Fossils
50 years on, Lucy offers lessons for achieving fossil fame
Since the discovery of Lucy's skeleton in 1974, a catchy name and ongoing scientific debates have kept this human ancestor in the spotlight.
Featured Stories
Word of the Week
Earth
Scientists Say: Sundog
A sundog appears in the sky when sunlight shines through tiny ice crystals suspended in the air.
Experiments
Chemistry
Experiment: What makes ice melt fastest?
During the winter, you might have seen trucks spreading a mix of salt and sand on the roads to de-ice them. But how does that work? Let’s investigate.
Technically Fiction
Animals
To clear loops, Sonic the Hedgehog must hit the right speed
Most animals don’t run through loops. Sonic would need the physics behind roller coasters and race cars to clear one.
What's Hot
Brrrr
Watch This
Play the video
A springtail’s spring-loaded backflip is fast — really fast
Globular springtails can seem to vanish as they spin backwards at rates of up to 368 rotations per second! So don’t blink.
