STEM

There are four species of owls native to North Carolina. These owls and their distinctive calls are captivating creatures.

Proteins in the body have essential jobs. They enable us to move, transport materials and signals, control chemical reactions, stop bleeding, and fight infections.

The great horned owl is an avian apex predator, and perhaps the finest predator to have ever lived. In this article, I will detail just about everything you need to know about these magnificent raptors, including what they look like, what they eat, and how they live.

Black holes, mysterious objects of the universe, have many different types. Do you know the differences between them all?

Buttercups and daisies are attractive wildflowers and a lovely part of summer. Daisies have edible parts that can be used in salads, but buttercups are toxic.

The Malayan tapir is an unusual animal with an extensible and mobile proboscis, or mini-trunk. Despite its size and bulk, this endangered animal can move fast.

Coral bleaching is an event in which corals lose their pigment and main source of food. It often causes corals to die. Oxybenzone in sunscreens may contribute to coral bleaching.

AWS Step Functions recently added nested workflows, a feature customers have been asking for a lot. In this article we take a look at the new features added for nested workflows.

This article looks at ten sandy beaches of extraordinary colour, what they are composed of and how they are formed, with illustrations of all ten

We now know that water is definitely on the moon, but how did it get there?

Pacific white-sided dolphins are intelligent and very social animals. This article describes the lives of the wild dolphins and of some rescued animals in captivity.

The hedge bindweed or morning glory twines around other plants and interferes with their growth. Bindweed produces large and beautiful flowers in summer.

Puss and saddleback caterpillars are attractive insects. Unfortunately, they are stinging caterpillars. In some people, the sting can cause serious problems..

Everyone has heard of the Big Bang Theory, but what about possible alternatives? Read on to learn more.

This is the third page in a series of guides for anyone who wants to learn a little more about our night sky. This page looks at those most numerous of all objects visible in the night sky - the stars

The Mariana Trench is the deepest place in the ocean and contains some fascinating animals. NOAA has made some exciting discoveries about life in the trench.

This article provides a technique for using the abacus to perform subtraction equations and a simple method for introducing children to subtraction.

Broca's area, Wernicke's area, and the circle of Willis are important parts of the brain. They are named after the famous scientists who discovered them.

Saliva is made by salivary glands and has important functions. The glands may sometimes develop a stone or an infection. In Sjogren's syndrome, insufficient saliva is made. The disease may be accompanied by other symptoms.

It carries people and cargoes. Could it carry bombs as well?

This article explores the characteristics and traits of Humpback Whales. It examines the animal's behavioral patterns, reproductive process, habitat, as well as its natural prey and predators.

Bleach has potent antimicrobial properties and is also able to remove stains from fabrics. It has many uses, but it's potentially dangerous.

See pictures to help you identify the male and female Rose-breasted Grosbeak, plus learn facts about its migration and behavior.

Octopuses have fascinating abilities. Some have fins that help them move. Others demonstrate intelligence. The genome of one species is very unusual.

Cinnabar is a beautiful but toxic red mineral made of mercury (ll) sulfide. It’s used as a source of mercury and to make an artist's pigment called vermilion.

Formic acid is found in the sprayed venom of some ants and the secretions of some stinging nettles. The acid is dangerous at high concentrations but has important uses.

Cone snails use their venom to paralyze their prey. Although the venom is often dangerous for humans, it contains chemicals that have important medical uses.

Some people believe that NDE is proof of an afterlife. However, science provides alternate, and more plausible, explanations.

The large or Malayan flying fox is one of the world's largest bats and has a wingspan of up to six feet. Its population is classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN.

Hercules beetles are named after the hero of ancient myths. The male has horns that may be very long. The insects can change colour and are found in both the old and the new world.

This is a basic guide to what you can see on the surface on the Moon - there is as much that can be seen on the Moon with a pair of binoculars, than in the whole of the rest of the sky put together.

Bees play a very important role in pollinating flowers, but the insects are disappearing. Pesticides may be at least partly responsible for this disappearance.

Draco lizards are sometimes known as flying dragons. They have a skin fold on each side of their body that extends to form a wing-like structure and enables the animal to glide through the air.

Pygmy seahorses are tiny animals that are often less than an inch in length. Some have amazing features that disguise them and protect them from discovery.

Acanthamoeba is a microscopic, single-celled organism that can infect the cornea of the eye. It causes a disorder called Acanthamoeba keratitis, which is most common in contact lens users.

