Strange

Now, we’re not the only species that does comically odd things. I’ve seen my cat make countless hilarious faces and sounds, and his behavior is not always predictable. But we humans are unique in the way that we have free will and an extremely complex communication system. As long as the technology exists, anything that we can imagine, we can turn into a reality.Robert Roy Britt wrote a piece for Live Science discussing why human beings are arguably the strangest species, and he brings attention to a variety of the…

There’s a revealing moment at the end of this sturdy documentary about the Italian film-maker Dario Argento, when his daughter Asia remembers his state of mind when he came home from the David di Donatello awards, Italy’s version of the Oscars, in 2019. Over the course of his career – which is still ongoing – 84-year-old Argento had never won a David for any of his strange, unique films, such as Profondo Rosso (1975), Suspiria (1977) or Tenebre (1982) to name just three of his best known. But that year, the Italian…

For better or worse, living in a big city means being around a whole smorgasbord of humanity. Every subculture, style, and design has its adherents, and where better to see it than buses, trams, and subways? The “Berlin Subway Creatures” Instagram account is dedicated to sharing the most interesting passengers on the city's public transport and not, unfortunately, found footage of actual underground creatures. So get comfortable as you look through, perhaps on your commute, and be sure to upvote your favorites. More…

Today it is trivially easy to play games on a computer, games console or phone with your friends over the internet. But before the wide availability of high-speed internet, things were more complicated.In the 1990s and early 2000s, 3D graphics in video games were becoming more and more complex, but the low network speeds of the period meant that these games, unlike slower-paced and less graphically intensive strategy games, were nearly unplayable over an internet connection. In this moment, in which communications…

A study of 26 years' worth of wolf behavioral data, and an analysis of the blood of 229 wolves, has shown that infection with the parasite Toxoplasma gondii makes wolves 46 times more likely to become a pack leader.The research shows that the effects of this parasite in the wild have been horrendously understudied – and its role in ecosystems and animal behavior underestimated.If you have a cat, you've probably heard of this parasite before. The microscopic organism can only sexually reproduce in the bodies of felines,…

After an exhaustive yearlong search to find the show’s next host, Jon Stewart is returning to The Daily Show on a part-time basis, just in time for the 2024 election season. But he won’t be doing it alone. He’ll host Monday night’s broadcast beginning Feb. 12, with a roster of rotating correspondents from Tuesday to Thursday. For some, his return speaks to the dire state of late-night TV. Stewart left the chair of the satirical news program in 2015, and ever since his absence, the show has taken a dive. The Daily…

People with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD for short, are 82 percent more likely to die earlier – from natural or unnatural causes – than people without the condition, a new study reveals.Previous studies have found excess deaths in people with OCD, but the specific causes of death had been poorly researched – maybe with the exception of suicide. Notably, people with OCD have similar suicide rates to people with other mental health disorders.OCD affects about 2 percent of the population. People with the condition…

Human behaviour is an enigma that fascinates many scientists. And there has been much discussion over the role of probability in explaining how our minds work.Probability is a mathematical framework designed to tell us how likely an event is to occur – and works well for many everyday situations. For example, it describes the outcome of a coin toss as ½ – or 50 percent – because throwing either heads or tails is equally probable.Yet research has shown that human behaviour can't be fully captured by these traditional or…

The magic carpet is supposed to show how great flying cars will be in the future, but it’s unclear how this air-mobile vehicle will reduce pollution.Gif: Kyle Barr / GizmodoCES is no stranger to some supremely extravagant booths, but this year’s convention might take the cake (in one case, quite literally). The Consumer Technology Association, the group that runs the event every year, was hoping to have 130,000 attendees strolling around Vegas in search of the latest and greatest the tech world has to offer. Being there…

The mystery of strange pockmarks that dimple the floor of the North Sea has finally been solved.These mysterious depressions are not always, as had previously been thought, the result of methane seeping from beneath the seafloor sediment; rather, they're sometimes the mess left behind by porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) and sand eels (Ammodytes marinus) inhabiting the region.In a study led by geoscientist Jens Schneider von Deimling of Kiel University, scientists have shown that the pockmarks are the work of both animals.…