Read the latest articles from Popular Science (Page 8)

A screen filled with hundreds of randomly arranged dots. When animated, an optical illusion can reveal hidden words.
AI

This font uses an optical illusion to hide from AI

For now.

The broken circuit breaker switch that nearly ended Apollo 11 (below) and the pen that saved the crew and the mission.
Space

Pen that saved the Apollo 11 astronauts sells for over $800K at auction

Sotheby’s Space Exploration auction features the life-saving instrument, a Snoopy pin, space-flown flags, and more.

two young eagles with dark feathers stand on the branch of a pine tree
Birds

How much longer will eaglets Sandy and Luna stay on the nest?

Young eagles typically fledge after 10 to 14 weeks.

A group of meerkats standing together in the face of an outside threat.
Wildlife

How wild animals prepare for violence just like humans

Social animals have anticipatory tactics ahead of conflict—including killing their rivals' young.

Keith Thomas, who has lived with paralysis since a diving accident in 2020, is now able to grasp, lift and drink from a cup on his own. After joining a clinical trial at Northwell Health’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research that uses brain implants and artificial intelligence to bypass his injury and reconnect his brain with healthy parts of his spinal cord, Thomas has continuously improved, restoring lasting movement and feeling in his arm and hand.
Science

After revolutionary brain-computer implant, man with paralysis can feed himself

'We’re not just bypassing the injury, we’re actually rewiring the nervous system.'

Coway air purifiers on sale on a space background.
Home

Coway will give you a free $150 air purifier if you buy one before July 24

Six Airmega purifiers qualify for a free Airmega Aim through July 24, which is just in time for smokey season.

Solid State Logic SSL 1 audio interface review on a table with other recording equipement.
Audio

Solid State Logic SSL 1 audio interface review: A pro studio sound for $159

If you record one mic or one guitar at a time and want SSL's preamp without the bulk, the SSL 1 is an easy call.

lightning bolts across the sky at sunset, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
Weather

Why is thunder so dang loud?

It's the atmosphere trying to get back into place.

Miami, UNITED STATES: A 12-foot (3.65m) Burmese python that was captured in the backyard of a home slithers on the ground at its new home at the A.D. Barnes Park 10 October 2005, in south Miami, FL. The snake was captured 09 October and is the prime suspect in the disappearance of a 15-pound (6.8kg) cat that lived at the residence. AFP PHOTO/Robert SULLIVAN (Photo credit should read ROBERT SULLIVAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Land

Florida man will trade pizza for pythons

Wildman’s Pizza, Pasta, and Python is doing its part to combat the invasive species.

Side by side photo of meteorite impact hole in house roof, and an image of the meteorite fragment
Deep Space

A meteorite crashed into a New Jersey home in 2024. Inside it were life’s building blocks.

The rare space rock shows that asteroids may have helped jumpstart life on Earth.

paleontologists dig in rock for dinosaur bones
Biology

A T. rex bit a duck-billed dino and we can still see the teeth marks

The herbivore likely didn't stand a chance.

a large spotted fish called a whale shark swims with its mouth open
Ocean

Massive whale shark just spotted in Florida

The gentle giants are the world's largest fish—and love the tropics.

Plate of sliced mushrooms.
The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week

We don’t actually know who pulled the greatest con in mushroom history 

Plus dogs hunting spotted lanternflies and other weird things we learned this week.

Two dragons fly in the sky above water.
Ask Us Anything

Could Sheepstealer and other ‘House of the Dragon’ dragons actually fly?

A dragon consultant weighs in on Westeros physics.

Baseball batter readying as pitcher throws ball at him
Robots

Korea’s robot umpires reduce favorable calls for star players

After two seasons, the Automated Ball-Strike system appears to be working.

a large steam train with a crowd of people surrounding it
Engineering

How to track ‘Big Boy,’ the world’s biggest steam locomotive

The 1.2 million-pound train still has a few stops left on its first coast-to-coast tour.

Representative preflight, in-flight, and postflight hand radiographs. Radiographs of the hand were acquired (A) preflight by a crewmember, (B) in-flight on day 1 after launch (L+1) by a crewmember, and (C) postflight by a non-crew operator using the same imaging protocol. Credit: Radiological Society of North America (RSNA)
Space X

Astronauts take first X-rays in space

A SpaceX crew scanned a hand and other body parts during a recent mission.

a microscope image of a parasite. it is round and red
Food Safety

What to know about the rise in cyclosporiasis cases

A public health expert reflects on contracting the illness in 2018.

A crow picks up a cigarette end on the parking of Le Puy du Fou, in Les Epesses, western France on August 14, 2018. - Six crows specially trained to pick up cigarette ends and rubbish were put to work last week at a French historical theme park. (Photo by SEBASTIEN SALOM GOMIS / AFP) (Photo credit should read SEBASTIEN SALOM GOMIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Pollution

No, crows aren’t cleaning up cigarette butts in Sweden

At least, not anymore.

Japanese man dressed in soccer swag cries in close up after team loses.
Mental Health

4 ways being a soccer fan messes with your body

From heart stress to an increased libido.