Different Types of Stars in the Universe - Physical characteristics and images of the many different kinds of stars, from red giants to white dwarfs.

Examining what it means to have Irish blood, outlining where Irish DNA comes from and who are the closest genetic relatives of the Irish in Europe. Of interest to anyone with Irish ancestry who wants to understand their genealogy.

Hair color is primarily genetic, and red hair is caused by mutations in the MC1R gene. The gene for red hair also causes an increased sensitivity to sunlight and a reduced sensitivity to anesthesia. Contrary to internet rumors, redheads are not going extinct! Famous redheads include Queen Elizabeth I and Malcolm X.

Earwigs have a fearsome image but aren't dangerous. They sometimes become garden pests. Natural control methods can be very helpful in dealing with the insects.

Inky cap mushrooms such as shaggy manes become a black, inky liquid in order to disperse their spores. Some contain coprine, which increases the unpleasant effects of alcohol intake.

Michael Faraday, the son of an 18th Century blacksmith, became one of the greatest scientists of his age. One of his discoveries transformed the world and changed the way we live forever.

Some chemicals in fungi can act as medicines for humans. Three of these chemicals are penicillin, lovastatin, and cyclosporine. Lentinan and eritadenine may also be medicinal.

Hydrochloric acid is made in the stomach and is a very helpful chemical. Too much or too little acid or acid in the wrong place can cause problems, however.

The Sunshine State has all sorts of over-sized bugs and creep-crawlies. This article looks at the biggest spiders in Florida.

The beautiful spirit bear has a white or cream coat and lives in the Great Bear Rainforest of British Columbia. It's an unusual form of the kermode bear, which is a subspecies of Ursus americanus.

The Ethiopian wolf lives in Africa at high elevations. It's the most endangered member of the dog family, or the Canidae. The animal faces some serious threats.

Goldfish are interesting fish that have some surprising features. The animals are popular pets. They are found in the wild, where they may become very large.

Dandelions have culinary benefits and also produce a latex that can be used to make rubber. This is important, since the supply of natural rubber is decreasing.

Although there are few Gouldian finches in the wild, there are many being raised by individuals, and you can see them in many zoos. This article will introduce the reader to these beautiful birds.

A look at the diversity of Arizona's Coconino National Forest and some of the wildlife that makes its home there, in the northern part of the state, including the San Francisco Peaks near Flagstaff

5 stupid arguments against evolution and why they drive me crazy.

Irises are beautiful flowers that have a wide variety of colours. Some are used to make orris root, which has a lovely scent but can cause an allergic response.

Working out the odds of an event occurring allows us to estimate the number of times that event will take place in future trials. Permutations/combinations are also an important part of the analysis.

Shoebill storks, or shoebills, have a huge and impressive bill. The animal's unusual features make it a unique bird. Its population has been classified in the "Vulnerable" category of the IUCN's Red List.

Dark matter and dark energy are still huge mysteries in astrophysics. Alternate theories exist to help explain them.

Jackfruit trees produce huge fruits. Cacao seeds are used to make cocoa, but the trees are in trouble. Jackfruit seed powder may be a good substitute for cocoa.

Galileo not only spotted new objects in the sky but also laid the groundwork for advancements in physics. What were they?

For those who have just gotten—or are just about to get—a PMR diagnosis, you may be wondering if there is a cure. Is the pain ever going to end? Here's the long answer to your question.

Snakehead fish are invasive species in North America. They are fierce predators and can breathe in air. They may be a serious threat to native wildlife.

The human skeleton has vital functions. It provides support and protection, allows us to move, makes blood cells, and stores fatty acids and minerals.

This guide explains everything you need to know about circles, including calculation of area, segment area, sector area, length of an arc, radians, sine and cosine.

Spiders are fascinating animals that help us by removing harmful insects from the environment. Spider silk is very strong and is potentially useful for humans.

The Himalayan blackberry is a beautiful plant in spring and summer. It produces delicious blackberries, but it's an invasive species and grows aggressively.

The ochre sea star is a colourful invertebrate that has been seriously affected by a wasting disease. The disorder causes the body to disintegrate into a goo as though it's melting.

Learn some facts about common songbirds of Pennsylvania and view pictures to help you identify and attract the birds in your backyard.

There are many endangered species, including the Siberian Tiger, elephants, leatherback sea turtles, snow leopards,

The resins that some trees secrete when they're wounded can be useful for humans. Some are used as perfumes or medicines. Others have preserved ancient life forms.

