Popular Science

popsci.comThe 2026 Mama Bear Award goes to a black bear with a mulletOsso fought off another bear named Scuba Sue to win this year’s award from the USDA Forest Service.

22m

Weird! "Black Bear Mullet" was the name of our psychobilly band back in college www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comIn 1871, this nightmarish 'Creeping Baby Doll' was all the rageIt's an American Ghoul Doll, if you will.

NOPE. Nice try, ghost doll. We're not about to get Conjuring'ed at THIS publication. Take your antics somewhere else! www.popsci.com/technology/c...

Popular Science reposted

Dan Baldassarre

@evornithology.bsky.social

Gave some comments to @popsci.com for a fun piece on everyone's favorite little blood-sucker, the Vampire Finch 🧛 www.popsci.com/science/vamp...

popsci.comReal-life vampire birds hunt and drink blood in remote EcuadorMove over, Hitchcock.

popsci.comBat Beauty Contest returns October 24Who will take ‘Hoary Potter’s’ crown?

All bats are beautiful, if you ask us www.popsci.com/environment/...

Popular Science reposted

popsci.comFor the first time, artificial intelligence is a top 10 fear in the U.S.Many Americans are more scared of AI than a loved one getting sick.

great job, everyone www.popsci.com/health/top-1...

popsci.comMonarch butterfly saved after landing in refried beansCornstarch to the rescue.

Roll that beautiful butterfly bean footage www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comAncient Romans thought drinking gladiator blood could cure epilepsyBut 'noble' blood from the decapitated could work in a pinch.

oh. *puts down goblet* ...it doesn't? www.popsci.com/health/ancie...

popsci.comBear #89 (Backpack) wins Fat Bear Week 2026Backpack defeated Bear #910 to take the title.

ALL HAIL KING BACKPACK FIRST OF HIS NAME TOP RUMP IN THE GAME www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comWalker and his big booty fight for Fat Bear Week gloryBear #151 was a playful, chill bear. This year, things changed at the Brooks River.

Popular Science is dedicated to keeping you informed about the latest advancements across technology, physics, and engineering. Also bear butts. Seriously. Just LOOK at dat thing. www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comMama Bear #132 has one of Fat Bear Week's most compelling storiesMother, protector, survivor, and a big-bellied girl. The mother and cubs section of the bracket is competitive this year.

21 Sept

Live every week like it's Fat Bear Week. www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comWhy airplanes leave white streaks in the skyContrails are a problem, but not how you might think.

18 Sept

Oh boy. Here we go again. www.popsci.com/science/airp...

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

RFK Jr: "We are also looking at chemtrails"

popsci.comCould a whale really swallow a human? We asked a biologist.The new thriller ‘Whalefall’ depicts a diver trapped inside of a sperm whale.

16 Sept

We are pleased to report that the nightmare is greatly exaggerated. In all likelihood, you'd die almost instantly! 🤗 www.popsci.com/science/coul...

popsci.comWorld War II shell detonated on British Coast'These items can be so dangerous.'

15 Sept

This is the content we crave. www.popsci.com/technology/w...

popsci.comWhy do dogs' legs shake during pets? It's not because they like it.That twitchy leg is a signal from your dog's nervous system.

14 Sept

We hate to ruin one of life's little pleasures. Apologies. We're only doing this because we love your dog. www.popsci.com/environment/...

Popular Science reposted

popsci.comMax Brooks reflects on 20 years of 'World War Z'The author and and professional threat analyst discusses the novel's eerie COVID-19 parallels, science literacy, and more.

10 Sept

this week marks the 20th anniversary of World War Z so i chatted with *the* Max Brooks about it for @popsci.com good thing nothing has happened since 2006 that made his novel grimly prophetic in retrospect! www.popsci.com/science/max-...

popsci.comYou might be eating too much proteinProteinmaxxing isn't always healthier, especially as we age.

10 Sept

They were too busy asking if they *could* make protein Doritos but they never paused to ask if they *should* God help us all. www.popsci.com/health/too-m...

popsci.comRestroom Archive gives public bathrooms their dueThe unique corner of the internet features 3D scans of nearly 100 lavatories from around the world.

3 Sept

Archivists, man. www.popsci.com/science/rest...

popsci.comRaccoon rescued after sticking its head in a Cape Cod drain grateIt takes a village to save a trapped trash panda.

1 Sept

Who can't relate? www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comSeptember Stargazing: Summer’s official end, a big ol’ moon, and a chance to see NeptuneOur solar system’s most far-flung planet will only be 2.68 billion miles away.

31 Aug

We got three words for your September sky calendar: Big Ol' Moon www.popsci.com/science/star...

popsci.comButterfly wing crystals inspire new eco-friendly glitterWhat better way to honor Dolly Parton?

26 Aug

The universe works in mysterious ways... www.popsci.com/science/doll...

popsci.comHow gross is it to leave a toothbrush exposed in the bathroom?Toilet plumes are real, but your toothbrush is probably fine.

24 Aug

Toothbrush Discourse: Activated www.popsci.com/health/how-g...

popsci.comNew snake species named in honor of Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash‘Lielaphis slashi’ is a nonvenomous groundsnake discovered in the forests of New Guinea

21 Aug

C'mon. Sssslash was right there. www.popsci.com/environment/...

Popular Science reposted

popsci.comNASA shares first images of SpaceX moon crash siteThe Falcon 9 upper stage created a 60-foot-wide crater on the moon on August 5.

