What are the advantages and disadvantages of self-driving cars? Can autonomous cars completely replace conventional ones in the future? Experts think that self-driving cars will be more reliable than a human driver, and the number of accidents will reduce by about 90%. Also, in big cities, traffic jams will disappear when self-driving vehicles go out on the roads. By the way, self-driving cars become more reliable with each passing month — if not every day. A few years ago they couldn't stop or notice an object in the rain, but now they can "see" and move even during snowfall. It seems that self-driving cars will drive around the city perfectly with such abilities. And that's the main issue...

If you've ever lost the key to your house, you know how much trouble you have to go through to open the door again. But some doors in the world aren't meant to be opened at all because they're hiding some mysteries behind them! The famous Taj Mahal in India, for example, has a lot of doors that are always closed. Experts think that if someone opened these doors after they've been closed for so long, it'd release carbon monoxide, which could lead to the appearance of cracks in the minarets of the Taj Mahal. Find out more about these and other mysterious doors around the world!

The Middle Kingdom. The Red Dragon. The Sleeping Giant. Steeped in history, legends, and mystery for many – it’s everything you never knew about China! Even if you have been to China and you love the local cuisine and you’re learning the language, chances are, you still don’t quite understand what this country really is. Why are dragons sacred in China? How long is China's Great Wall and why was it built? Why did the mirror have mystic significance in ancient China? Why can't you find the 4th floor in some Chinese buildings? It's one of those countries that raises more questions the more you try to find out about it. So here are some facts that you absolutely must know before you travel to China.

Here're heart-breaking stories about three dogs that one day found themselves all alone in the street. Their humans left them. You'll listen to the stories by Charlie, Oscar and Rocky and see the world with their eyes. What does it feel like to be left by someone you loved and were faithful to, someone you thought was your mom or dad? All of these dogs once had owners. They spent a lot of time with them at the beginning, playing and having fun but then one day they just didn't need them anymore... Would you adopt a stray dog?

What are the tallest buildings in the world? As the remarkable feats of modern engineering come to fruition, we see astounding skyscrapers visibly materialize, standing tall. With each new construction being completed, a newer, more cutting-edge design is being made a possibility, which was otherwise unimaginable. Well, humanity has always built stuff, reaching further and further into the sky. From Stonehenge to the Burj Khalifa, and every architectural feat in between! If you stacked them all up, could we reach the moon? Would our super structure be longer than the Great Wall of China? Well, let’s see how they compare!

Okay, here are some facts that say a lot about our modern world of technology. A study found that 58% of men and 47% of women suffer from nomophobia – that’s a fear of being without your phone. (The word is an abbreviation of “no-mobile-phone phobia”). And around 40% of internet traffic is non-human. It’s usually robots trying to take data. In fact, there’s a whole online forum run entirely by bots. They use a model to create posts that mimic other posts by real users. That's spooky... So it feels like it’s hard to keep up with technology. Smartphones are getting more expensive, and their cameras are multiplying. But there’s a reason for that. How about to dive into the world of tech and discover the most unusual things? Do you know, for example, why most smartphones have notches? Or how black holes are related to Wi-Fi? Let's find out!

So, how to make your smartphone battery last longer? Let's see. What is your phone’s wallpaper right now? You might want to change it to a shade of black if saving time and money sounds like a good deal. But this trick only works on one screen type though, and here’s why. There are two popular types of smartphone screens at the moment: LCD and AMOLED. LCD means Liquid Crystal Display. Whenever the phone is active, it lights up every pixel you see, no matter what color it is. AMOLED is mostly used in newer smartphones. It generates its own light and doesn't need back lighting. But if you don’t have an OLED screen and you want to save your battery, there are some battery-saving tips that will work for most phones.

Space exploration has captivated the imagination of humans for centuries. So let’s take a trip through the history of American space exploration, starting with the first lunar landing in 1969 and ending with the present day. First of all, let's talk about the Apollo program. It was a series of manned space missions that were all about one thing: landing humans on the Moon. How far have we gone since then?

It's hard to imagine our life without coffee, and humans all across the world can relate to this. But how on Earth did coffee become so popular? And what does it take for coffee to go all the way from a bean to the delicious Java in our cups? Coffee is a fruit that grows in medium-sized shrubs known as the Coffea plant – just like the ones you can see all over this place. It was discovered in Ethiopia back in the 15th century. It was only around the 17th century that coffee reached Europe, and it hasn't left ever since.

Many of us heard about the so-called "dark side of the moon". But what is it, really? Does it even exist? Or it's a myth that keeps on living in our minds? Just like the fact that there're "millions" of stars in the sky... Have you always thought that owls can make a full circle while turning their heads? Or that ostriches bury their heads in the sand... or that bulls hate the color red? Then you'll be surprised to find out these are all myths!

Your body is as complex and unexplored as the universe itself. Don’t believe me? What if I told you there was an organ in the body we didn’t know about until 2019? How did that happen? Well, here’s some other incredible things about us, the microcosm.

Sometimes things aren't exactly what they seem to be. Yes, I'm talking about optical illusions here - those cool images that can trick your brain. Some objects you're going to see will look like they're of a completely different color. Others will seem to be moving, although they are perfectly stable. Test your intuition to see what's real and what's only an illusion here.

Have you ever thought about what will happen to your solar system’s “perfect harmony” if it loses a planet? For example, the closest planet to the Sun is Mercury, right? Oh, it’s so small! So with Mercury gone, how’s Earth looking? Hmm, no changes in the solar system. It’s all about gravity. Every object that has some mass attracts other objects because of its gravitational force. The larger the mass, the greater the force it has. Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system, so it’s not too massive in space terms. But what about other planets?

