How Do Giraffes Have Such Long Necks?

Since the early days of space exploration, some of NASA's greatest have pulled some great pranks. Learn about our favorites, from a smuggled sandwich to a space gorilla, in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://science.howstuffworks.com/ridiculous-history-5-n ... Show More

When you shiver, your fingers and toes go numb, or you get goosebumps in the cold, that's actually your body trying to keep you warm. Learn how it works -- and how you habituate to chilly temperatures over time -- in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://heal ... Show More

The War of 1812 between the U.S. and the British Empire ended in a stalemate, but it established the U.S. as an independent nation and economic power -- and allowed Americans to colonize the West. Learn more in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://history.ho ... Show More

<p>Even though giraffes are one of the most recognizable animals on the planet, it wasn't until the 21st century that biology really set about studying them. They've found giraffes are even more amazing than they appear.</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="ht ... Show More

It sounds like the start of a bad joke: How do you move eight giraffes—including a newborn calf—off an island in Africa’s Western Rift Valley? Answer: It isn’t easy, and it involves a boat, blindfolds, and earmuffs. We follow conservationist David O’Connor on an epic (and awkward ... Show More

What connects the Chinese government, giraffes in Namibia, and tech ? We bring you the strange tale of how one social media message went viral. Also in this edition of Tech Life, Shiona McCallum meets a smart robotic guide dog. And bringing cyber-security to girls in Africa - mee ... Show More

When one of our listeners wrote in with an animal sound mystery (What sound does a giraffe make?) we set out to find an answer. We came back with lots of other fascinating animal sounds, so we decided it was time for an all-animal mystery sound extravaganza! Open up your ears and ... Show More

<p>Giant brains! Communication mysteries! Infamous sensuality! Dolphins are here to blow your relatively tiny mind with their squeaks, clicks, cliques, history, lore, zany evolutionary path, psychedelic experiences, and so much more. Learn why some dolphins are pink, why NASA pou ... Show More

00:33 A headbashing relative gives insights into giraffe evolutionHow the giraffe got its long neck is a longstanding question in science. One possibility is that giraffes evolved longer necks for sexual competition, with males engaging in violent neck-swinging fights. Now, a tea ... Show More

<p>A hardware revolution in recording devices and a software revolution in artificial intelligence has convinced some scientists that humans will eventually be able to ‘translate’ animal and even plant sounds into human language. But what would be the consequences of humans learn ... Show More

<p>Subscribe now to the FT's Tech Tonic podcast: Some scientists believe that rapid advances in artificial intelligence may also hold the key to decoding animal sounds, allowing us to ‘translate’ them into human language. In a new season of Tech Tonic, FT innovation editor John T ... Show More