Dolphins Are Getting High on Pufferfish Toxin—and They Know Exactly What They're Doing
Dolphins deliberately harass pufferfish to trigger toxin release, then pass the fish around to experience the intoxicating effects. It's the animal kingdom's most blatant case of recreational drug use.
The Carjacker Who Mastered the Gun but Not the Clutch
A 17-year-old successfully threatened a driver at gunpoint to steal her car, then abandoned it seconds later because he couldn't operate a manual transmission. Sometimes the obstacle between you and crime is just... a pedal.
The Robber Who RSVP'd to His Own Crime
A muffler shop robber didn't just announce his intentions—he left his actual phone number so the manager could call when the safe was ready. Yes, he was caught.
The Fugitive Who Hid Upward Into Custody
A Memphis murder suspect thought an attic would be the perfect hiding spot. Gravity and drywall had other plans.
The Universe's Invisible Engine Might Not Run on a Constant
The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument just measured 6.4 million galaxies and found something cosmologists didn't expect: dark energy might be changing over time, not staying still.
People Given $10,000 Give Away Most of It. Yes, Really.
When researchers handed people substantial sums with no strings attached, recipients across seven countries immediately gave away 64% of it. Economic models of human behavior might need an update.
Why Nobody Can Actually Tell You How Long a Coastline Is
The length of Britain's coastline depends entirely on how closely you measure it. Zoom in far enough, and it becomes infinite.
Australia Declared War on Emus—and Lost
In 1932, the Australian military deployed soldiers with machine guns to cull invasive emus destroying crops. The birds won.
A Dog Is the Actual Mayor of a Minnesota Town, and Yes, She Has Duties
Khaleesi, a Great Pyrenees, was elected honorary mayor of Cormorant, Minnesota in 2024—and she takes her job seriously enough to show up for parades.
A Blood Test That's Better at Finding Cancer Than Preventing It
The FDA-approved Shield blood test detects 83% of colorectal cancers but catches only 13% of precancerous polyps—inverting everything we expect from preventive screening.