Life Science

Heuristics are rule-of-thumb strategies that help us shorten decision-making time and solve problems quickly and effortlessly.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Centrioles are spindles that create the pathways for chromosomes to follow during cell division.

By Jesslyn Shields

New research shows that homo sapiens weren't the first folks to decorate their caves with artwork. Neanderthals actually did it thousands of years earlier.

By Alia Hoyt

A new study shows that IQ levels have been falling since 1975, reversing a 20th-century trend.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus

Ever walked from your kitchen to the living room to find your phone and then forgotten what you were looking for once you got there? Researchers think your brain is hard-wired to undergo precisely that process of forgetting.

By Nathan Chandler

Researchers say that Otzi, the ancient man found in the Alps in 1991, lived on a diet loaded with fat to maintain warmth and energy in his cold, high-altitude environment.

By Patrick J. Kiger

Nearly every living cell is made of DNA, and every chromosome contains exactly one molecule of DNA. But not all cells are made of the same number of chromosomes.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Humans are a diverse lot - which is good! The question of ethnicity vs. race vs. nationality is a source of much debate, even among experts.

By John Donovan

Cell division can be confusing, but it's not as difficult if you pretend chromosomes are sentences.

By Jesslyn Shields & Austin Henderson

While plant and animal cells are strikingly similar, there are a few key differences.

By Jesslyn Shields & Austin Henderson

People who hallucinate typically see, hear, feel, smell or otherwise experience things that simply aren't real. Often, these sensory fake-outs indicate a serious medical condition.

By Alia Hoyt

Many of Sigmund Freud's well-known theories have been discredited by modern psychiatry. Does that include the Oedipus complex?

By John Donovan

These majestic trees send their roots down in pillars from branch to ground, can form a canopy over 80 feet high and can live to be 250 years old.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

When an electron loses its partner, it creates a free radical. So is that free radical now potentially hazardous to your health?

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Cork is the go-to material for wine stoppers and bulletin boards. So are we really running out of it? And if so, what happens?

By Wendy Bowman

Requiring little care and upkeep, daffodils are bright, showy perennials that symbolize rebirth and new beginnings.

By Wendy Bowman

People often make vision boards at the start of the year. Some swear by vision boards for making their dreams come true. But is there any science to back that up?

By Alia Hoyt

If you engage in constant self-talk, it may surprise you that some people think in pictures instead or do nothing at all. And the number of people truly having an inner monologue may not be as great as you think.

By Nathan Chandler & Desiree Bowie

Amanita phalloides is non-native to the North American continent, introduced to California from Europe, and rapidly spreading.

By Tara Yarlagadda

Researchers from Penn State University College of Medicine suggest that a shared circuit in the brain could be one reason why heavy drinking and high-fat 'junk food' cravings go hand in hand.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Australia's western coast boasts such pink wonders. But what gives these lakes their pink hue?

By Tara Yarlagadda & Austin Henderson

Does everyone have a double out there somewhere that they don't know about? Science says the odds are pretty slim.

By Alia Hoyt

It's easy to equate Caucasian with white. But the word Caucasian touches on issues deeper than skin color. HowStuffWorks looks at its true meaning.

By John Donovan & Austin Henderson

While researchers can't say from this small study whether hairy men are inherently germier than the rest of the human race, the results are startling.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Niels Bohr proposed the model of the atom that we still learn in school today, even though it's technically incorrect.

By Jesslyn Shields