When geckos play ball and spiders spar: The strange evolution of fun
15 December 2021
The ability to play is being spotted in some unexpected creatures, from swans to Komodo dragons. Are they really fooling around? And if so, why do they do it?
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Premium
How the shimmering secrets of iridescence could keep us cool
15 December 2021
Instead of absorbing light, iridescent surfaces scatter it away. Many animals take advantage of this to stay cool – and we could copy the trick to make paints that keep our buildings cool
The real reasons we laugh and what different types of laughter mean
15 December 2021
What the three varieties of laughter say about your relationships, how giggling helps babies develop their sense of self, and why so many animals like a chuckle
Occam’s razor: The medieval monk who saw the power of simplicity
15 December 2021
William of Ockham was tried for heresy before the Pope, only to make a daring escape. His big idea, known as Occam’s razor, remains the keenest tool for honing our understanding of the world
Strange but true? Test yourself in our barely believable science quiz
15 December 2021
Science throws up all manner of bizarre and outlandish discoveries. Test your knowledge of the world’s weird side by picking out the strange-but-true from the stuff we made up
How climate change is shaking up the hops that give beer its flavour
15 December 2021
Hop plants are largely what distinguish your dark ales from your refreshing pales, and each has its own “terroir”. With changing weather affecting how and where they grow, what does the future hold for brewing and beer?
What doing magic tricks for birds is revealing about animal minds
15 December 2021
Scientists have teamed up with magicians to perform illusions on Eurasian jays, revealing flaws in their perception – and modes of thinking we didn’t know they had
The secret life of cheese: How marvellous microbes create its flavour
15 December 2021
We have been making cheese for millennia, but researchers are only now getting to grips with how bacteria, fungi and viruses combine to create its characteristic flavours and textures
Kenneth Libbrecht interview: A grand unified theory of snowflakes
15 December 2021
Snowflakes can form in either a plate or column shape, but no one understood why – until physicist Kenneth Libbrecht investigated. His theory is the result of two decades making snow in the lab
Ambergris: What fragrant whale excretions tell us about ancient oceans
15 December 2021
Ancient whale poo, known as ambergris, has long been prized by perfumiers – but it also contains precious information about ancient oceans that could help save today’s whales
