The UK Reality Show “Shattered” Was Essentially A Sleep Deprivation Contest On TV
Twenty years ago today, Channel Four in the UK first aired "Shattered," a show where contestants tried to stay awake the longest to win a grand prize.
The Fly-Swatting Champion Of Bisbee, Arizona
This month in 1912, the community of Bisbee, Arizona decided to gamify its anti-bug response by offering rewards for the most avid fly-swatters.
A Company In Mexico Is Making 3D Printed Bricks Out Of Eggshells
Can you build a wall out of eggshells? You can if you're the Mexican design studio MANUFACTURA, which developed a sustainable way to make bricks out of discarded shells and bio-binders.
The United Nations Is Home To The World’s Countries, And Bees
It's United Nations Day, and UN headquarters in New York City is a pretty interesting place if you like geopolitics, world history or beekeeping. Here's a closer look at the UN's own beehives.
Linda Christensen, The Minnesota State Fair’s Legendary Butter Sculptor
At the Minnesota State Fair, there's a contest to choose a new ambassador for the state's dairy farms. And for almost 50 years, a sculptor made butter likenesses of the contestants.
This Worm-Shaped Pipe-Clearing Robot Could Be The Fatberg Fighter We Need
There really is a robot now called the Pipe-Worm. It's built to unclog pipes, and it does it by mimicking earthworms.
The Hospital Of The Future’s Secret Weapon Is Surgical “Duct Tape”
A team at MIT has come up with a new substance that do-it-yourselfers will love: a surgical "duct tape" that can help seal up wounds and tears in the body's gastrointestinal system.
Edmonia Lewis, A Sculptor Who Brought Her Subjects To Life
On Indigenous Peoples Day, here's the story of sculptor Edmonia Lewis. She was born in the 1840s to a Black father and a Chippewa mother, and became the first Native American and Black woman to become an acclaimed sculptor.
There Was Almost A State Called Franklin In Eastern Tennessee
It's a complicated story, but part of what is now eastern Tennessee was once part of western North Carolina - and today in 1784, they tried to break away and form their own state, called Franklin.
Some Fish Pause For Effect When They Communicate
Sometimes it’s not just what you’re communicating, it’s how you communicate it. Pausing for effect can help get your point across. Humans know this, but according to researchers, so do some kinds of fish.