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It is the social media challenge taken up by thousands but the scientific claims behind it are nonsense. The #broomchallenge has people all over the world photographing and filming their brooms standing upright without any support.

Armed ecoguards partly funded by the conservation group WWF to protect wildlife in the Republic of the Congo beat up and intimidated hundreds of Baka pygmies living deep in the rainforests, an investigation into a landmark global conservation project has heard.

More than a thousand scientists have built the most detailed picture of cancer ever in a landmark study. They said cancer was like a 100,000-piece jigsaw, and that until today, 99% of the pieces were missing.

The relief shows a rabbi lifting a sow's tail and peering at its behind while other Jewish figures suckle on her teats. Pigs are considered unclean under Jewish law. The image is on the wall of the Stadtkirche, where Protestant reformer Martin Luther preached.

Maths geeks around the world are celebrating a day so rare that - unless they're very, very young - it's certain to happen only once in their lifetimes. This is, of course, palindrome day, when the date - in this case 02/02/2020 - reads the same way back to front.

Former Belgian King Albert II has admitted he is the father of a woman born from an affair, after he was forced to give a DNA test which came back positive. He had been fighting the paternity claim by Belgian artist Delphine Boël, 51, for more than a decade.

The UK's fixed-term parliaments could see politicians failing to prioritise climate change, veteran naturalist Sir David Attenborough has suggested. He told the first citizens' assembly on climate having a five-year government leads to a lack of long-term planning.

Scientists have fulfilled a mummified Egyptian priest's wish for life after death - by replicating his voice with artificial vocal cords. Nesyamun's voice has been reproduced as a vowel-like sound that is reminiscent of a sheep's bleat.

With offices closed in nations around the world, many of us are grappling with how to stay productive and on task as we work from home. To help provide insight on how to manage this, BBC Worklife is updating some of our most popular productivity stories from our archive.

The Cardiff University team discovered a method of killing prostate, breast, lung and other cancers in lab tests. The findings, published in Nature Immunology, have not been tested in patients, but the researchers say they have "enormous potential".

The impact of humans on nature has been far greater and longer-lasting than we could ever imagine, according to scientists. Early human ancestors living millions of years ago may have triggered extinctions, even before our species evolved, a study suggests.

The cardinal who co-wrote a book backing priestly celibacy with the retired Pope has said Benedict XVI's name will be removed from future editions. Some saw the apparent intervention by Benedict as a challenge to his successor, Pope Francis.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI has issued a defence of priestly celibacy in the Catholic Church as his successor considers easing a ban on married men serving as priests. Pope Benedict made the appeal in a book co-authored with Cardinal Robert Sarah.

Residents of Okinawa, otherwise known as the 'island of the immortals’, are more likely to live to 100 than people in most other regions of Japan.

image copyrightSCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARYA sleep disorder that can leave people gasping for breath at night could be linked to the amount of fat on their tongues, a study suggests.

Training for and completing a marathon improves the health of a new runner's arteries, cutting about four years off their "vascular age", a study suggests. Researchers from Barts and University College London tested 138 novice runners attempting the London Marathon.

One of us hides our eyes and then slowly reveals them. This causes peals of laughter from a baby, which causes us to laugh in turn. Then we do it again. And again. Peekaboo never gets old.

The murder was so brutal it shocked even the hardened detectives who arrived at the scene on the outskirts of Pakistan's capital, Islamabad.

In August 1991, an 11-year-old Canadian penned a brief note to his future self. Mitch Brogan got the idea from his late grandfather Charles - to answer a list of 11 predictions and seal them up in an envelope until 1 January, 2020.

Russia has successfully tested a country-wide alternative to the global internet, its government has announced. Details of what the test involved were vague but, according to the Ministry of Communications, ordinary users did not notice any changes.

Apple, Google, Tesla and Microsoft are among firms named in a lawsuit seeking damages over deaths and injuries of child miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The case has been filed by the International Rights Advocates on behalf of 14 Congolese families.

Moments before New Zealand's most active volcano erupted on Monday, tourists were seen walking inside its rim. The privately-owned White Island, or Whakaari, is a popular destination for day tours and scenic flights.

Pepi Nana stirs, and sits up in bed. “Tiddle toddle, tiddle toddle,” she says, flapping her arms, and blinking a pair of enormous round eyes. She walks over to the desk, sits down, and, using the oversized pencil in her front pocket, scribbles a letter to the Moon.

For a brief period of time in 2013, Samantha West was the hardest working employee of Premier Health Plans. She set up more deals than any other individual who worked at the insurance company.

What is it like to raise your kids on the road? Two families describe how they changed their children's lives by showing them the world, while a mum-to-be explains why she plans to do just that with her six-month-old baby.