Birdwatching is taking off in a big way among young people. Reports say that around 750,000 people aged 16–29 in the UK and millions in the U.S. now regularly go birdwatching — turning what was once seen as a “quiet” hobby into a fast-growing trend.
Part of the appeal is how simple it is to start. You don’t need expensive gear or special training — just curiosity and a bit of time outdoors. It’s a low-pressure way to take a break from screens, notice what’s around you, and actually tune into sounds and spaces most people scroll past.
Ironically, social media is helping drive the trend. Birdwatching accounts, short videos, and identification apps are making it easier than ever to learn bird calls, spot species, and share discoveries with others. Instead of pulling people away from nature, platforms like TikTok and Instagram are often pushing people back into it.
Conservationists are especially excited because this kind of interest helps more people connect with wildlife and care about protecting it. Birdwatching is becoming less about binoculars and notebooks — and more about curiosity, community, and noticing the world a little differently.
Being an astronaut is no joke — for your brain and your body to be prepared, you need to train, not unlike sports or school. Want to train for a soccer match? You may need to go for runs or lift weights. Need to prepare for a math test? You may need to repeat your times tables. Going into space soon? You may need to put on a space suit and get strapped into a full-sized replica of the International Space Station, then submerged in a 12-meter (40-foot!) deep pool for six hours. At least, that’s what astronaut Rosemary Coogan did to make sure she was ready for her spacewalk.
Coogan was chosen from 22,000 applicants to become a European Space Agency astronaut and may be the first Englishwoman to set foot on the moon.
Space preparation is daunting, but she had teams of supporters like divers and control room workers to make sure she was safe. The spacewalk test is meant to make sure that Rosemary could survive the conditions off of earth, even when things don’t go according to plan.
Beekeeper Nick was confused when his bees kept dying off. He kept his hives being stocked with food, so why did he still lose around 75% of the colony? The answer was in what was (or wasn’t) in his bees’ food.
In the wild, bees take what they need from flowers to make honey, and then feed off this honey in the winter. When we take this honey for ourselves, beekeepers replace it with supplementary food in the form of sugar and water, and scientists now say that bees can’t subsist off of just sugar and water, as the simple combination was missing key nutrients. Your parents probably said the same thing about why you can’t just have cake for dinner!
After years of testing different foods for bees, scientists have finally discovered how to make the core ingredient, called “sterole.” Oxford scientists have been developing the best foods for bees, and have found that the bees who consumed the food with sterole were healthier, and had up to 15 times more baby bees! This breakthrough is incredibly important — it means bees can still thrive without floral pollen, which would also help our food security, since bees are so important for pollinating crops.
Underwater volcanoes are some of the least visible — but most important — geological features on Earth. Scientist Dr. Isobel Yeo studies these deep-sea volcanoes near the Greek island of Santorini using remotely-operated underwater robots. These robotic tools allow researchers to safely explore volcanic regions and locate hydrothermal vents, where hot gases and fluids escape from cracks in Earth’s crust.
Her team is focused on understanding how underwater eruptions behave differently from those on land. The surrounding water pressure, temperature, and ocean currents can all influence how magma and gases move during an eruption. By studying these systems, scientists can improve predictions of volcanic activity and better understand potential risks.
Although an eruption is not expected soon, this research is important for improving early warning systems and helping nearby coastal communities prepare for future volcanic events.
Did you know we’re still finding new dinosaurs?! You’d think the 66 million years they’ve been extinct would have been enough time for research, but the Natural History Museum is getting ready to welcome yet another new addition — a small dinosaur that they had previously mistaken for a Nanosaurus. It’s a two-legged, herbivorous dinosaur with big feet and a long tail, about the height of a labrador. Scientists have renamed it “Enigmacursor,” which means “puzzling runner,” and would also be a very cool name for the next Nike sneaker.
To determine if a dinosaur (or any creature) is new, researchers try to find unique features, like parts, proportions, and shapes. The Enigmacursor will be displayed at the Natural History Museum and will be an important tool for learning how its bigger relatives evolved, since dinosaurs started their evolution as small animals and became much, much bigger over a long, long time.
What happens when you mix theatre with soccer, or football as they call in the UK? You get a play that turns women’s soccer into a live story of grit, pressure, and ambition — no stadium required. This new production brings the energy of the game to the stage, spotlighting the real experiences of female athletes in sport.
The story doesn’t shy away from reality. Women footballers around the world have faced uneven playing conditions, from ill-fitting men’s kits to poorly maintained pitches and training setups that simply weren’t built with them in mind. Even small things — like long walks between facilities or limited access to resources — add up and shape the experience of being a professional athlete.
