Earlier this month, the UN released a paper touting the nutritional and environmental benefits of insects. The paper caused quite a stir in the media, with a mix of fascination, head-nodding, and not a little revulsion. But why is the UN advocating entomophagy? Why aren't we eating bugs already? And should you really…

Whether you're already three sheets to the wind or abstaining from booze this St. Patrick's Day, get to know a little bit more about the wet and intoxicating stuff. We've collected some of our favorite posts about the science, social science, and history of alcohol, so you'll have more to say about your beer aside from …

China may have cracked down on television shows that depict time travel — but meanwhile, in Korea, journeys through time became the hottest trend on the small screen.

Fitness trends come and go, but weight training in particular never seems to come into style. Part of the problem is that most people associate it with bodybuilding culture, and women in particular are reluctant to join the guys at the back of the gym.

Everything is set for this coming Monday's skydive stunt spectacular, in which Felix Baumgartner will attempt to set a new world record for the highest, longest, and fastest freefall in history. Once he leaps from a helium balloon positioned 23 miles (37 km) above New Mexico, Baumgartner expects to go supersonic a…

If your experience with Judge Dredd has been limited to famous Anthrax songs, not famous Human League songs, and watching the 1995 Sylvester Stallone movie hungover on basic cable on Sunday afternoons, know that Mega-City One's top cop has a complex (and rather wacky) pedigree. Here's a crash course on why Dredd is the …

Fan fiction and fan art are both enormous components of our popular culture, a way we retell our favorite stories just as humans have always retold myths and legends. But sometimes creators, publishers, and studios claim that works of fan art and fan fiction violate their copyright. So is that Supernatural fanfic…

NASA's Curiosity is set to make its historic landing this coming Sunday, August 5. Once settled, the rover will get to work analyzing the Martian surface and atmosphere for signs that the planet was once capable of harboring life — or might be again. But what does it mean to search for "potential" habitability?

You probably have a local "Mystery Spot" in your area, and it undoubtedly features a gravity hill — that is, a place where either water or solid objects seem to move uphill against the force of gravity. But do these uncanny spots really defy the laws of physics?

Any time someone breaks a record, people inevitably bring up the possibility that they had some illegal enhancements. Just yesterday, gold medalist Ye Shiwen was accused of "blood doping" to improve her performance. You may be familiar with steroids and other drugs — but what on Earth is "blood doping?" And why would…