Jenna Ortega is still the star. The show is still called Wednesday. But season two of Tim Burton’s Netflix hit will be widening its focus a bit to focus more on Wednesday’s notorious family—and the actors who play the other Addams couldn’t be more thrilled. Catherine Zeta-Jones, who plays Morticia, even gets to show off her sword-fighting skills, and while we’re not sure how that’s going to fit into the show’s new mystery, we are now even more excited to see it unfold.

A new featurette shared by Netflix offers a tantalizing tease of season two, with Ortega, Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzmán (Gomez), and more—including executive producer and director Burton—talking about what’s to come.

Co-showrunners and creators Miles Millar and Alfred Gough promise more “Addams family lore,” as well as an expanded scope and character arcs. We’ll also get to see a lot more of Nevermore Academy, Wednesday’s curse-plagued boarding school, where her brother Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) is now also a student (“an outcast among outcasts,” according to Burton).

We also get a glimpse of Joanna Lumley as Grandmama, delivering what looks to be an appropriately high camp performance.

Wednesday season two arrives in two parts, on August 6 and September 3.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Here are 10 real medical conditions named after mythical creatures, each with strange origins and stranger symptoms.

10 Werewolf Syndrome (Hypertrichosis)

Hypertrichosis is one of the rarest medical conditions known to science—with fewer than 100 documented cases worldwide. It causes abnormal hair growth all over the body, including the face, arms, and back, often in thick, dark patches that can resemble fur. The name “werewolf syndrome” didn’t originate in medical literature but rather in sideshows and tabloid headlines, as early cases were so visually dramatic that they seemed supernatural.

The congenital form of the condition is genetic, linked to mutations on the X chromosome. It can be inherited through a dominant pattern, while acquired forms are often triggered by cancer, autoimmune disorders, or medications like minoxidil.

One of the most famous historical cases is that of Petrus Gonsalvus, a 16th-century nobleman from the Canary Islands who had full-body hypertrichosis and was presented to the court of King Henry II of France as a “wild man.” He went on to have several children—some of whom inherited the condition—sparking both scientific curiosity and public fascination. Later in the 19th century, circus performers like Fedor Jeftichew (“Jo-Jo the Dog-Faced Boy”) and Julia Pastrana capitalized on their appearance, though often exploited by promoters.

The condition can be managed in modern times through laser hair removal, shaving, or hormonal treatments. Still, the nickname persists, especially in media, because of its visceral connection to werewolf folklore and the shock factor of excessive hair growth that defies societal norms.^[1]

9 Vampirism (Renfield’s Syndrome)

Renfield’s syndrome is a rare and controversial psychiatric condition in which individuals feel compelled to drink blood—human or animal—as part of a compulsive or delusional belief system. The name is derived from the character R.M. Renfield in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, who consumes insects and believes their life force sustains him.

While the syndrome is not officially recognized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), several psychiatrists and forensic psychologists have used the term to describe cases where patients exhibit obsessive behaviors centered around blood consumption and vampiric identity.

The condition tends to manifest in phases. It often begins in childhood with self-harm and auto-vampirism (drinking one’s own blood), then escalates to zoophagia (consuming animals), and finally leads to more serious attempts to drink the blood of others. In some extreme cases, it has crossed into criminal behavior.

Richard Trenton Chase, known as the “Vampire of Sacramento,” murdered six people in the late 1970s and drank their blood; psychiatrists later described his delusions in terms consistent with Renfield’s syndrome. While some cases are tied to schizophrenia or personality disorders, others exist in a strange cultural gray area between psychosis and lifestyle choice, as seen in vampire subcultures where blood rituals are performed consensually.

Treatment typically involves antipsychotic medication and intensive therapy. Still, the mythological branding of the condition continues to blur the line between medical phenomenon and gothic horror.^[2]

8 Mermaid Syndrome (Sirenomelia)

Sirenomelia, or “mermaid syndrome,” is a fatal congenital defect in which the lower limbs are fused together, forming a single limb or tightly bound pair of legs resembling a mermaid’s tail. The condition is incredibly rare—occurring in roughly 1 in 100,000 births—and results from an abnormal blood flow pattern in the fetus, usually involving the “vitelline artery steal” phenomenon.

This redirected blood flow deprives the lower body of proper nutrients and oxygen, preventing normal development of the pelvis, genitals, kidneys, and lower spine. Most infants born with sirenomelia die within days, often from kidney failure or severe underdevelopment of vital organs. Some rare survivors have lived longer thanks to surgical interventions and round-the-clock medical care.

One of the most widely known cases was Shiloh Pepin, born in 1999 with fused legs, no colon, and no uterus. She underwent multiple surgeries and appeared on national television as the “Mermaid Girl,” capturing public fascination and raising awareness about the condition. Though she passed away at age 10, her case was considered a triumph of medical ingenuity and human resilience.

