Scientists Say: Sundog

Sundog (noun, Suhn Dahg) Sundogs are bright flares of light that can appear on either side of the sun in the sky. They form when incoming sunlight bends, or refracts off tiny, prism-shaped ice crystals in the atmosphere.  Because of…

To clear loops, Sonic the Hedgehog must hit the right speed

Sonic isn’t your typical hedgehog. He boasts incredible superspeed that lets him launch off springs, sprint over water and even clear loop-de-loops. In the Sonic the Hedgehog games, our favorite blue hedgehog runs through these loops to complete levels. If…

Younger individuals more likely to endorse conspiracy beliefs

Recent research has found that endorsement of conspiracy beliefs tends to decrease slightly with age. Stronger conspiracy beliefs among young people may be explained by their predisposition toward unconventional styles of political participation, lower self-esteem, and general resentment of politics.…

Supermassive black hole binary emits unexpected flares

What happens when a gargantuan cloud of gas swallows a pair of monster black holes with their own appetites? Feasting on the gas can cause some weird (heavenly) bodily functions. AT 2021hdr is a binary supermassive black hole (BSMBH) system…

Depressed individuals take less joy in surprising good outcomes

A study conducted on college students in Florida found that individuals with depression experience less joy from surprising positive outcomes compared to non-depressed individuals. When these students received better grades on a midterm exam than they expected, their positive emotional…

How should we treat beings that might be sentient?

If you aren’t yet worried about the multitude of ways you inadvertently inflict suffering onto other living creatures, you will be after reading The Edge of Sentience by Jonathan Birch. And for good reason. Birch, a Professor of Philosophy at…

Beware of #adhdtest: Inaccurate ADHD content is dominating TikTok, study finds

A recent analysis published in Australasian Psychiatry uncovered alarming trends in ADHD-related content on TikTok. Researchers examined videos tagged with #adhdtest and found that 92% of them contained misleading information. Despite their inaccuracy, these videos significantly outperformed accurate content in…