In 1532, in the city of Cajamarca, Peru, Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro and a group of Europeans took the Inca ruler Atahualpa hostage, setting the stage for the fall of the Inca Empire.

The Chincha Kingdom was transporting seabird excrement from islands to valleys as early as the 13th century, and this powerful fertiliser may have been key to its economic success ...

We know the main reason that the age of the dinosaurs came to an end: an asteroid impact on the Yucatán Peninsula some 66 million years ago. But how the dinosaurs’ reign began is far less clear—and ...

Whether it’s a chemist’s reckless sweet discovery, a reader’s ever-growing “tsundoku” pile, or scientists tracing the hidden patterns of superspreaders, curiosity turns accidents, habits, and outliers ...

You probably don't think twice when stepping into an elevator. It's just there, ready to whisk you up to your hotel room on the 30th floor of a Vegas casino or down to the underground parking garage.