All stories
BodyQUIZ
Foot Facts or Fiction? 7 Things Your Feet Wish You Knew
They carry you everywhere, and they change more over the years than most of us realize. Seven quick questions about your feet, from shoe shopping to toenails. Let's see how you do.
GadgetsQUIZ
Travel Myth or Fact? 7 Things Smart Travelers Know Before They Fly
Power banks, little bottles, jet lag and popping ears: some travel rules are real, and some are just things we've all heard. Seven quick questions. Let's see how you do.
HomeQUIZ
Which Is Dirtier? 7 Germ Spots at Home That Surprise Almost Everyone
The bathroom gets the blame, but when scientists swabbed real family homes, the germiest spots turned up somewhere else. Seven quick this-or-that questions. Let's see how you do.
SleepQUIZ
Sleep Myth or Fact? 7 Things Almost Everyone Gets Wrong About a Good Night's Rest
Nightcaps, snooze buttons, the perfect bedroom temperature: some of what we 'know' about sleep is right, and some of it is keeping us up. Seven quick questions. Let's see how you do.
Kitchen
The Dishwasher Mistakes Almost Everyone Makes
Rinsing first, cramming it full, never touching the filter. Small habits explain most cloudy glasses and gritty plates, and fixing them costs nothing.
Body
The Surprising Science of Earwax (And Why Cotton Swabs Are a Bad Idea)
Earwax isn't dirt. It's a self-cleaning system your ears run all on their own, and the most popular way of 'cleaning' them can actually cause problems.
Body
Why Your Feet Hurt More After 30
You didn't do anything different, but suddenly a day on your feet hurts more than it used to. Your feet change with age in ways most of us never hear about.
Sleep
Why You Sleep Worse the First Night Somewhere New
Hotel, guest room or holiday rental: the first night is almost always the worst. It isn't the mattress. Part of your brain is quietly keeping watch.
Gadgets
The Travel Hacks Flight Attendants Actually Use
People who fly for a living have turned packing, sleeping and surviving long days in the air into a routine. These are the habits cabin crew mention again and again.
Home
Why Your Towels Stopped Being Fluffy, and How to Fix It
New towels feel like a hotel. A few months later they're stiff, flat and somehow less absorbent. The cause is usually in the washing machine, not the towel.
Home
The Weird History of Everyday Things: Pillows, Forks, Flat Sheets
Stone headrests, a fork that caused a scandal, and the top sheet that half the world refuses to use. The things in your home have stranger stories than you'd think.
Kitchen
Why Japanese and German Knives Feel So Different
One feels like a scalpel, the other like a trusty tool you could drop on the floor. The difference comes down to steel, angles and how each tradition likes to cut.
Kitchen
A Kitchen That Lasts: How to Care for the Tools You Use Every Day
The tools you reach for every day don't usually fail from age. They fail from a few small habits. Change those and your knives stay sharp, your boards stay smooth, and your pans keep cooking the way they did on day one.
Gadgets
The Small Gadgets That Make Long Flights Easier
You don't need a business-class ticket to arrive less frazzled. A handful of small, inexpensive things in your carry-on make a long-haul flight far more comfortable.
Gadgets
Can Pocket Translators Really Replace a Phrasebook?
Handheld translators and phone apps have become remarkably good. Here's what they do well, where they still stumble, and why a few memorised phrases still matter.
Home
7 Everyday Things You're Probably Replacing Too Often (And 3 You're Not Replacing Enough)
Some things last far longer than we think if we look after them. Others quietly wear out long before we notice. Here's where your money is better spent.
Kitchen
What Restaurant Cooks Know About Knives That We Don't
Professional cooks chop for hours a day without fuss. Most of their tricks have nothing to do with expensive knives and everything to do with habits.
Gadgets
How to Stay Connected Abroad Without Huge Roaming Bills
A few minutes of setup before you leave can be the difference between a normal phone bill and a shocking one. Here are your options, from cheapest to easiest.
Sleep · Partner story
These Antimicrobial Sheets Changed My Life
For anyone who wakes up to sweaty, smelly sheets: the silver-infused bedding I found by accident on a holiday visit, and why I haven't gone back.
Sleep
What Sleep Researchers Actually Do Before Bed
No expensive gadgets, no complicated rituals. The habits sleep scientists recommend most often are boring, cheap and surprisingly effective.
KitchenQUIZ
How Long Does It Really Last? Guess the Kitchen Life of 12 Everyday Foods
Some things in your kitchen last far longer than you'd think. Others are gone in a day or two. Guess how long each one keeps, whether it's in the pantry or the fridge (set to 40°F or below).
Sleep
Why Hotel Pillows Feel Different (It's Not What You Think)
Most of us assume there's an expensive mattress behind that check-in-night feeling. There usually isn't. It comes from a handful of small habits, and you can copy almost all of them tonight.