Life Science

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

In Charles Darwin's book On the Origin of Species, he referred to a number of "vestiges" in human anatomy that he posited are remnants left over from the course of our species' development over time. Darwin suggested that these vestigial organs are evidence of evolution and represent functions that were once necessary for our survival, but [...] The post 10 Physical Human Traits That Evolution Has Made Obsolete appeared first on Goliath.

By Wes Walcott

A Punnett square helps predict the possible ways an organism will express certain genetic traits, such as purple flowers or blue eyes.

By Jesslyn Shields

One in three people consistently struggle through the autumn and winter months with a type of depression known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Here are some tips for dealing with it.

By Harriet Bowyer

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

Ever find yourself momentarily disoriented in a familiar place or encounter a friend who looks like a stranger? You could be experiencing jamais vu.

By Jennifer Walker-Journey

Think of goosebumps as 'skin orgasms' that are caused by unexpected and pleasant experiences. You know you get them when you're cold, but what is going on in our brains that triggers them?

By Jennifer Walker-Journey

Mangroves provide a habitat for wildlife such as fish, birds, deer and insects. They also stabilize shorelines, protect against storm surges and improve water quality. What's not to love?

By Stephanie Parker

Snake plants are attractive and virtually ironclad houseplants, almost impossible to kill, though some of the hype about them acting as air purifying filters has been overblown.

By Jesslyn Shields

The Bionic Reading app has exploded in popularity. But can it really make you a speed reader?

By Sharise Cunningham

Hundreds of crops in developing countries are relatively unknown in the developed world because they're often hard to grow or export. But scientists have found that CRISPR editing can speed up traditional plant breeding techniques.

By Dave Roos

Machines can translate some of the biological functions of plants into synthesizer sounds. But are these synthesized translations the same thing as music?

By Jesslyn Shields

Countless superhero movies have been released in the past decade, playing to our fascination with people with higher than usual abilities. But what if people really could have superpowers like those portrayed in the movies, thanks to the inheritance of so-called super genes?

By Diana Brown & Sascha Bos

A new study shows that mothers prefer daughters and fathers prefer sons, regardless of economic background, contradicting an earlier well-known hypothesis.

By Alia Hoyt

You could call dopamine the most misunderstood neurochemical in the brain. It's allegedly the cause of people getting addicted to drugs, chocolate or video games. But what does really dopamine do?

By Patrick J. Kiger

At least not in nature. Scientists have discovered the two gene families that play key roles in making fruits and vegetables either round or long. Could a square fruit be on the horizon?

By Dave Roos

The more we research our closest extinct human ancestor, the more we realize how similar we were. But could we have shared a joke?

By Jesslyn Shields

Researchers are calling for a new "Noah's Ark" to store microbes that might one day be valuable.

By Chris Opfer

Tetragametic chimerism occurs when a single organism has two genetically distinct types of DNA.

By Laurie L. Dove

The Scandinavian countries tend to come out on top in the World Happiness Report. But the report doesn't actually ask participants if they're happy. When that question is included, the country rankings are quite different.

By Dave Roos