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Channel: Popular Science

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A rock in Argentina turns out to be the oldest tadpole fossil ever found

Paleontologists don’t always get what they are digging for. In January 2020, a team from the Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Sciences was hoping to find some feathered...

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WORX makes our favorite compact leaf blower and it’s currently 30% off at Amazon

A leaf blower is one of the most important pieces of outdoor gear to own if you live in a foliage-heavy state like mine. I call the great state of Pennsylvania home, and the name literally means...

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Boeing allegedly overcharged the military 8,000% for airplane soap dispensers

Boeing is under federal scrutiny yet again, but this time it isn’t for midflight door malfunctions, faulty wheels, or makeshift lubricants. According to an audit released on October 29th by the...

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Satellite imaging can now spot plastic trash hiding on beaches

Take a stroll down any major beach and it likely won’t be long before you stumble upon some abandoned refuse. Old water bottles, trash bags, straws, and countless other variations of plastic scrap...

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This laptop hub stand is well worth its pricetag—it’s now cheaper than it’s...

Still bending your neck to your desk or propping your laptop up on a wobbly stack of books? You’re overdue for an upgrade. But don’t grab a cheap stand that merely props your device up to eye level....

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November’s sky lights up with three meteor showers and the last supermoon of...

November 1Mars Below GeminiNovember 5Southern Taurids Meteor Shower Predicted PeakNovember 12Northern Taurids Meteor Shower Predicted PeakNovember 15Full Beaver MoonNovember 17Leonids Meteor Shower...

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That’s not blood, it’s a fungus oozing excess juice

Bleeding tooth fungus looks like a ghoulish forest crime scene. This type of mushroom called Hydnellum peckii also goes by “devil’s tooth fungus” or the much more pleasant sounding “strawberries and...

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Want a job at Tesla? These coding skills might be your ticket in

Ever wonder how you can work for companies like Tesla, SpaceX, or Blue Origin? The possibility is not as far off as you think. These headlining companies are looking for experienced software...

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YouTube is full of election lies, and no one is stopping it

Roughly a third of all US adults regularly turn to YouTube for their news. Since the 2020 presidential race, the platform has loosened its guidelines, allowing increased spread of political...

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Oh good, the humanoid robots are working on their own

Boston Dynamics, the flashy robotics company maybe best known for orchestrating absurd robo-dance routines, has a new video out emphasizing its pivot towards commercial factory work. The three-minute...

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How these tiny bats use a sound map to navigate

Bats are well known for their ability to “see” with sound, using echolocation to find food and their roosts. Some bats may also conceive a map made of sounds from their home range. This map can help...

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Studying WWII-era rationing shows that sugar is dangerous even in utero

During and in the aftermath of World War II, between January 1940 and September 1953, the United Kingdom rationed most food items. For some chunk of those fourteen years, everything except fish and...

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Googly-eyed potato eclipse filmed by NASA’s Perseverance rover

Phobos is no slowpoke. Given its size, angle, and orbital pattern, the moon makes a full-circle around Mars roughly once every 7.6 hours. This frequency also makes it far more likely to pass in front...

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Sign up for a Costco membership and get a $45 digital gift card

I just joined Costco, and something strange happened. They sent me a $45 Digital Costco Shop Card*. Did I win a contest? Was it a glitch? Alright, I’m joking. I knew it was their holiday...

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Is someone watching your hotel room? This will tell you

This isn’t some post-Halloween scary story—there are indeed some sick, twisted people out there installing hidden cameras and listening devices in hotel rooms and Airbnbs. Those of us traveling for...

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The uber-optimistic history and prolonged future of space tourism

Tired of the same old vacation getaway? Looking for something out of this world? Book a weekend stay at a LEO Island resort. All our Low Earth Orbit hotels are a mere 100 miles from any shuttle...

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New method for finding sperm whales kind of works like a rideshare app

Marine biologists are inching closer to understanding the ins and outs of sperm whale communication. But in order to decode what the cetaceans are saying, they must first need to find them and know...

