There are plenty of reasons to be thankful that you don't live in the early 1900s (child labour laws, air conditioning, what have you), but just in case you've been feeling nostalgic for simpler times, new research from the University of Detroit Mercy should put those wistful fantasies to rest. After chemically analysing several dozen patent medicines from around the dawn of the 20th century, chemist Mark Benvenuto found that many of these completely unfounded "miracle cures" contained toxins such as lead, mercury, and even arsenic. Read More >>

Guam has a problem with brown tree snakes. Specifically, it has two million brown tree snakes, and they're slowly decimating the country's other native species. So scientists have come up with a solution, the only logical one really: fill a bunch of dead mice with painkillers, give each corpse a tiny parachute, and throw them all out of helicopters into the jungle. No but really. Read More >>

Rice farmer Mohammed Salmodin struck a great blow for mankind against the reptilian world, biting a poisonous cobra to death after it dared to bite him. Read More >>

You might notice the sting of the injection. Within seconds you'd realise you're having trouble moving your eyes and fingers, followed by your arms and legs. If you were standing, you'd collapse. In a heap on the floor, you'd realise nearly every muscle in your body was paralysed. Being fully conscious, your sense of panic would be rising as rapidly as the paralysis was spreading. Swallowing and breathing has become more and more difficult. Slipping into unconsciousness, your last conscious thought may well be "I am going to die." Read More >>

This is really bad: a man hit with a poisonous umbrella in a street of Hannover, Germany, has died after a long struggle in the hospital. It sounds like a James Bond movie, except that it's real and it sucks. This is what happened: Read More >>