What makes the play feel especially authentic is the lead actor, who actually played semi-pro football before moving into acting. That real-life experience gives the performance extra edge, blending sport and storytelling in a way that feels lived-in, not just acted.
At its core, the production is about more than football. It’s about visibility, opportunity, and challenging the idea of who gets to have a future in sport — and who gets to be seen on stage telling that story.
Mars may be cold and barren, but it might have supported life! At least, that’s what scientists think, after finding rocks with some very interesting spots. These markings, nicknamed “leopard spots” and “poppyseeds,” are minerals that could have been made by Martian microbes, early in the planet’s history. They were discovered by the Perseverance Rover, which has been exploring Mars since its 2021 landing.
The rover has been focused on Mars’s Jezero Crater, which used to be a huge lake with a river running into it before drying up billions of years ago. Now, Perseverance collects samples to analyze in its onboard lab! Car Bluetooth is cool but c’mon, it’s no analysis lab…
These rocks aren’t exactly the video diary of an alien’s day in the life on Mars, but they could be the clearest sign of life ever found on Mars, which is thought to be one of the most promising places in our Solar System to look for life outside of Earth. The only way to confirm if the minerals were made by microbes is to get them back to Earth, so NASA and the European Space Agency have proposed a mission to collect them. It’ll be expensive, but this could be the answer to if there was life on other planets!
If humans have the Olympics, robots have their own ultimate showdown: the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing, China. It’s a high-energy mix of sport and science where humanoid robots sprint, box, and compete in athletic challenges designed to test just how “human-like” they really are.
But this isn’t just for fun (though it definitely looks fun to watch). Engineers use the competition to push their robots to the limit — testing speed, balance, coordination, and decision-making. Every stumble or success helps them figure out how to build smarter, stronger machines for the future. There’s prize money and recognition on the line too, which helps fuel a fast-growing robotics industry already backed by billions of dollars.
And no, this doesn’t mean robot athletes are about to take over your school sports day. Experts say humanoid robots are still mostly heading toward factories and specialized jobs — not everyday life. So for now, the biggest robot “athlete” you’ll probably meet is still your vacuum cleaner doing laps around the living room.
A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth moves directly between the Sun and the Moon, blocking sunlight from reaching the Moon’s surface. During the eclipse, the Moon can appear dark red or copper-colored as sunlight bends through Earth’s atmosphere.
Even though the Moon travels around Earth about every 28 days, total lunar eclipses are rare. That’s because the Moon’s orbit is tilted slightly, so most months, the Moon passes a little above or below Earth’s shadow instead of through it. Only every six months or so are the Sun, Earth, and Moon lined up closely enough for a possible lunar eclipse.
Last September, millions of people around the world watched the rare event during organized watch parties and backyard gatherings. Astronomers encouraged people to bring blankets, snacks, and telescopes to enjoy the nighttime spectacle together. While cloudy skies blocked views in some places, observers across parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Australia were able to see the eclipse from beginning to end under clear skies.
Phones away! In April of 2026, the UK government said it would introduce a ban on smartphones in schools, saying they should be phone free, all day. That may seem clear, but there have been more than enough interpretations of this law to cause problems.
Most schools do restrict phone use, but their methods of doing so and how seriously they take the rule, vary from place to place. Some use lockers, some use sealed magnetic pouches, and some haven’t really committed to the rule yet. So, officials are pushing for more clarity and more regulation.
For example, what defines a smartphone? A phone with internet access is much different from one that can only call and text. Should students be allowed to use a flip phone but not an iPhone? Are camera phones allowed? Does it count as a smartphone if it’s a rotary phone with a degree from Harvard?! The government has a lot of work to do before everybody’s on the same page.
In The Rocky Mountains of North America, narrator Douglas Henshall highlights the dynamic landscape of the Rockies. From the American Southwest to the Yukon, this extreme environment offers freedom, but also requires its inhabitants to have exceptional survival skills. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Mountains — Life Above the Clouds, which showcases wildlife thriving in the world's highest mountains.
In Climate Change and Rising Sea Levels, learn how sea levels have risen by about 8 inches (20 cm) in the past 100 years, significantly affecting coastal communities. See the impacts on Isle de Jean Charles, Louisiana, where residents are being forced to relocate due to the rising waters. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Climate Change - The Facts, a documentary that delves into the science of climate change and its far-reaching consequences.
