Lifestyle

These slang terms will have you speaking like a trucker in no time. mladenbalinovac/iStock via Getty Images There's a lot the average driver doesn't know about the trucks they pass on the highway. For instance, the spikes on truck wheels are often made of plastic, and the word semi doesn't indicate half a vehicle. But one of the most...

Humans are very good at inventing commodities, and we’ve been at it for a long time. See that pebble over there? Well, that’s a better pebble than all these others, and if you give me something in exchange for it, I’ll let you take ownership. It’ll be your pebble, forever. And soon there will be a market in...

I sometimes worry that many who would enjoy a scientific career are put off by a narrow and outdated conception of what’s involved. The word “scientist” still conjures up an unworldly image of an Einstein lookalike (male and elderly) or else a youthful geek. There’s still too little racial and gender diversity among scientists. But there’s a huge...

When we think about how science is distorted, we usually think about concepts that have ample currency in public discourse, such as pseudoscience and junk science. Practices like astrology and homeopathy come wrapped in scientific concepts and jargon that can’t meet the methodological requirements of actual sciences. During the COVID-19 pandemic, pseudoscience has had a field day. Bleach,...

Star Wars fans have a new reason to rejoice—Han Solo stans, maybe not so much—courtesy of the latest addition to Hasbro's Nerf line: a limited-edition replica of Boba Fett's iconic blaster. As Nerdist reports, the EE-3 blaster toy (which the bounty hunter has used to strike terror in the hearts of smugglers and scalawags alike since 1980's The...

Pizza Hut found a way to get kids reading with two words: free pizza. Courtesy of Pizza Hut You may think Pizza Hut’s greatest achievement was the Personal Pan Pizza. And that’s totally valid. But the pie people also had a lot to do with creating a generation of book lovers. Launched in 1985, the Pizza Hut BOOK...

Bea Arthur once sought out Judge Judy to dispense justice. Brian Rasic/Getty Images Beginning with The People’s Court in the 1980s, television viewers have grown accustomed to having a portion of daytime programming devoted to the arbitration of personal and professional grievances filed in small claims court. Whether it’s Judge Joseph Wapner, Judge Judy Scheindlin, or, somewhat inexplicably,...

'The One.' Courtesy of TopTenRealEstateDeals.com If the tiny house trend isn’t your thing, you can always go in the opposite direction. After 10 years of construction and careful planning, the Los Angeles mega-mansion known as “The One” is finally on the market. But even though it’s listed for $295 million, it’s not quite move-in ready. The 105,000-square-foot home—said...

The Forgotten Generation hasn't forgotten this. kutaytanir/iStock via Getty Images Baby Boomers got affordable housing; Millennials got a shade of pink; and Generation X, sandwiched between the two, got forgotten. Gen X’s tendency to fly under the radar while its neighboring age ranges grab headlines engendered its nickname: the “Forgotten Generation.” But the Illinois State Museum is currently...

Ben Affleck at the Batman v Superman premiere. Hector Vivas/LatinContent via Getty Images Ben Affleck played Batman in both Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, and while his performance earned some plaudits, he never seemed completely comfortable in the role. The actor recently went into detail on his decision to walk away from the character...