The golden ratio. Some say it’s the most mythical number in the universe. Others say it underlies everything from nature’s patterns to beauty in art and design. But, like, what is it? And does the myth of the golden ratio hold up to its...

In 2002, artist and Guggenheim museum curator Jon Ippolito identified Ten Myths of Internet Art. Myth Number 1 was the idea that the Web is solely a medium for delivering other artistic media. Today, the Web and digital technology offers...

This week Sarah breaks down why The Art Assignment sign-off cannot be "Please Don't Break the Law," and discusses artists Ai Weiwei and Pussy Riot who have broken the law for good reasons. What should our sign off be? Please Break The...

This week Sarah breaks down why The Art Assignment sign-off cannot be "Please Don't Break the Law," and discusses artists Ai Weiwei and Pussy Riot who have broken the law for good reasons. What should our sign off be? Please Break The...

This episode explains how sirens appeared in ancient history, from literature to art, and looks at how the half human half bird creatures became more commonly associated with mermaids. From Ancient Greek legends to Medieval bestiaries,...

"ISO is the sensitivity of the image sensor." "Increasing ISO directly increases noise." "ISO is part of the exposure triangle." "ISO controls the amount of light the camera collects." Chances are, you've heard these statements at least...

This influential ancient monster from Chinese mythology predates the written word. Inspired by ancient bronze and jade iconography detailing the face of a bulging-eyed, gapping-mouthed beast, the Taotie creature is both mysterious and...

Blind people gain an enhanced sense of smell to compensate for the lost sense, right? Right? Wrong. It turns out that it's a total myth. Avery Gilbert, a scent psychologist, takes a critical look at some of the widely circulated myths...

Stories have existed in many forms—cave paintings, parables, poems, tall tales, myths—throughout history and across almost all human cultures. But is storytelling essential to survival? Join Jonathan Gottschall, Joyce Carol Oates,...

What does fear smell like? Love? Can we use scent to control behavior? Do humans really sense pheromones? What if you could diagnose diseases just by smelling them? And exactly how does our brain convert floating organic molecules into...

Are we all going to die? Neil DeGrasse Tyson holds court well into the wee hours of the night during the Star-Gazing Party at the 2010 World Science Festival, held at the base of the James Webb Space Telescope in downtown NYC. The...

The first ever commercially grown, genetically modified food was the Flavr Savr Tomato, produced over 15 years ago. Production of the tomato stopped after only about 3 years because of competition with the Long Shelf-Life Tomato. Since...