Uncommon science: eye-opening scientific findings and impressive technological advances. Interesting facts and thought-provoking theories about Human, Earth and the Universe
Can you imagine what it would feel like to be trapped inside your own body, fully conscious but unable to move or communicate with the outside world? It’s a nightmarish existence I don’t want to think about; yet, this is exactly what happened to Martin Pistorius. The Intriguing Story of…
This month we won’t have just a regular full moon – it will be a super flower blood moon and a total lunar eclipse! But what exactly does this fancy name mean? Let’s explore these terms one by one. The term ‘blood moon’ is used to describe lunar eclipses when…
This April will bring us a special celestial event – the ‘Pink Supermoon’. It will be the first of the two supermoons of 2021. This term is used to describe the astronomical phenomenon when the distance between the moon and Earth is at its slightest. When the full supermoon takes…
Don’t under-estimate the power of pig intelligence. This animal can do much more than you’ve ever imagined and do it well. Unfortunately, most people never consider the intelligence of animals, especially those, I dare say, that are used for consumption or organs for human transplants. But what I am about…
Anyone interested in science knows that it takes carefully constructed experiments to produce results. Or does it? You might be surprised, as I was, to learn that between 30 and 50% of all scientific discoveries occur by accident. But there is something extraordinary about these accidental discoveries. They may have…
We've all been there, perhaps this year more than ever! You're waiting for something, or possibly waiting it out, and time seems to trickle by at a snail's pace. Let's consider how to make time go faster when that clock isn't moving quickly enough. First up, let's think about why…
If I asked you to name the smartest person who ever lived, you might say Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, or someone like Stephen Hawking. I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t know a guy called William James Sidis, and yet, this man had an estimated IQ of 250 to 300. The…
Ask children today what they want to be when they grow up, and the chances are they will say ‘rich and famous’. But in a world where money and fame rule supreme, there is at least one man with very different values - Grigori Perelman. Who Is Grigori Perelman? Grigori…
When we think of Santa Claus history, we imagine a rather rotund, merry, and jolly old figure. We can picture him in his red and white suit, his twinkling eyes peering over a pair of half spectacles. There’s nothing dark about this benevolent and familiar Christmas character, or is there? …
This winter solstice brings us a one-in-lifetime chance to witness a rare astronomical phenomenon called ‘Christmas star’ or, more scientifically, ‘Great conjunction’. Why Is the Great Conjunction So Rare? It seems that 2020 has more surprises to give, and not all of them are unfortunate. After Halloween's blue moon, there…
