MinuteEarth
Why Is There So Much Land In The North?
Most of Earth’s land is currently in the northern hemisphere because we happen to exist in a time where uneven heating in the mantle has pushed many continental plates northward.
Be Smart
Where Do Birds Go In Winter?
As winter approaches, V-shaped flocks glide overhead as the world's birds begin their long treks to warmer climates. Humans used to have some pretty crazy theories about where birds went for winter, like the moon, or to the bottom of the...
MinuteEarth
Why Continents Are High
Lots of geological forces need to come together for continents to form, but they all require one ingredient: water.
MinuteEarth
How Do Abortion Pills Work?
You may have heard of "abortion pills" - here's what these medications are and what they do (and don't do).
MinuteEarth
What Happens When A Volcano Meets a Glacier?
Volcanoes might seem like an unstoppable force of nature - but there is at least one OTHER force on Earth that seems to be able to keep them down.
MinuteEarth
Why Weather Forecasts Suck
There are two types of rain, and one of them is almost impossible to forecast.
MinuteEarth
When 90dB is LOUDER than 120dB
We often use decibels, a measure of sound pressure, to describe how loud something is - but loudness is caused by how we perceive sounds, and the two often don't line up.
MinuteEarth
We Have No Idea Why
Most animals on earth are bioluminescent, but almost all of them live in the ocean - and scientists aren’t sure why.
MinuteEarth
The Plant You Don’t Have To Water
Some plants can drink water from the air - and that has some weird effects on the forests where they live.
MinuteEarth
Mushroom Wars
Two mushroom guilds with vastly different strategies are locked in competition for forest dominance.
MinuteEarth
There’s No Such Thing As “Warm-” Or “Cold-” Blooded
The concept of warm-blooded and cold-blooded animals is outdated because there are actually tons of different animal thermoregulation strategies.
MinuteEarth
How We Learned That Water Isn't An Element
For thousands of years, water was thought to be an element. That is, until some of the greatest chemists in the world managed to crack it open.
MinuteEarth
What if We Replaced Nuclear With Potatoes
Energy use can be confusing – I mean, how do you compare gasoline in your car to electricity piped to your house? That's why we made these things spud-tacularly simple.
MinuteEarth
Which Is Worse: Underpopulation Or Overpopulation?
The human population of the world will soon peak – and then decrease – thanks to a combination of two quickly changing economic and educational trends.
MinuteEarth
Why It's Impossible To Win a Nuclear War
Nuclear war is a terrifying existential threat, but we shouldn't only fear the blasts because the ensuing smoke is the real killer.
MinuteEarth
The 3 Reasons This Tree Has Lived 5000 Years
Methuselah’s environment lacks nutrients, water, and oxygen. In other words, it’s the perfect place to grow very very old.
MinuteEarth
When Was The Worst Time In History To Die?
By combining historical demography and epidemiology, we can (sort of) determine how people throughout history have died.
MinuteEarth
What Is The Best Shape For A Farm?
The shape of a farm can tell you a surprising amount about the land it's on and the people that use it.
MinuteEarth
Why Do Heart Attacks Cause *Arm* Pain?
When the brain receives pain from an internal organ, it often projects the pain in the wrong place because of the way sensory nerve paths converge
MinuteEarth
The Disease You Will Never Survive
A simple mis-folding in a certain brain protein causes a disease for which we have no cure.
MinuteEarth
The Weird Sex Lives of Bluegills
When it comes to the mating game, fish have some of the strangest ways of thwarting the competition.
MinuteEarth
How Caffeine Accidentally Took Over The World
Plants don't make caffeine just for us, so what DO they make it for?