Human Behavior, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 28, 2023

Best giant monster movies: the square cube law? Never heard of it

Gigantic monsters have featured in myth and folklore for centuries, with stories such as the Greek titans or the Biblical behemoth passed down from generation to generation. But since the hulking mass of the radioactive, prehistoric reptile Godzilla first smashed its way onto our cinema screens in 1954, audiences have...

Mar 15, 2023

Da Vinci's mother was an enslaved teenager trafficked to Italy, new documents suggest

Leonardo da Vinci's mother was kidnapped and enslaved as a teenager in the Caucasus and sent to Italy, a new analysis of nearly 600-year-old documents suggests. The documents, discovered by an Italian historian, suggest that da Vinci's mother, Caterina, was kidnapped and torn from her home by the Black Sea...

Mar 17, 2023

St Patrick's Day: 5 facts about this most Irish of celebrations

Every year on March 17, millions of people gussy themselves up in green attire, hold big parades and guzzle pints of beer, all in the name of an old Irish saint. But what's the story behind this emerald-hued holiday, and why do we celebrate it with shamrocks and alcohol? St....

Mar 23, 2023

Inside the gory world of Victorian Medicine in All About History 128

As the Victorian era began in 1837, the world of medicine was still in a relatively dangerous state; hospitals were as likely to speed up your ailment as cure you, surgery was done without reliable drugs to numb the pain (let alone stop infection) and even everyday medicines were full...

Apr 3, 2023

Why are some people always late?

We all know someone who never seems to be on time, whether it's to a lunch date or a work meeting. But is there a good explanation for why some people are always late? The habit of being tardy probably results from a number of factors, including time perception, time...

Apr 3, 2023

What Is Passover?

What is Passover?Passover is one of the most important holidays in the Jewish calendar. It's an eight-day festival (seven days for Reform Jews and Jews in Israel) celebrated in the early spring, starting on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan. The 14th day of Nisan begins...

Apr 6, 2023

Most methods for squashing conspiracy theories don't work, study finds. Here's what does.

Debunking conspiracy theories with counterarguments is often a fruitless effort — but according to a new scientific review, there may be alternative strategies that can successfully fend off conspiratorial beliefs. Having already grown over the past 10 years, interest in conspiracy theories skyrocketed during the pandemic, when failure to comply...

Apr 14, 2023

'Short-term memory illusions' can warp human recollections just seconds after events, study suggests

Human beings can generate false memories of events mere seconds after they have occurred, a new study has found. The phenomenon, which researchers have dubbed short-term memory illusions, shows how easily and rapidly humans reimagine experiences to fit our preconceptions, rather than accurately recording what takes place. The researchers published...

Apr 27, 2023

"The birds and the bees": Meaning and origin of the phrase

The phrase the birds and the bees is a term used to explain the mechanics of reproduction to younger children, relying on the imagery of bees pollinating and eggs hatching to substitute for a more technical explanation of sexual intercourse. It is a way of deflecting the inevitable question that...

Apr 29, 2023

Are some people actually tone deaf?

Sure, not everyone has pipes like Adele. But we all know people who truly struggle to match and comprehend musical pitch, and they're usually labeled tone deaf. But is tone deafness a real condition? And if so, why are some people tone deaf? In short, yes, tone deafness is a...

May 18, 2023

New York's first dinosaur museum was trashed before it even opened. The culprit is not who we thought.

In 1871, vandals with sledgehammers destroyed skeletons and models intended for display in New York's first dinosaur museum before the building was even completed. Contemporary news reports blamed the corrupt politician William Boss Tweed, but researchers have now revealed that the true culprit was likely Henry Hilton, who was seemingly...

May 27, 2023

What is the 'ship of Theseus' thought experiment?

Once upon a time — at least according to the ancient Greek writer Plutarch — the hero Theseus sailed from Athens, Greece, to the island of Crete, where he slayed the half-man, half-bull Minotaur before sailing back to rule Athens. The wooden ship that Theseus sailed on, Plutarch imagined, must...

Jul 4, 2023

13 horrific firework injuries that will keep you cautious on July 4

Nearly 100,000 Americans were injured by fireworks between 2000 and 2010. (Image credit: Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)Freedom. Hot dogs. Amputations. It's July Fourth in America, and U.S. hospital visits are about to skyrocket like so many Roman candles. Between 2000 and 2010, U.S. American emergency...

Jul 25, 2023

40 human skulls found in Kentucky apartment linked to national network of body part dealers

FBI agents found 40 human skulls decorating an apartment in Kentucky on July 11 in a search for trafficked human remains — a case that is revealing a network of body part dealers across the U.S. The FBI says that it linked James Nott, the man living with the skulls,...

Aug 21, 2023

190 years after Darwin, 2-year expedition launches to retrace his voyage around the world

Researchers and conservationists have set off on a two-year voyage to retrace Charles Darwin's famous journey across the globe. The expedition comes more than 190 years after the naturalist sailed the world collecting specimens and shaping ideas that would help him formulate his theory of evolution. The expedition, named Darwin200,...