A pigeon’s compass may sit in its liver
How a homing pigeon finds its way home across hundreds of unfamiliar miles has puzzled scientists for more than a century. A surprising new study…
Author: The Smart Reader Staff
Briefs and quick reads selected and edited by The Smart Reader's editorial team.
Why plain water isn’t always the best drink in the heat
For workers sweating through a shift outdoors or in a hot plant, the most surprising hydration advice is that plain water is not the drink…
Maintain and Improve Appearance of Old Carpeting
Generally, unless your old carpeting is extremely damaged, you can use some tricks to make it look better for a year or two until you can afford to replace it.
The fog that saved the revolution
Two hundred fifty years ago this month, the American Revolution nearly ended in the span of a few days. In late August 1776, General George Washington’s…
A pigeon’s compass may sit in its liver
How a homing pigeon finds its way home across hundreds of unfamiliar miles has puzzled scientists for more than a century. A surprising new study points…
A frog rode the salad to the store
Talk about farm fresh. A shopper in Australia opened a bag of grocery-store salad in May and found an unexpected extra ingredient — a live frog, tucked…
Signed in August, not July
Americans celebrate the Declaration of Independence on July 4. But according to the National Archives, most of the 56 delegates did not sign the famous…
Your Wi-Fi may learn to recognize you
Here is an unsettling thought for the connected home: the same Wi-Fi signals that carry your video calls may also be able to tell who is standing in the…
What a kitchen fire spray can and can’t do
The little aerosol fire spray in the kitchen drawer may not last as long as homeowners expect. According to Consumer Reports, the cans carry only about a…
How to control your lights with your voice
You get up in the middle of the night, still half asleep. The room is completely dark. Now where is the lamp? You can call forth light. A smart plug or a…