The mythological label “mermaid syndrome” may seem whimsical. However, it masks a complex, devastating anatomical disorder that challenges surgeons, ethicists, and families alike. Medical literature continues using both “sirenomelia” and the colloquial term interchangeably, keeping the folklore reference alive in clinical and public discourse.^[3]

7 Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS)

Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS) is a rare neurological condition that causes perceptual distortions of size, shape, and time. People experiencing AIWS may feel that their body or parts of it are growing or shrinking (macrosomatognosia or microsomatognosia), or that external objects are changing size and distance in surreal ways.

The condition is named after Lewis Carroll’s famous fictional narrative in which Alice undergoes bizarre shifts in size and reality perception—experiences that mirror the symptoms reported by AIWS sufferers. Carroll himself may have suffered from migraines or epilepsy, both of which are known triggers for the condition.

AIWS most commonly occurs in children and adolescents and is often associated with migraines, temporal lobe epilepsy, mononucleosis (Epstein-Barr virus), and brain tumors. It can last for minutes or hours and may recur unpredictably. Some people also report distorted time perception, where minutes seem like hours or vice versa.

The condition is difficult to diagnose, in part because it’s so hard to describe and often mistaken for hallucinations or psychosis. Unlike hallucinations, however, AIWS doesn’t involve false sensory input—it’s a misinterpretation of real stimuli, often confirmed by the patient’s awareness that what they’re experiencing isn’t physically possible.

Although it’s considered benign, AIWS is profoundly disorienting, and the literary reference has stuck because no other name so vividly captures the condition’s unsettling blend of fantasy and neurology.^[4]

6 Harlequin Ichthyosis (Harlequin Baby)

Harlequin ichthyosis is an extremely rare and severe genetic disorder that affects the skin’s ability to act as a barrier, resulting in thick, armor-like plates of skin with deep, painful fissures. Newborns with the condition have bright red skin encased in large, diamond-shaped scales that often distort facial features, including eversion of the eyelids and lips.

The term “harlequin” refers to the checkered costume of the harlequin clown from Italian commedia dell’arte. However, in this context, it emphasizes the geometric, theatrical, and shocking appearance of the condition. The mutation responsible is in the ABCA12 gene, which is crucial for lipid transport in the epidermis.

Historically, infants with harlequin ichthyosis rarely survived beyond a few days due to dehydration, infections, and respiratory complications caused by skin rigidity. But modern NICU care, antibiotics, and retinoid therapy (especially the drug isotretinoin) have extended survival in some cases into adolescence and adulthood.

Public awareness of the condition increased after the story of Ryan Gonzalez, born in 1986 and believed to be the first long-term survivor. His case forced the medical community to revisit what was once considered uniformly fatal. The condition remains extremely rare—affecting fewer than one in a million births—but its terrifying presentation and distinctive skin pattern keep the mythic, jester-like name in clinical use.^[5]

5 Ondine’s Curse (Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome)

Ondine’s curse is a rare and potentially fatal neurological disorder in which the body’s automatic control of breathing fails—most critically during sleep. People with the condition must consciously remember to breathe or rely on mechanical ventilation when unconscious. It’s caused by mutations in the PHOX2 B gene, which is essential for developing the autonomic nervous system.

The congenital form, typically diagnosed in newborns, results in hypoventilation that’s especially dangerous during rest, since the body’s reflexive breathing shuts down. The acquired form can result from brainstem strokes or traumatic brain injury, though it’s far rarer. The name is drawn from the European myth of Ondine (or Undine), a water nymph who curses her unfaithful lover so that if he ever falls asleep, he will stop breathing.

The story, retold in 1930s German plays and early romantic literature, resonated with doctors observing patients who died quietly in their sleep without respiratory distress. The first documented medical usage of the name dates back to the 1960s, when a group of researchers studying central hypoventilation syndrome noted the haunting parallel.

Today, infants with Ondine’s Curse often require a tracheostomy and full-time ventilator support. However, diaphragmatic pacemakers are being explored as a treatment. Even in formal medical literature, the poetic name remains widely used, a rare example of folklore embedded in a diagnostic code.^[6]

4 Moebius Syndrome (Linked to the Gorgon Medusa)

Moebius syndrome is a congenital neurological condition that causes paralysis of the cranial nerves—most notably the sixth and seventh—resulting in an inability to move the eyes laterally and a total lack of facial expression. Patients are unable to smile, frown, or raise their eyebrows, giving their faces an unchanging, mask-like appearance. The syndrome is named after German neurologist Paul Julius Möbius, who documented the condition in the late 19th century. However, the blank, wide-eyed gaze and frozen facial posture have drawn comparisons to the mythical Medusa, the Gorgon from Greek mythology who turned anyone who looked into her eyes to stone.

Though the condition is neurological, not muscular, it profoundly affects communication and emotional expression, especially in children. Many individuals with Moebius Syndrome also have limb abnormalities, speech delays, and difficulty feeding. Because the facial immobility can appear unsettling or even “unnatural,” children with the disorder are often subject to bullying or misunderstanding.