Birdwatching is taking off in a big way among young people. Reports say that around 750,000 people aged 16–29 in the UK and millions in the U.S. now regularly go birdwatching — turning what was once seen as a “quiet” hobby into a fast-growing trend.
Part of the appeal is how simple it is to start. You don’t need expensive gear or special training — just curiosity and a bit of time outdoors. It’s a low-pressure way to take a break from screens, notice what’s around you, and actually tune into sounds and spaces most people scroll past.
Ironically, social media is helping drive the trend. Birdwatching accounts, short videos, and identification apps are making it easier than ever to learn bird calls, spot species, and share discoveries with others. Instead of pulling people away from nature, platforms like TikTok and Instagram are often pushing people back into it.
Conservationists are especially excited because this kind of interest helps more people connect with wildlife and care about protecting it. Birdwatching is becoming less about binoculars and notebooks — and more about curiosity, community, and noticing the world a little differently.
Being an astronaut is no joke — for your brain and your body to be prepared, you need to train, not unlike sports or school. Want to train for a soccer match? You may need to go for runs or lift weights. Need to prepare for a math test? You may need to repeat your times tables. Going into space soon? You may need to put on a space suit and get strapped into a full-sized replica of the International Space Station, then submerged in a 12-meter (40-foot!) deep pool for six hours. At least, that’s what astronaut Rosemary Coogan did to make sure she was ready for her spacewalk.
Coogan was chosen from 22,000 applicants to become a European Space Agency astronaut and may be the first Englishwoman to set foot on the moon.
Space preparation is daunting, but she had teams of supporters like divers and control room workers to make sure she was safe. The spacewalk test is meant to make sure that Rosemary could survive the conditions off of earth, even when things don’t go according to plan.
Beekeeper Nick was confused when his bees kept dying off. He kept his hives being stocked with food, so why did he still lose around 75% of the colony? The answer was in what was (or wasn’t) in his bees’ food.
In the wild, bees take what they need from flowers to make honey, and then feed off this honey in the winter. When we take this honey for ourselves, beekeepers replace it with supplementary food in the form of sugar and water, and scientists now say that bees can’t subsist off of just sugar and water, as the simple combination was missing key nutrients. Your parents probably said the same thing about why you can’t just have cake for dinner!
After years of testing different foods for bees, scientists have finally discovered how to make the core ingredient, called “sterole.” Oxford scientists have been developing the best foods for bees, and have found that the bees who consumed the food with sterole were healthier, and had up to 15 times more baby bees! This breakthrough is incredibly important — it means bees can still thrive without floral pollen, which would also help our food security, since bees are so important for pollinating crops.
Underwater volcanoes are some of the least visible — but most important — geological features on Earth. Scientist Dr. Isobel Yeo studies these deep-sea volcanoes near the Greek island of Santorini using remotely-operated underwater robots. These robotic tools allow researchers to safely explore volcanic regions and locate hydrothermal vents, where hot gases and fluids escape from cracks in Earth’s crust.
Her team is focused on understanding how underwater eruptions behave differently from those on land. The surrounding water pressure, temperature, and ocean currents can all influence how magma and gases move during an eruption. By studying these systems, scientists can improve predictions of volcanic activity and better understand potential risks.
Although an eruption is not expected soon, this research is important for improving early warning systems and helping nearby coastal communities prepare for future volcanic events.
Did you know we’re still finding new dinosaurs?! You’d think the 66 million years they’ve been extinct would have been enough time for research, but the Natural History Museum is getting ready to welcome yet another new addition — a small dinosaur that they had previously mistaken for a Nanosaurus. It’s a two-legged, herbivorous dinosaur with big feet and a long tail, about the height of a labrador. Scientists have renamed it “Enigmacursor,” which means “puzzling runner,” and would also be a very cool name for the next Nike sneaker.
To determine if a dinosaur (or any creature) is new, researchers try to find unique features, like parts, proportions, and shapes. The Enigmacursor will be displayed at the Natural History Museum and will be an important tool for learning how its bigger relatives evolved, since dinosaurs started their evolution as small animals and became much, much bigger over a long, long time.
What happens when you mix theatre with soccer, or football as they call in the UK? You get a play that turns women’s soccer into a live story of grit, pressure, and ambition — no stadium required. This new production brings the energy of the game to the stage, spotlighting the real experiences of female athletes in sport.
The story doesn’t shy away from reality. Women footballers around the world have faced uneven playing conditions, from ill-fitting men’s kits to poorly maintained pitches and training setups that simply weren’t built with them in mind. Even small things — like long walks between facilities or limited access to resources — add up and shape the experience of being a professional athlete.
