How would you deal with sewage waste pollution? Here in Missoula, the answer was.... poplar trees. Here's the weird reason that these poplar trees are some of nature's best cleaners, and why our hometown heroes might not be so awesome...

Are you old enough for your childhood to be filled with the threat of acid rain? Are you now thinking "Wait, why haven't I heard about the threat of acid rain in forever?". Well it's because scientists and policymakers around the...

Plant-based meat alternatives have come a long way, but scientists continue to look for sources of protein that will improve on them. Here are five of the most promising plants being researched. <b<br/>r/>

Hosted by: Stefan Chin (he/him)

We've been coming up with games to pass the time for just about as long as we've had writing, but sadly, not all of our oldest board games come with the rule books intact. Here's a few of the oldest board games ever from, from Patolli...

On top of a volcano in Indonesia, there are three lakes. But these three neighbors couldn't be more different, since each of them is a different vivid hue. Let's talk about the weird chemistry atop Keli Mutu Volcano and the three...

After Albert Einstein died, researchers studied his brain exhaustively, trying to find the source of his genius. Here are their findings. <b<br/>r/>

Hosted by: Stefan Chin (he/him)

You may have heard some pretty bold claims about xylitol, a sugar substitute that's in a lot of things. And while it's definitely bad for dogs, it's great for people, and there's a lot of research out there about some surprising ways...

Bismuth crystals aren't just pretty to look at. If you can get pieces thin enough, they display something called the Anomalous Hall Effect. Physicists aren't entirely sure how they manage to do that, but that doesn't stop them from...

The Appalachian Mountains are some of the oldest geological features on earth. And they also hold fossils that tell us about some of the very earliest life forms that we'll ever manage to see in the fossil record. So how did these...

Archaeology isn't exactly easy, so it's pretty impressive how often we can figure things out about people that aren't around anymore. But that's not always possible, and some mysteries leave archaeologists puzzled for centuries. From...

If you have ambitions to start exercising or get the most out of your exercise routine, there are a lot of flashy tricks promising to help you. But not all of them are supported by science. Do ice baths help? Stretching? Heat? This...

Look, we all think platypuses are weird. Just one look at these beaver-tailed, egg-laying, duck-billed weirdos makes you wonder how we're even both mammals. But I have news for you - when it comes to mammal lifestyles, monotremes...

From fake Etruscan clay statues to reburied Japanese Stone Age tools; from a prank that spiraled out of control to a simple case of black market greed, here are the stories of four artifact forgeries.



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It's really rare to find fossils, which means that when they're lost again after someone dug them up, it really hurts. These are a few of the most famous fossils that went missing after someone found them, and what researchers can...

Chainmail might be known best as the fashion choice of certain medieval warriors, but that doesn't mean it's a relic of the past. Modern chainmail can be both practical and fashionable. And thanks to one team of scientists, we now have...

The Voynich manuscript is a subject of fascination with its mysterious drawings of plants, people, and stars, as well as its indecipherable text. But rather than hiding ancient secrets, this book might be a medieval fraud, created by...

In your travels on the Internet, you might've seen some strange names and even stranger claims about supplements. From ashwagandha to valerian root, l-lysine to vitamin D, here's just a few of the most hyped supplements and whether or...

In March 2025, astronomers announced the "largest cosmic structure discovered to date". They called it Quipu. And Quipu is just the latest entry in a list of structures that are too big for cosmologists to explain without revisiting...

Great white sharks have nothing on these terrifying jaws. Some marine animals have adaptations that turn their jaws into harpoons, fishing nets, claw machines, and more.<b<br/>r/>

Hosted by: Savannah Geary (they/them)

Have you ever wondered where giant beasties of folklore, like the chupacabra, came from? Not every mythological creature has a scientific explanation, but here are a few that might.<b<br/>r/>

Hosted by: Reid Reimers (he/him)

Do you take migraine medications like gepants, triptans, or monoclonal antibodies? How well do they work for you? Here's why migraine meds don't work for everyone, and what progress science still needs to make.



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We've all heard of the Rosetta Stone, either the language-learning software or the stone itself. But how much do you really know about it? Let's get into the full history of this icon of ancient Egypt, what we learned from...

This month's Rocks Box is the perfect combo of beauty and brains. Sodalite is a gorgeous blue mineral that has a superpower - its tiny pores can trap all kinds of molecules, making it the perfect sieve for everything from industrial...

It's been said that your body contains billions of atoms from every famous person who ever lived. But is that true? And how do we know?<b<br/>r/>

Hosted by: Savannah Geary (they/them)