Osedax mucofloris—otherwise known as the bone-eating snot-flower worm—is a species of undersea worm discovered in 2005. It eats the bones of deceased whales. On the surface of the bone, the worm looks like a curly, pink flower. Burrowed into the bone is a mass of worm-y tissue that, presumably, does the actual eating.
The bouba-kiki effect (aka the maluma-takete effect) is the name of a phenomenon in which people map certain verbal sounds to shapes, no matter the language. For example, b, m, l and o sounds are associated with rounded shapes while k, t, p and i sounds map to jagged or spiky shapes. Now researchers have… READ THE REST
During Sunday's third flight of the fantastic Mars helicopter Ingenuity, it snapped the image below in which you can see the Perseverance rover that delivered the chopper to the Red Planet and acts as its base station for communications to Earth. "The helicopter was flying at an altitude of 16 feet (5 meters) and roughly… READ THE REST
A New York Times reader asks: "Where does a candle go when it burns, anyway? Is it healthy to be breathing in melted candle particles? How concerned should I be?" Randall Munroe of XKCD fame breaks down the science in his illustrated "Good Question" column. From the New York Times: Wax is made of hydrogen… READ THE REST
Unlike the impact of vibration therapy which applies regular, consistent contact to sore areas that the body ultimately acclimates to quickly, percussive therapy oscillates around toward the most targeted areas, applying pressure to tense muscle tissue. For athletes, that means a massage gun used post-workout can help remove lactic acid buildup from the muscle, which… READ THE REST
Projection technology has advanced to the point where even a solid recent vintage projector can serve as a brilliant addition to your home viewing options. And now that we're all starting to get out of the house again, you can tech up with a portable or even pocket-sized projector and basically create your own theater… READ THE REST
When you think robots, your mind likely jumps to R2-D2 or Wall-E. But the reality is that robots are everywhere already, with the trusty functional robotic arm serving as a backbone of industrial manufacturing for decades. And they're that popular because they're ultra adaptable. You can teach a robot arm to do everything from popping open… READ THE REST