It's Good/Fun to Know

It’s Fun to Know: Chimpanzee Sympathy
by ETR (07/01/2008)

We often comfort people who are under stress by putting our arms around them and giving them a hug. According to recent research from scientists at Liverpool John Moores University, chimpanzees do the same thing.

Word to the Wise: Propitiate
by ETR (07/01/2008)

To "propitiate" (pro-PISH-ee-ate) - from the Latin for "favorable" - is to appease.

It’s Good to Know: A Lost Profession
by ETR (06/30/2008)

Professional letter writers have long provided a way for illiterate people who have moved from villages in rural India to the country's big cities to keep in touch with their families.

It’s Fun to Know: Whale Milk
by ETR (06/28/2008)

Newborn whales (calves) feast on their mothers' milk after they're born, just like every mammal does

It’s Good to Know: Buying Real Estate in Canada
by ETR (06/27/2008)

The Canadian real estate market isn't just for Canadians. Americans may wish to find shelter from the faltering housing market in the U.S. by making some Canadian investments. But first, there are some things you need to know.

It’s Fun to Know: Space Station Breakthroughs, Part 3
by ETR (06/26/2008)

We've told you about two rather peculiar experiments being overseen by Japanese astronauts at the International Space Station: the planned launch of a paper airplane into Earth's atmosphere and the successful flight of a boomerang inside the station. Well, the Japanese have now topped themselves.

It’s Good to Know: Self-Repairing Aircraft
by ETR (06/25/2008)

A new material being developed by scientists at Bristol University in England will immediately fix that damage by itself.

It’s Fun to Know: Eco Bombs
by ETR (06/24/2008)

Researchers are studying alternatives to TNT and other conventional explosives that would be more powerful and safer to use.

It’s Good to Know: The Hot-Pepper Pain Killer
by ETR (06/23/2008)

The days of drooling for hours after a visit to the dentist could become a thing of the past.

t’s Fun to Know: The Largest Eyes in the World
by ETR (06/21/2008)

New Zealand scientists have discovered what are believed to be the largest eyes found on any animal in the world. The peepers in question measure nearly 11 inches in diameter and belong to a colossal squid, a species first discovered in 2003.

It’s Good to Know: The Ultra-Portable Water Purifier
by ETR (06/20/2008)

A Danish company has produced a water filter that removes 99 percent of water-borne pathogens.

It’s Fun to Know: High-Tech Tombstones
by ETR (06/19/2008)

Conventional tombstones are boring, something that one Japanese company is aiming to change.

It’s Good to Know: The Miracle Fruit
by ETR (06/18/2008)

ETR health experts are firm on this point: Sugar is seriously bad for you. But what if you've got a sweet tooth? Maybe the miracle fruit can help. This tiny red berry - Synsepalum dulcificum - can transform the way other foods taste.

It’s Fun to Know: The Frog Without Lungs
by ETR (06/17/2008)

Researchers from the National University of Singapore working in Indonesia have found a frog species without lungs that breathes through its skin. Only a few species of salamander are known to share this trait.

It’s Good to Know: A Cure for Jet Lag
by ETR (06/16/2008)

Waking up at 3 a.m., falling asleep in the middle afternoon... jet lag can be a real hassle when you're starting out on a vacation or business trip.

It’s Fun to Know: Will the World End in 2012?
by ETR (06/14/2008)

The imminent end of the world has been predicted... well, probably since the first humans set foot on the planet. The date now in vogue with some New Age types is December 12, 2012. This coincides with the end of the current cycle of the ancient Mayan calendar, and also marks the day when the sun will be aligned with the exact center of the Milky Way galaxy for the first time in 26,000 years.

It’s Good to Know: The Holographic DVD
by ETR (06/13/2008)

A new type of digital storage - based on holographic technology - will make it possible to store up to 110 DVDs, or a total of 1 terabyte of any sort of digital file, on a single disk.

It’s Fun to Know: More Groundbreaking Research at the International Space Station
by ETR (06/12/2008)

Do boomerangs work in low gravity?

It’s Good to Know: The Latest Hacking Technology
by ETR (06/11/2008)

Anti-virus software, firewalls, spyware blockers. Our computers are full of features to stop hackers from stealing our confidential data. But computer security researchers have recently found a new way to bypass all that security.

Word to the Wise: Potemkin village
by ETR (06/10/2008)

A "Potemkin village" (puh-TEM-kin VIL-uj) is a false front. The word is derived from the elaborate fake villages that Russian general Grigori Potemkin purportedly had built to impress Catherine the Great when she toured the Crimea in 1787.

It’s Fun to Know: The World’s Most-Translated Authors
by ETR (06/10/2008)

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) maintains a list of the world's most-translated authors. The current top 10, with works that have been translated from and into English and hundreds of other languages and dialects, are:

It’s Good to Know: Deadly Distracted Drivers
by ETR (06/09/2008)

Cell phones get a lot of attention when it comes to crashes caused by distracted drivers.

It’s Fun to Know: The Fish That Lives in a Tree
by ETR (06/07/2008)

Scientists have recently discovered a species of fish that can live inside trees for several months at a time.

It’s Good to Know: Setting Up Multiple Homepages
by ETR (06/06/2008)

When you fire up your Internet browser, there are probably a few sites you always visit before you do anything else. So why not set all those sites as homepages? With tabbed browsers like Firefox and Internet Explorer 7, you can.

It’s Fun to Know: What’s Your Real Name?
by Suzanne Richardson (06/05/2008)

Lots of nicknames seem unrelated to their origins. You may know some of the more common ones - Bob for Robert and Jim for James. Here are a few less-well-known examples:

It’s Good to Know: Your Master Information Document
by ETR (06/04/2008)

If you died tomorrow, would your family be able to put your affairs - especially your finances - in order?

It’s Fun to Know: How a Fly Lands on the Ceiling
by ETR (06/03/2008)

So if it's flying around the room right side up, just how does a fly land on the ceiling?

It’s Good to Know: How to Find a Lost Cellphone
by ETR (06/02/2008)

It’s Fun to Know: The Ultimate Hometown Crowd
by ETR (05/31/2008)

As part of its preparations for the upcoming Summer Olympics, China is training more than 200,000 of its citizens to act as official cheerleaders throughout the games.

It’s Good to Know: Man-Made Thunderbolts
by ETR (05/30/2008)

A group of French and German engineers are one step closer to creating lightning on command.
« Older Entries Newer Entries »

Return to the Article Directory