The Surinam toad has a highly flattened body. The skin on the female’s back absorbs her fertilized eggs. The youngsters break out of the skin when they are sufficiently mature.

Orangutans are endangered, mainly because their rainforest habitat is being replaced by oil palm plantations. We can help the animals in multiple ways.

The monkey puzzle tree is a very strange and interesting plant. It's native to South America but grows in parks and gardens in other areas as an introduced plant.

Solving triangles using Pythagoras's theorem, the cosine rule, the sine rule and various ways of calculating the area of a triangle.

The frilled shark is a strange, deep-sea fish with a wide head, a huge mouth, and a long, eel-like body. Its population size is unknown. The fish is caught as bycatch in some areas, which is a concern.

With billions of galaxies in the universe, there is a vast potential for Earth-like planets with intelligent life. But here are the reasons why we may never find it.

Bumble bees have surprisingly capable brains. They can play a simple version of soccer and pull a string to get a reward. They may even experience optimism.

Water has some properties that can make it a good refrigerant. It also possesses some undesirable properties that makes its application as a refrigerant very challenging and inefficient to implement.

What role does water play in life and what would happen if we were to lose it or it didn't exist? There are already parts of the world where we can see how life would change, if there were no water. This article explores it further.

Help monarch butterflies by planting milkweed, the food plant they need to survive!

Sickle cell disease is painful for sufferers and can sometimes be dangerous. Genome editing may one day correct the mutation that causes the disorder.

Clostridium perfringens is a bacterium that is a common cause of foodborne illness. It might also cause some cases of multiple sclerosis.

Marmots live in mountainous areas of British Columbia. They are social and very vocal animals that often form colonies. One species—the Vancouver Island Marmot—is critically endangered.

Serendipity is a happy and unexpected event that seems to occur by chance. It's often called a “lucky accident”. Serendipitous discoveries are important in science.

Ballistics is a branch of mechanics which deals with the motion of projectiles launched into the air or space. Solving these type of problems involves using Newton's equations of motion

Several animatronic dinosaur exhibits have been held at the PNE in Vancouver. This article shows photos of the latest one and includes facts about the real animals.

Bacteria have some amazing abilities. They can live in extreme habitats, produce light or electricity, communicate with each other, and act as predators and magnets.

The gharial is a critically-endangered relative of the crocodile. It lives in and next to rivers in India and Nepal. The animal has some unusual and interesting features.

The forest elephant is in trouble. The loss of the species could increase the carbon dioxide level in the atmosphere, which in turn could worsen climate change.

Learn what wilds birds eat in the summer and winter and how they survive so you can stock appropriate foods in your feeder.

Chloroform can act an anesthetic, but it’s toxic and causes serious health problems. There are ways to limit our exposure to the chloroform in the environment.

The uses of math for the layperson are essentially endless. No matter whether you are a struggling student, a homeowner, or someone simply trying to lose weight, math is the universal language that has an something to offer everyone.

This article provides a technique for performing division using the abacus.

Find out how Douglas “Wrong Way” Corrigan made history in 1938 by accidently crossing the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Ireland in a plane deemed unsafe for the flight.

Earwax is made by the lining of the ear canal and has important functions. An adequate amount of wax is necessary, but too much can lead to impaction and pain.

Lichens are interesting organisms that are important in their environment and useful for humans. Some produce chemicals that are potentially dangerous for us, however.

Many people struggle to tell these two reptiles apart, but it isn't that difficult when you know what to look for. What is the difference between alligators and crocodiles? Well, there are essentially 8 main ways to tell them apart...

Puffins are most people’s favourite sea bird, and Scotland has plenty of great places to view them. Whether you are a visitor or native to Scotland, this article shows you where to go. And it’s filled with cute photos!

Birds are among the most beautiful creatures on Earth. They're also some of the weirdest! Check out these crazy-but-true interesting and fun facts about our feathered friends...you'll be amazed!

The swell shark and the chain catshark produce beautiful patterns of light in a process called biofluorescence. The light emission may have important functions.

The common raven is an intelligent and interesting bird that plays an important role in folklore. The bird is found in many countries and habitats.

This article explores the traits and characteristics of the infamous Boomslang; one of Africa's most venomous snakes.

Sardines and herring are nutritious foods. The behaviour of the living fish is interesting to study. They live in groups and communicate with their companions.