scale Hulkbuster and a life-size K-2SO from Star Wars!
The World's Largest Airport | China's Future MEGAPROJECTS: Part 3
AdultsTechnologyTransportationWorld...China is building the world's largest airport, the Beijing Daxing International Aiport, to serve the Jing-Jin-Ji megalopolis.
How does the Nobel Peace Prize work? - Adeline Cuvelier and Toril Rokseth
AdultsHistorySocietyPoliticsAmong the top prestigious awards in the world, the Nobel Peace Prize has honored some of the most celebrated and revered international figures and organizations in history. But how does the nomination process work? And who exactly is eligible? Adeline Cuvelier and Toril Rokseth detail the specifics of the Nobel Peace Prize.
The science behind the Impossible Burger
AdultsCreativityFoodNeuroscience...The Impossible Burger is meatless, but it tastes, smells, and bleeds like the real thing. The secret ingredient? Neuroscience.
How to practice effectively...for just about anything - Annie Bosler and Don Greene
AdultsNeuroscienceProductivityWork...Mastering any physical skill takes practice. Practice is the repetition of an action with the goal of improvement, and it helps us perform with more ease, speed, and confidence. But what does practice actually do to make us better at things? Annie Bosler and Don Greene explain how practice affects the inner workings of our brains.
The Clowns Helping Refugee Children To Laugh Through Play | Amazing Humans
AdultsCreativityHumorSociety...Ash and his team of clowns, musicians and dancers are 'play specialists' who work with children in refugee camps across Europe. The aim is to allow the kids "to feel good, feel daft, and feel playful".
Binging with Babish: Puerco Pibil from Once Upon a Time in Mexico
AdultsCreativityFoodFilmOnce Upon a Time in Mexico, against all odds, played a large role in the creation of BwB - my first-ever DVD, its special features showed me that I could one day be a filmmaker *and* a chef. In this 2003 Banderas action-comedy, Johnny Depp inexplicably caps a cook for making this Yucatanian special a bit too perfectly; as director Robert Rodriguez says, make at your own peril.
MIT's self-folding origami technology
AdultsCreativityTechnologyEngineering...MIT's self-folding origami technology that could change how we design everything from airbags to wearables.