Are Insects Capable of Moral Behavior?
Some 19th-century naturalists believed that bugs could think and should therefore definitely know that biting is out of line.
Plant of the Month: The Sensitive Plant
This plant’s animal-like behavior and alleged love-provoking abilities have sparked the imagination of everyone from early modern yogis to today’s scientists.
How Safe Is BPA-Free Plastic?
With BPA gone from many plastic products, researchers are concerned about other environmental chemicals, which might cause reproductive harm.
The Jim Crow Army in the Philippine-American War
Some African American soldiers of the conflict thought fighting against fellow people of color was unjust.
The Theory of Cuss Word Relativity
Which words are considered taboo varies by place and time, scholars find.
How Public Schools “Americanized” Hawai‘i
Colonial education administrators recruited teachers from the mainland, but soon realized another strategy was in order.
Puffins Seen Using Tools, Breaking Dumb-Puffin Stereotypes
Reputed to be a less intelligent bird species, puffins have been observed scratching themselves with sticks.
Why Your Zodiac Sign Is Probably Wrong
The science of astronomy is at odds with the basic organizing principle in astrology: the dates of the zodiac.
The 1876 Map of the World’s Ecozones That Still Holds Up
The 19th-century naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace created a visualization that tied different species to specific regions of the world.
How Conservation Is Shaped by Settler Colonialism
The legal concept of "terra nullius"—meaning "no one's land"—influenced European colonialism and continues to shape the practice of conservation.