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Maryland historical society finally identifies 100-year-old mystery machine

Historians of a small Maryland town were recently stumped by a 100-year-old mystery contraption stored in their archives for almost three decades. After turning to the public for help, the Dorchester...

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The best electric commuter bikes for 2024, tested and reviewed

I started using an electric commuter bike out of necessity. I live in the suburbs of D.C., where our Metro lines occasionally close for weeks or months for train track and station upgrades. And...

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NASA warns SpaceX over safety issues after astronaut hospitalization

NASA is concerned SpaceX is prioritizing its mission schedule over safety after a recent ocean landing resulted in the brief hospitalizations of all four astronauts. Former astronaut Kent Rominger...

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The best light therapy lamps to brighten up your life

A light therapy life does more for you than simply illuminate your space. These tools can help combat seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and reset your biological clock via the body’s natural circadian...

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There’s a real Wayne Enterprises, and it’s selling a $3 million Batmobile

Hollywood has moved far past the Christopher Nolan era of Batman films, but the Dark Knight trilogy’s influence still looms large over pop culture. Now, a full 12 years afterThe Dark Knight Rises hit...

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November 2, 2000: The first residents move into the International Space Station

The International Space Station, or ISS—our largest home away from home—has been continuously occupied since November 2, 2000. That month Popular Science published an interview conducted by Science...

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How to take screenshots (and scrolling screenshots) of webpages

You’re browsing the web, and come across a page you want to save or share with someone else: Whatever the reason, you need a webpage screenshot. It’s not too difficult to capture webpages wholesale,...

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How the MacBook Air is now something everyone can afford

That’s a bold claim, but it’s true. MacBook Airs are more affordable now than ever. While it might not be the case when you visit Apple’s website and see those four-figure price tags, you’re just...

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How to gift Grandma digital versions of her old slides

Warning: This holiday season, you might be subjected to endless slideshows of blurry vacation photos from the ‘70s (again) … unless you take action. The family’s been talking about digitizing those...

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Forget the AirTag, this is the ultimate gift for forgetful friends

How many times have you watched that one friend search for their wallet or keys in a blind panic? Help them restore order (and maybe their sanity) with a gift that ends the chaos: A tracker card that...

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Invisible to the naked eye: 15 gorgeous images captured under a microscope

A groundbreaking image of mouse brain tumor cells took top honors at the 2024 Nikon Small World Competition. At first glance, the image (seen below) might look like a sci-fi plant structure, but it’s...

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Two drones for the price of one! This early gifting deal ends today

Last year, you might’ve been that person who waited until the week before Christmas to start gift shopping. Whoops. You could be crowned the ultimate gift-giver this year by surprising two lucky...

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Meet the ham radio enthusiasts who help keep the New York Marathon running...

By any metric, the New York Marathon is an immense production. The 50,000+ runners who are starting the race on Sunday November 3 make this the world’s largest marathon. Their route will take them...

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How to remember your favorite places using Apple Maps

Among the flurry of new features introduced in iOS 18, you’ve got an improved set of tools for saving places in Apple Maps. That includes a dedicated space for your lists of locations, plus the option...

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Microsoft Visio makes me look like a pro designer

I’m not a designer. I’ve struggled with Canva and barely made it out of Microsoft Word’s graph builder, but when I want to look like I’m a pro at turning complex data sets into streamlined visuals, I...

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From CAD to caddies: Foresight Sports and the trajectory of designing golf...

It’s a typical coastal morning as I walk off the street in San Diego and onto the driving range. A thin veil of June gloom hangs in the air, but there’s no marine layer, no light wind, no variables on...

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This discounted e-scooter is the perfect gift for anyone who loves shortcuts...

Know someone who dreams of a quicker, comfier way to get around town? The Phantom Commuter R1 Pro is here to make their commute as easy as sitting down! With a built-in seat, powerful 500W motor, and...

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Without humans, what would happen to Earth?

