19 posts
What food should be on a festive table to make it look luxurious? Caviar, of course! Red caviar is a popular choice, while black caviar is often considered the ultimate luxury. Everyone knows how expensive it can be, and many have heard that fish roe contains a remarkable range of nutrients. After a...
For centuries, humans have considered themselves the “crown of creation,” proudly believing in their superiority and treating the environment as though the planet belonged to them. Yet nature repeatedly reminds us of the limits of human power. The devastating toll of natural disasters is a sobering...
Majestic, alluring and mysterious, the Grand Canyon is one of the world’s most famous natural landmarks. But, despite its imposing name, it is not the largest canyon in every category. Our planet is full of enormous gorges and valleys whose dimensions can be difficult to compare because scient...
“I know your magic, olive tree, you draw blood from the earth for the world.” Federico García Lorca (Spanish poet) The fruit of the olive tree – the olive – has been cultivated for thousands of years and has played an important role in the cultures of the Mediterranean and the Near East....
Mount Kailash, also known as Kangrinboqê or Gang Rinpoche, is one of the most sacred mountains in Asia. Revered in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and the Tibetan Bon tradition, it has inspired centuries of pilgrimage, stories, and speculation. Its summit has no confirmed recorded ascent, and climbing...
Mushrooms are a fascinating group of organisms with characteristics that distinguish them from both plants and animals. There are thousands of mushroom species, but the following ten are particularly interesting for their appearance, growth, culinary value, toxicity, or unusual biology. 1Porcini The...
You can’t surprise anyone with citrus anymore — we add lemon to our tea almost every day, and mandarins are now a year-round fruit rather than something we buy only for New Year’s celebrations. Yet the citrus family includes far more than these familiar fruits. I previously wrote about c...
Top 10 cases of the longest periods of fasting. Hunger is a condition of the body caused by an insufficient intake of substances necessary to maintain homeostasis. 1 In 1973, seemingly incredible periods of fasting by two women were documented at a medical facility in the city of Glasgow. Both women...
Which garden owner wouldn’t want to show off the biggest tomato? Besides the obvious envy of neighbors, growing the largest tomatoes is quite economical. After all, one fruit is enough not just for the whole family—neighbors will have to be invited to enjoy it too. The only downside is that the bigg...
Scientists recently discovered that the largest organism on Earth is a fungus located in a forest in Michigan. However, it is possible that one day the title of “largest” might be passed to an entire ecosystem, including even its tiniest elements—microbes and the smallest plants in the w...