The rotten egg sulfur smell is associated with hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a colorless gas. The stench can arise in water supplies, foods and...

Methane (CH4) is a familiar gas emanating from cow dung. Methane's creators are invisible creatures known today as methanaogens,...

Talc or hydrated magnesium silicate is a naturally occurring mineral, primarily composed of magnesium, silicon, and oxygen. With its...

Carbon is the ubiquitous element. Art, beauty, science and health pivot around the life force of carbon. Here's the nature of carbon, its...

Fermentation is used intentionally by c. 8000 BCE to create honey mead , a blend of fermented honey and water. Yeast is crucial to...

Maria or Mary the Jewess c. 100 AD is considered the first true alchemist. In her works she mentions a clear white herb growing on small...

Why do onions make people cry? The answer involves a combination of chemistry and enzymes. The trigger behind the tears is an organic...

Myrtle, Rose, Scammory and Flowers of Brass are four infused wines used medicinally in the ancient world. Infused wine in medicine often...

Portrimpo is a pagan Baltic sea god. Also known as Autrimpo he rules the sea, earth, grain and crops. One of the Old Prussian gods,...

Opium poppy (Papaver somnifum) is the common source of opium and derivatives such as morphine or heroin. All poppies produce the narcotic...

Honey bees create honey, beeswax and folklore. First domestication of the honeybee is c. 8000 BCE, in the Neolithic Age. At this time the...

Honey mead is likened to ambrosia , nectar of the Greek Gods, with qualities of immortality and divine transcendence, beloved by bears...

Rhododendron is a plant genus of the heather family. With bright showy flowers, this glamorous perennial is known for medicinal...

Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey. A saline soda lake, it's fed by numerous mountain streams. Van lacks a water outlet, making it...

Pistacia is a shrub or tree prized for food , resin, tannins, oils and natural turpentine for thousands of years in the Mediterranean...

Wheat, barley, millet and rice are four of the ancient grains, going back to the Neolithic agrarian revolution c. 10,000 BCE. Ancient...

Mugworts are used in folk medicine of India, China, Europe, America and other regions. A member of Artemisia , mugwort is also called...

Klabautermann is a water kobold of the Baltic and North Seas. He's one of the noisy spirits, who can scream like the wind. Usually...

Neolithic farmers in Britain and northern Europe are the first to drink milk. Early humans are lactose intolerant but consume dairy...

Broad beans ( Vicia faba ), faba or fava beans are cultivated as a crop from pre-Neolithic times to present day. Among the earliest...