Love learning about the creatures of the world? Here's a new compilation of facts about animals that will surprise you! Leaping lemurs and jumping giraffes! It’s the list you never knew you needed: which animals have the best ups, and where do humans stack among them? Which creatures can jump? What animal jumps the highest? Stick around to find out where your jump would be astronomical and where it would be impossible! Did you know that although we share 99% of our DNA with Chimpanzees – they obviously got the jumping gene? Over 7 times their height in a single bound! Though their leg muscles are less than half the size of ours, they generate twice the power! But еhis does not apply to Olympic Athletes who seem to be superhuman. Javier Sotomayor’s record-breaking 8-ft high jump is 8 times the average. And Mike Powell’s 29-ft long jump – 5 times!

If you're going on vacation and hoping to see the highest mountain in the world from your window seat - this dream is unlikely to come true. But why are commercial airplanes actually banned from flying over Everest? The area is rough, filled with snow, and has almost no flat surfaces. The low oxygen environment at such an altitude means there's likely to be a lot of turbulence, so it gets really difficult to maneuver the airplane. And, among the few airports located in the Himalayas, there's one considered the most challenging to land in the world.

Have you had a house guest that didn’t use a coaster? Or, you've gone on vacation, and all of your clothes have become crinkled inside the luggage. There are simple solutions for these and many other little problems you might face at any time. You don't need to worry about them anymore, as you can solve them following some simple but effective everyday tips. Now you will know what to do when you’ve left your car keys locked inside the car or run out of standard batteries.

They are colossal, they are ever hungry, they tear stars apart, not even light can escape their gravity. Black holes. What are they? How do they form? It’s hard to embrace the fact black holes exist, and sure, they’re absolutely impossible. Maybe astronomers see something that looks and behaves just like a black hole should, but at the same time, math shows that black holes can’t exist at all without breaking lots of nature’s laws. Black holes don’t just swallow matter around them, they also consume all the information about every tiny particle they swallowed. In quantum physics, it’s impossible for the information to get simply deleted from reality, but that’s what black holes do. Despite the fact black holes slowly evaporate and so give away their mass and energy, they won’t return this information to the Universe, and this shouldn’t be possible.

Betelgeuse is a massive star in the Orion constellation, known for its reddish-orange glow on the archer's shoulder. It's about 1,000 times larger than our Sun and located 600 light years away. Scientists believe it will go supernova within the next 100,000 years, but it could happen sooner. When it does, Betelgeuse's supernova will be a remarkable light show visible without a telescope. Astronomers encourage people to observe and report any changes in Betelgeuse's brightness. So gear up with a telescope and protective eyewear, and stay tuned for this extraordinary event in the night sky.

Are you smelling something fishy at home, and it's not your delicious salmon dinner? Then it's time to check your electrical equipment. That stinky smell could mean your wires are frayed, your breakers are faulty, or your circuits are overloaded. If you smell rotten eggs in your house, call the plumber straight away! There are some other smells that are trying to say something to you, including that coming from your shoes.

What's the fastest passenger airplane? And how fast do passenger planes go, by the way? Ever since humanity took to the skies with the birds, we’ve been pushing our limits. We’ve built the biggest, the baddest, the fastest aircraft! But how do passenger aircraft rank among our most incredible record-breakers? Let’s see! Well, the fastest crewed aircraft ever was the X-15. But it couldn’t take off by itself – a “mother ship” had to carry it up and drop-launch it from the sky. So, technically, the X-15 was a crewed rocket, not entirely an airplane. There was also the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, a supersonic jet with a top speed of almost 2,200 mph! But it went so fast, its surface would heat up well over 500°F. So what about regular passenger airplanes, the kind we all use to travel?

Have you ever woken up at 3 AM with a flood of urgent questions in your mind? Like, how do barcode readers work? How did bubble wrap appear? And, most importantly, is there a reason erasers are pink? Ok, they now come in all colors and shapes, but what about that classic bubble-gum hue? History’s got all the answers! Do you know why when the first computer mouses appeared, producers referred to them as turtles? Or why paper money isn't the most reliable form of cash? Or what product is perfect for bachelors? Interested? Then check out these really cool facts!

How does the British royal family travel? Do they fly commercial? It turns out that Members of the Royal British Family annually make many trips around the world. Sounds cool, but in fact, it’s rather complicated. Royal family tours require very detailed planning and adherence to special rules. And some of them seem to be, just weird. For example, in all countries, an individual menu is prepared in advance for each member of the royal family. By the way, they are entitled to fly in private jets only for special state travel. And sometimes, royals even buy economy class tickets. Ordinary passengers saw Prince William with his wife Kate Middleton or Prince Harry with Meghan Markle on board the aircraft.

This video discusses an island that was first discovered in 1876 but was later removed from all maps. In 2012, the island reappeared on Google Maps, and researchers were able to find it using echolocation devices. However, they were still unable to find any signs of human activity on the island. Some theories suggest that the island is actually a piece of technology created by space civilizations.

You buy a chocolate bar in a package that claims the thing is 25% bigger than its previous version. Then you pick a shampoo that has "only natural ingredients" on the bottle and costs surprisingly little. Ooh! Now stop. Do you really get a great bargain or is it just manufacturers fooling you? Think twice — marketing experts are talented manipulators! For example, a bag or a bottle itself may look bigger than others produced by the same brand, but its weight can be absolutely the same! Some manufacturers aren't strangers to using optical illusions to make customers think there is more product than in reality. Empty space inside boxes, inflated plastic bags, labels stuck at the top of glass bottles so that you don't notice they are half empty...