Like many other cultures, the ancient Romans loved their board games. Some of history’s most well-documented examples of tabletop pastimes date back to the empire. Ludus Latrunculorum, aka latrones, was…
It’s a regrettable reality that there is never enough time to cover all the interesting scientific stories we come across each month. So every month, we highlight a handful of…
If you didn’t grow up with smartphones and tablets, then the touchscreen inputs, busy interfaces, and multiple apps can quickly become overwhelming. If you have parents or grandparents who struggle…
In 1774, British physician-scientist Charles Blagden received an unusual invitation from a fellow physician: to spend time in a small room that was hotter, he wrote, “than it was formerly…
Google on Friday unveiled its plan for its Chrome browser to secure HTTPS certificates against quantum computer attacks without breaking the Internet. The objective is a tall order. The quantum-resistant…
QR codes are designed to be used as quickly and easily as possible. But while tens of millions of the black-and-white gridworks are used every day, few people are likely…
Despite the headline, this isn’t really a story about superconductivity—at least not the superconductivity that people care about, the stuff that doesn’t require exotic refrigeration to work. Instead, it’s a…
Archivists at the Library of Congress believe they may have discovered the first depiction of a robot in cinemas, thanks to a 127-year-old reel that had been gathering dust in…
If humans ever expect to live on Mars, we’re going to need to get very good at keeping Martian time. The task is simple enough on Earth, thanks to standardized…
Happy International Polar Bear Day! For 21 years, conservation nonprofit Polar Bears International has celebrated these vulnerable bears with a day of conservation action and learning. Right now, polar bear…