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The surprising pattern behind color names around the world

Adults Science
Why so many languages invented words for colors in the same order.

History's deadliest colors - J. V. Maranto

Adults Science
When radium was first discovered, its luminous green color inspired people to add it into beauty products and jewelry. It wasn't until much later that we realized that radium's harmful effects outweighed its visual benefits. Unfortunately, radium isn't the only pigment that historically seemed harmless or useful but turned out to be deadly. J. V. Maranto details history's deadliest colors. Lesson by J. V. Maranto, animation by Juan M. Urbina.

We Found Another State of Matter: The Supersolid!

Adults Science
Scientists have created, yet another state of matter called a supersolid! But what is it, and what does it do?

How does your body process medicine?

Adults Science
Have you ever wondered what happens to a painkiller, like ibuprofen, after you swallow it? Medicine that slides down your throat can help treat a headache, a sore back, or a throbbing sprained ankle. But how does it get where it needs to go in the first place?

What if the Earth were Hollow?

Adults Science
What if there were a tunnel through the middle of the earth and you jumped in?

How does asthma work? - Christopher E. Gaw

Adults Science
More than 300 million people around the world suffer from asthma, and around 250,000 people die from it each year. But why do people get asthma, and how can this disease be deadly? Christopher E. Gaw describes the main symptoms and treatments of asthma.

Why Do We Cook?

Adults Science
Why do humans cook? Holidays are celebrated in many ways, but chances are they involve eating, and eating a LOT. Ever wonder why we cook our food? We do it because it tastes good, of course, and because our customs and traditions are built around it. But we also cook our food for some basic biological reasons, because of evolution. Some scientists think that figuring out how to cook actually MADE us human! If conversation gets a little dry around your holiday table, now you'll have some awesome science to share with everyone!

Oxygen's surprisingly complex journey through your body - Enda Butler

Adults Science
Oxygen forms about 21% of the air around us. In your body, oxygen forms a vital role in the production of energy in most cells. But if gases can only efficiently diffuse across tiny distances, how does oxygen reach the cells deep inside your body? Enda Butler tracks the surprisingly complex journey of oxygen through your body.

Are You Thinking About Breathing While You Read This? (Now You Are)

Adults Science
What really drives us to breathe? And how dangerous is it to hyperventilate and hold your breath?

What is entropy? - Jeff Phillips

Adults Science
There's a concept that's crucial to chemistry and physics. It helps explain why physical processes go one way and not the other: why ice melts, why cream spreads in coffee, why air leaks out of a punctured tire. It's entropy, and it's notoriously difficult to wrap our heads around. Jeff Phillips gives a crash course on entropy.

What Is Vocal Fry & Is It Bad For You?

Adults Science
Is vocal fry bad for your voice? Does it hurt your chances of getting a job?

Using GPS to Get Around Is Making Us Dumber

Adults Science
GPS services have made getting from point A to point B a lot easier, but what effects does this have on our brains?

How You Can Survive With Only One-Third of Your Blood

Adults Science
How much blood can a human lose without dying, and how does the body replenish that blood once it's gone?

9 Signs You're Not Drinking Enough Water

Adults Science
We've heard it. We get it. We know! Drink more water! But it's not just overplayed advice from fitness magazines and your mother. When we get dehydrated our bodies send out clear warning signs that we need to check our fluid levels. If that happens, it's important to do everything to get your hydration level back on track. Here are some of the symptoms associated with not drinking enough water...

The Science Of Racism

Adults Science
Why are some people racist, but others are not?

Why do we itch? - Emma Bryce

Adults Science
The average person experiences dozens of individual itches each day. We've all experienced the annoyance of an inconvenient itch - but have you ever pondered why we itch in the first place? Is there actually an evolutionary purpose to the itch, or is it simply there to annoy us? Emma Bryce digs deep into the skin to find out.

Destroying Cancer Using Your Own Genetically Modified Cells

Adults Science
Scientists are taking cancer patients' immune cells and engineering them to fight cancer. How does it work?

How this guy found 83 messages in bottles

Adults Science
Clint Buffington has found 83 messages in bottles - and you could probably do it too. Vox's Zachary Crockett and Phil Edwards found out how.

How does your body know what time it is? - Marco A. Sotomayor

Adults Science
Being able to sense time helps us do everything from waking and sleeping to knowing precisely when to catch a ball that's hurtling towards us. And we owe all these abilities to an interconnected system of timekeepers in our brains. But how do they work? Marco A. Sotomayor details how human bodies naturally tell time.

The Science of Marathon Running

Adults Science
So maybe we can't outrun cheetahs or antelope, but humans are uniquely adapted for long distance running. What does science have to say about marathon running? To find out, (and because I was feeling a little crazy) I decided to run one!

We Got Our DNA Tested, Here's How It Actually Works

Adults Science
Trace and Amy get their DNA test results, and we talk to an expert about how scientists actually get genetic information out of DNA.