Big Questions Answered, How and Why

'Flash in the pan' doesn't mean a literal fire in a pan. But good guess.

The phrase used to describe a has-been reality star or trend originated on the battlefield.

Here's how to identify red and gray foxes, plus some helpful information about where the foxes live and what they eat.

Is Mercury retrograde really the reason you computer crashed? Here's what an expert has to say about it.

Mercury retrograde will make the planet appear to move backwards. No, that doesn’t mean your electronics or your relationships will fail.

What the @%$!! is the oldest known curse word?

The four-letter words that still have the power to offend took a circuitous route out of our mouths and into our language.

Marijuana really does give you the munchies—here's the science behind why.

Catching a kid picking their nose isn’t too unusual, but have you ever wondered what makes them want to actually eat their boogers? Discover more about the science behind mucophagy and its enduring appeal to youngsters.

'Organic' doesn't necessarily mean 'healthy.'

To be certified as organic, farmers can’t use prohibited synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, or hormones for three full years before applying. Further, any animals they have must be raised on organic foods.

Don't let this sweet face fool you: Arctic foxes eat anything that moves.

Adorable Arctic foxes will eat anything they can catch on the snowy tundra.

You may not have given it much thought in the past, but you've most definitely seen a single shoe hanging around the side of the road. How did it get there?

A grain of salt a day keeps the misinformation away.

‘Take it with a grain of salt’ all (probably) started with Pliny the Elder, but he was talking about literal poison.

Genetics, seasonal changes, and Earth's magnetic field all play a role.

Do you know your leopards from your jaguars?

You won't confuse a moth and a butterfly or an alligator and a crocodile again.

Birds are a noisy bunch, and there's a lot of variation when it comes to avian vocalizations.

Michigan maintains one of the most successful bottle return programs in America.

The abbreviations are widely understood as “morning” and “afternoon,” but what do the Latin translations actually mean?

Surprisingly, there is truth in this advertising.

When you spritz some Febreze into the air, it actually uses compounds called cyclodextrins to trap those odor-causing molecules.

People are still torn over the belief that the ninth president died of pneumonia after not wearing a coat to his inauguration.

Cats love to lurk around tubs like feline voyeurs. What causes this behavior?

Your pooch probably won’t stare at the sun during the total solar eclipse.

Humans will gaze in awe at the sun during the Great North American total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, but for your pets, it will be just a normal day.