What makes the play feel especially authentic is the lead actor, who actually played semi-pro football before moving into acting. That real-life experience gives the performance extra edge, blending sport and storytelling in a way that feels lived-in, not just acted.
At its core, the production is about more than football. It’s about visibility, opportunity, and challenging the idea of who gets to have a future in sport — and who gets to be seen on stage telling that story.
Mars may be cold and barren, but it might have supported life! At least, that’s what scientists think, after finding rocks with some very interesting spots. These markings, nicknamed “leopard spots” and “poppyseeds,” are minerals that could have been made by Martian microbes, early in the planet’s history. They were discovered by the Perseverance Rover, which has been exploring Mars since its 2021 landing.
The rover has been focused on Mars’s Jezero Crater, which used to be a huge lake with a river running into it before drying up billions of years ago. Now, Perseverance collects samples to analyze in its onboard lab! Car Bluetooth is cool but c’mon, it’s no analysis lab…
These rocks aren’t exactly the video diary of an alien’s day in the life on Mars, but they could be the clearest sign of life ever found on Mars, which is thought to be one of the most promising places in our Solar System to look for life outside of Earth. The only way to confirm if the minerals were made by microbes is to get them back to Earth, so NASA and the European Space Agency have proposed a mission to collect them. It’ll be expensive, but this could be the answer to if there was life on other planets!
If humans have the Olympics, robots have their own ultimate showdown: the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing, China. It’s a high-energy mix of sport and science where humanoid robots sprint, box, and compete in athletic challenges designed to test just how “human-like” they really are.
But this isn’t just for fun (though it definitely looks fun to watch). Engineers use the competition to push their robots to the limit — testing speed, balance, coordination, and decision-making. Every stumble or success helps them figure out how to build smarter, stronger machines for the future. There’s prize money and recognition on the line too, which helps fuel a fast-growing robotics industry already backed by billions of dollars.
And no, this doesn’t mean robot athletes are about to take over your school sports day. Experts say humanoid robots are still mostly heading toward factories and specialized jobs — not everyday life. So for now, the biggest robot “athlete” you’ll probably meet is still your vacuum cleaner doing laps around the living room.
A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth moves directly between the Sun and the Moon, blocking sunlight from reaching the Moon’s surface. During the eclipse, the Moon can appear dark red or copper-colored as sunlight bends through Earth’s atmosphere.
Even though the Moon travels around Earth about every 28 days, total lunar eclipses are rare. That’s because the Moon’s orbit is tilted slightly, so most months, the Moon passes a little above or below Earth’s shadow instead of through it. Only every six months or so are the Sun, Earth, and Moon lined up closely enough for a possible lunar eclipse.
Last September, millions of people around the world watched the rare event during organized watch parties and backyard gatherings. Astronomers encouraged people to bring blankets, snacks, and telescopes to enjoy the nighttime spectacle together. While cloudy skies blocked views in some places, observers across parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Australia were able to see the eclipse from beginning to end under clear skies.
Phones away! In April of 2026, the UK government said it would introduce a ban on smartphones in schools, saying they should be phone free, all day. That may seem clear, but there have been more than enough interpretations of this law to cause problems.
Most schools do restrict phone use, but their methods of doing so and how seriously they take the rule, vary from place to place. Some use lockers, some use sealed magnetic pouches, and some haven’t really committed to the rule yet. So, officials are pushing for more clarity and more regulation.
For example, what defines a smartphone? A phone with internet access is much different from one that can only call and text. Should students be allowed to use a flip phone but not an iPhone? Are camera phones allowed? Does it count as a smartphone if it’s a rotary phone with a degree from Harvard?! The government has a lot of work to do before everybody’s on the same page.
In The Rocky Mountains of North America, narrator Douglas Henshall highlights the dynamic landscape of the Rockies. From the American Southwest to the Yukon, this extreme environment offers freedom, but also requires its inhabitants to have exceptional survival skills. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Mountains — Life Above the Clouds, which showcases wildlife thriving in the world's highest mountains.
In Climate Change and Rising Sea Levels, learn how sea levels have risen by about 8 inches (20 cm) in the past 100 years, significantly affecting coastal communities. See the impacts on Isle de Jean Charles, Louisiana, where residents are being forced to relocate due to the rising waters. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Climate Change - The Facts, a documentary that delves into the science of climate change and its far-reaching consequences.