We don’t know how or why it happened–perhaps a particularly deadly, Homo sapien-specific virus. Or maybe it was a more drawn-out decline brought on by unfettered climate change, escalating conflict,...

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For the first time ever, this Dyson cordless vacuum is 50% off at Amazon

Black Friday is weeks away, but you can beat the crowds (and shipping deadlines) by taking advantage of early deals right now. One of the best early Black Friday home deals we’ve seen is a 50% price...

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Meat-eating terror birds could grow up to 12 feet tall

Millions of years ago, apex predators in the Phorusrhacidae family lived up to their more common name—terror birds. The mostly flightless, meat-eating dinosaur descendents were the size of dogs at...

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Save up to $700 on a Samsung Galaxy S10 tablet when you trade in an old device

If you see this on Nov. 4, 2024, you have a unique opportunity to save up to $700 on a Samsung Galaxy S10+ or Galaxy S10 Ultra tablet when you trade in a qualifying device. The list of qualifying...

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How the 2025 Ram 1500 RHO squeezes more power from fewer cylinders

Ram Trucks heralded the arrival of its newest engine, the 3.0-liter Hurricane High Output straight six, with the promise of more power, more performance, and more efficiency. High-octane fans were...

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Baseball’s legendary ‘magic mud’ finally analyzed by scientists

While it can’t be credited with winning the Los Angeles Dodgers their eighth World Series championship, baseball’s “magic mud” is the stuff of lore. Each Major League Baseball (MLB) team’s equipment...

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The best soundbars for gaming in 2024

Choosing a soundbar for gaming won’t just affect your overall enjoyment, but it could make the difference between winning and losing. There are tons of great-sounding soundbars on the market at the...

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Rare bees kill Meta’s nuclear-powered AI data center plans

Environmental regulators reportedly quashed Mark Zuckerberg’s nuclear plant partnership meant to help power Meta’s ongoing artificial intelligence projects. Details remain scarce, but the main reason...

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6,000-year-old Mesopotamian artifacts linked to the dawn of writing

The origins of writing in ancient Mesopotamia and beyond may rest on a group of cylindrical seals. A team of archeologists from the University of Bologna in Italy has identified a series of...

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Learn to flirt in every language with help from Babbel on sale

If the language of love is universal, then why not learn them all? With the Babbel Language Learning lifetime subscription for $149.97 through Nov. 10, you can brush up on romance-ready phrases in...

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6 of the weirdest things to ever wash up on the beach

Earth’s surface is about 70 percent water. Our blue planet is more ocean than anything else. And here’s another fact: About 80 percent of consumer goods–nearly all the stuff we buy in stores and...

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Zoom in on squirrel drama with a $30 high-def monocular telescope

If you’ve ever wondered what the squirrels are chattering about—or why that bird’s got an attitude—it’s time to get the scoop with a high-definition monocular telescope. This little gadget lets you...

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5 things to know about pygmy hippos–like Scotland’s own Haggis

Meet Haggis! The tiny pygmy hippo (Choeropsis liberiensis) calf was born at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s (RZSS) Edinburgh Zoo on October 30. The zoo’s adult pygmy hippos Otto and Glorida...

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World’s first wooden satellite shares material with samurai sword sheaths

A SpaceX Dragon capsule docked at the International Space Station at 9:52 AM EST on November 5th carrying over 6,000 lbs of cargo along with one small, unique prototype. On Tuesday, the company’s 31st...

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Bioprinting breakthrough uses acoustic waves to create lab-grown human tissue

Researchers often test experimental pharmaceutical therapies using lab-grown human tissues. Unfortunately, creating these materials can be complex and costly, leading many researchers to turn to...

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Dinosaurs discovered in ‘Chinese Pompeii’ actually died in extremely boring ways

A famous fossil formation in the Yixian region of Northeast China has revealed some of the most striking, well-preserved dinosaur remains on record. Over the past 60 years, archaeologists excavating...

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