20 Aug

not sure if a company capable of vandalizing the moon with zero consequence is the sign of a healthy society, but here we are www.popsci.com/science/spac...

popsci.comOldest known ‘Odyssey’ fragment on display in New York CityWatch Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ in movie theaters, then go read a portion of Homer's ‘Odyssey’ at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

19 Aug

As Nolan intended...? www.popsci.com/science/olde...

popsci.comPutting tiny backpacks on butterflies—for scienceWith the Project Monarch App, users can track their 3,000-mile-long migration.

13 Aug

Look, somebody's gotta do it. www.popsci.com/environment/...

12 Aug

Hey, Bluesky! Did you know you can get a daily newsletter directly in your email inbox featuring all your beloved Popular Science content? It's true! Y'know, in case the staffer who volunteered to run this account gets lazy and fails to post stories for a couple days. www.popsci.com/email-signup/

popsci.comAstronomers discover the existence of a ‘black hole star’The never-before-seen objects are gargantuan, immensely bright, and ancient.

12 Aug

Chris Cornell tried to tell y'all

Godspeed You! BOOsky Emperor@andrewpaul.bsky.social

*don't do it don't do it don't do it* *hnngnhhhhh* 🎵BLACK HOLE STAAAAR WON'T YOU COME AND WAAAASH AWAYYY TH www.popsci.com/science/blac...

popsci.comJackie the bald eagle dead at 14Jackie the bald eagle died Monday, August 10. Her life was documented through wildlife cameras in California's Big Bear Valley.

11 Aug

RIP, girl. 🦅 www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comPaul Blart Mall Cop's revenge: How dorky Segways power today’s scootersThe device that was supposed to revolutionize was both 'too ambitious and not ambitious enough.’

10 Aug

You all spurned the idea of Paul Blart: Mall Cop at the time... But who's laughing now, huh?? www.popsci.com/technology/s...

popsci.com5 gnarly plants in the Okefenokee Swamp, from digestive slime to Earth's fastest predatorThe newly named UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to 620 plant species.

31 July

Give us your best Shrek 'Stay out of my swamp' impressions. Annnnd GO www.popsci.com/environment/...

Popular Science reposted

UMD Science

@umdscience.bsky.social

29 July

A team of astronomers identified an "orphan" #BlackHole lighting up as it devoured a star on the outskirts of a faraway galaxy. Astronomy postdoc Robert Stein spoke with @popsci.com about the #UMD / #NASA team's findings ⤵️ 🔭

popsci.comSuper rare black hole devours unlucky starSimilar black holes are usually found at the center of a galaxy. This one is wandering the cosmos.

Popular Science reposted

popsci.comStrait of Hormuz ship bottleneck could fuel invasive species nightmareHundreds of ships currently sitting in the Strait have untold organisms in their hulls.

29 July

this is wild and totally obvious once you think about it, but almost no one is considering this: all those ships struck in the Strait of Hormuz are invasive species powder kegs www.popsci.com/environment/...

Popular Science reposted

Dr. Thing Learner

@drthinglearner.bsky.social

29 July

I wrote an article about atomic grapefruits for @popsci.com and you can read it here: www.popsci.com/health/radia... Learn what red grapefruits and the Incredible Hulk have in common! #scicomm #atomic #science #food #fruit

popsci.comRadiation fruit: How 1950s 'gamma gardens' created today's grapefruitBut don't worry: Grapefruits can't hurt you.

popsci.comBreakthrough process 3D prints contact lenses in 20 minutesThe new method could create soft contacts for those with irregular cornea shapes, without several trips to the eye doctor.

28 July

Our eyes are still watering after reading this headline, though. www.popsci.com/technology/3...

popsci.comHow do garbage trucks work?Behind every trash day is a powerful, sophisticated machine.

28 July

Growing up is realizing the childhood insult 'your dad is a garbage man!' would actually be cool as hell if true. www.popsci.com/science/how-...

popsci.comNo, cruise ships aren't floating petri dishesBut don't go licking the railings.

24 July

It's not as bad as you might think... but y'all go first. We'll stay ashore for this one. www.popsci.com/science/what...

popsci.comWhy 1960s technology makes seeing 'The Odyssey' in 70mm IMAX so difficultChristopher Nolan’s new movie uses cutting-edge special effects, but the film tech is practically ancient.

23 July

*whispers* as Nolan intended--- *reduced to atoms by Ludwig Göransson score* www.popsci.com/technology/t...

popsci.comJimothy the raccoon has a rare spinal condition. Here’s what that means.The internet's favorite raccoon has become a symbol of resilience in Seattle. Here's what his condition might mean for his future in the wild.

21 July

You want Jimothy content? We got Jimothy content, baby! www.popsci.com/science/what...

popsci.comChiseled Egyptian princesses knew their way around weaponsBefore they were mummies, four royal sisters wielded the daggers, bows, and arrows 4,000 years ago.

17 July

B-b-but the trillionaire said this was historically impossible! www.popsci.com/science/egyp...

popsci.comFlorida man will trade pizza for pythonsWildman’s Pizza, Pasta, and Python is doing its part to combat the invasive species.

17 July

Thank you for your service, sir. www.popsci.com/environment/...

popsci.comThe dos and don'ts of removing a tickDon't wait to act. And don't pull out a match.

14 July

'Tis the season, after all... www.popsci.com/diy/best-way...