In this episode we take a look at innovations—the natural kind and the man-made kind.

We are marking the one year anniversary of Distillations this week! To celebrate we’re looking back at the year 2008 and its noteworthy occasions.

In the 1960s RCA created the world’s first liquid-crystal displays. How did the company fail to cash in on one of the modern world’s most ubiquitous technologies?

The pirate-turned-naturalist-turned-pirate-again inspired generations of British writers and scientists.

Biologist John Calhoun’s rodent experiments gripped a society consumed by fears of overpopulation.

When horses gallop, do all four hooves ever leave the ground at once? This episode of The Disappearing Spoon recounts the saga that led to the answer.