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It's Okay to Be Smart
Traffic Lights Are So Much Weirder Than You Realize
Why are stop lights red? The common explanation about red light traveling farther through fog is actually wrong. The real story involves early railroads, deadly accidents, an exploding gas traffic light, forgotten inventors, and even the evolution of primate color vision. Here’s how history and biology accidentally created the nearly perfect traffic signal.
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How did the mass extinction of the dinosaurs play out, moment by moment?
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Think traits like eye color or tongue-rolling are simple genetics? Think again.
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Why is the Martian sky red by day… but blue at sunset?