Popular Science. Demystifying the worlds of science and technology since 1872.

Yes, ginger ale really does taste better on a plane. Here’s why.
Plus other weird things we learned this week.

Rachel Feltman
At Popular Science, we report and write dozens stories every week. And while a lot of the fun facts we stumble across make it into our articles, there are lots of other weird facts that we just keep around the office. So we figured, why not share those with you? Welcome to The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week.
POPULAR SCIENCE VIDEOS
Popular Science on YouTube is a laboratory of stories from the future, past, and present. It’s like a time travel learning machine—in video form.

Extremely rare ‘Einstein ring’ discovered close to Earth
The Euclid space telescope’s findings support a cosmic phenomenon first predicted by Albert Einstein.

Fake papers are contaminating the world’s scientific literature
They’re fueling a corrupt industry and slowing legitimate lifesaving medical research.

How to use tasks and reminders inside ChatGPT
The AI chatbot wants to be a proper digital assistant.

The extinction loop
Libertarian fantasies thrive on ecological collapse, profiting from the very destruction they helped to accelerate.

How to turn off Apple Intelligence on all your Apple devices
AI isn’t for everyone—and you don’t have to use it.

Smugglers try to disguise giant beetles as Japanese snacks, unsuccessfully
The black market bug haul totaled $1,480.

This AI chip is the size of a grain of salt
The device can read light data inside fiber optic wires.

Hunting for Burmese pythons is best done in the dark
The invasive species is wreaking havoc on ‘one of the world’s most unique ecosystems.’

Kelp farming isn’t as green as it seems
Growing kelp may appear like a simple strategy for removing atmospheric carbon, but the practice has many pitfalls.
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