During one of the most pivotal moments in our evolutionary story our brains actually shrank relative to our bodies.

What’s the real story of the dodo? How did such a unique bird even evolve in the first place? And are we really responsible for its extinction?

Untangling the origins of Beelzebufo -- the giant frog that lived alongside the dinosaurs -- turns out to be one of the most bedeviling problems in the history of amphibians.

The rise and fall of ancient walruses, and how modern ones got their tusks, is a story that spans almost 20 million years. And while there are parts of the story that we’re still trying to figure out, it looks like tusks didn’t have...

How did seahorses — one of the ocean’s worst swimmers — spread around the globe? And where did they come from in the first place?

The eyes are often the first thing we see when we look at someone. And when you look at them up close, everyone’s eye color is a kaleidoscope of shapes and hues. How does eye color work? The answer involves some very cool physics, and...

Based on her work for a CIA task force aimed at predicting civil wars, political scientist Barbara F. Walter examines the rise in extremism and threats to democracies around the globe -- and paints an unsettling picture of the increasing...

It might seem pretty dark from a human point of view, but for some animals, feasting on your own offspring is the best way to ensure you and your other babies might have a more successful life.

While most of us only think about our shoes in terms of how they complete our outfits, there's a lot more impact that your choice of footwear can have on your life. Turns out that shoes can change how your feet grow and develop. So is it...

From diabetes to Alzheimer's, there's a lot that we hope to be able to treat using stem cell therapies. But the stem cells we use tend to be hard to come by. But it turns out there's a new source of stem cells that has researchers...

Fentanyl has become a primary cause of the opioid overdose epidemic in the past decade. But what is it about this drug that's so dangerous? There's more to the story than meets the eye.



If you’re ever in the position...

Bacteria are everywhere, including clouds, and the rain that falls from them. Not only can they survive the harsh environment and hitchhike across continents, they can share their genes, too. Including the ones that make them resistant...

The strange, sooty fungus growing on distillery walls has long been considered part of the process of making barrel-aged boozy beverages. And this fungus has a lot of tricks up its sleeve to make the most out of ethanol, which to most...

You ever see a parrot mimicking humans words, and wonder if they really get what they're talking about? They're smarter than they look - there's a lot of meaning in every squawk and chirp that parrots make. Not bad for a bird brain.

Researchers have identified the processes that cause gray hair and have done experiments to reverse it. And believe it or not, we've had some of these options for decades.

Solving food shortages caused by droughts is a big challenge that may benefit from a tiny ally. Turns out that the microbes living in the soil around plants can give them a boost when water's scarce, which means more food for us, which...

The human population of the world will soon peak – and then decrease – thanks to a combination of two quickly changing economic and educational trends.

One Minute Physics provides an energetic and entertaining view of old and new problems in physics -- all in one minute!

Across the southeastern United States, bald eagles have been dying unexplainedly for the past 25 years. In March of 2021, researchers announced that they had found the killer, and they hope we can use this knowledge to better protect...

A volcanic eruption and series of earthquakes in 2005 were important not because they did a great deal of damage to humans, but because they’re geologic evidence of where Earth’s next ocean will most likely pop up.

Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, there's a fish that's . . . a little different. Join us for a new episode of SciShow where Hank will tell you all about the Pacific Barreleye Fish and what makes it so mysterious....

SciShow’s hot take: Peppers don’t produce that spicy goodness for the reason you think!

If you’ve ever been scratching a dog and seen them do the kicky leg thing, it’s truly adorable. But it might not necessarily be a feel-good thing.

Hank reviews the latest in science news, including the discovery of Element 115, the biggest volcano on Earth, and new insights into what it might mean to have small testicles.