Some advocacy organizations have leaned into the Medusa comparison in campaigns aimed at destigmatizing facial difference—recasting her not as a monster, but as a symbol of misjudged appearances. The mythological tie adds a layer of narrative weight to a disorder that, while rare, has a powerful impact on social identity and interaction.^[7]

3 Proteus Syndrome (The Elephant Man Disease)

Proteus syndrome is a rare, progressive disorder characterized by overgrowth of skin, bones, muscles, fatty tissues, and blood vessels. Named after the Greek sea god Proteus, known for his ability to change form, it causes different tissues in the body to grow at different rates, often asymmetrically. No two cases of Proteus syndrome are exactly alike, which is precisely why it bears the name of a shape-shifting deity.

The condition results from a mosaic mutation in the AKT1 gene, which occurs after conception and affects only some of the body’s cells, leading to patchy and unpredictable symptoms. The syndrome was unknown to the general public until the case of Joseph Merrick, the so-called “Elephant Man,” gained attention in the 19th century.

For years, it was assumed that Merrick had neurofibromatosis type 1, but later genetic analyses pointed more likely toward Proteus syndrome. In affected individuals, one limb may become dramatically enlarged while the other remains normal. Tumors and abnormal growths may form on the skull or spine, sometimes compromising mobility and organ function.

The disorder is both physically and socially isolating, given its dramatic visual manifestations. There is no cure, and treatment focuses on symptom management, surgical correction, and monitoring for associated health risks. The mythical allusion isn’t just metaphorical—doctors routinely refer to Proteus’s “shape-shifting legacy” in academic literature describing the syndrome’s clinical unpredictability.^[8]

2 Cyclopia (Cyclops)

Cyclopia is a rare and usually fatal congenital disorder in which a fetus develops only one eye or partially fused eye sockets in the center of the forehead. The condition occurs due to a failure of the embryonic forebrain to properly divide into two hemispheres, a defect known as holoprosencephaly. This leads to severe malformations of the brain, face, and sometimes limbs.

The condition is so rare that it occurs in fewer than 1 in 100,000 births, and most fetuses affected are either stillborn or die within hours of birth. The name “Cyclopia” derives directly from the mythological Cyclops of Greek legend—giant, one-eyed creatures associated with brute strength and isolation.

Historical texts from various cultures describe births with single eye sockets or craniofacial abnormalities as omens or divine punishments, often leading to infanticide or religious rituals. Fossil records of malformed animal skulls may have contributed to the Cyclops myth in the first place, especially elephant skulls with a central nasal cavity that could resemble a single eye socket to early observers.

In modern times, cyclopia remains a grim diagnosis, most often caught through prenatal ultrasound. The underlying genetic causes can include chromosomal abnormalities like trisomy 13 or exposure to teratogenic substances during pregnancy. Though the myth attached to the condition is thousands of years old, the eerie, central eye still resonates enough to keep the name firmly embedded in medical vocabulary.^[9]

1 St. Vitus’ Dance (Sydenham’s Chorea)

St. Vitus’ Dance, also known as Sydenham’s Chorea, is a neurological disorder marked by rapid, involuntary muscle movements that affect the face, hands, and feet. It typically follows a Group A streptococcal infection, such as strep throat. It is one of the major manifestations of rheumatic fever.

The condition is most commonly seen in children and adolescents, particularly girls, and symptoms may last weeks to months. In addition to uncontrollable muscle twitches, patients may experience emotional instability, muscle weakness, and difficulty with fine motor tasks. The medical name honors Thomas Sydenham, a 17th-century English physician who described the condition in detail.

The term “St. Vitus’ Dance,” however, has deeper folkloric roots. In medieval Europe, outbreaks of mass dancing—where individuals would convulse, flail, or move rhythmically for hours—were attributed to curses, demonic possession, or divine punishment. Victims would sometimes gather at the shrine of St. Vitus in hopes of relief. These events were likely mass psychogenic illnesses, but the term stuck and became associated with the jerky, dance-like movements of Sydenham’s Chorea.

The symbolic link between divine frenzy and neurological disorder reflects a time when medicine and myth overlapped regularly. The name still appears in colloquial usage, particularly in historical or religious contexts.^[10]

Let’s take a dive beneath the shallow waves off northern Australia, near the city of Darwin. There, tucked inside the convoluted channels of a sponge, lives a millimeter-sized animal that rewrites the rules of biology. It has one mouth, hundreds of butts, and no way to leave.

Ramisyllis multicaudata, a worm that doesn’t slither, swim, or squirm. It doesn’t roam the seafloor or dig through sediment. It doesn’t really move at all. Instead, it permanently stays embedded inside its sponge host — while hundreds of its rear ends crawl around on the outside, exploring the world for it. It’s an animal so strange that its discovery in 2006 sent ripples through the zoological community, and it continues to challenge how scientists think about body plans, symbiosis, and even individuality.

A worm that seems to defy biology

Our story starts with Petrosia sponges, commonly known as stony sponges for their hardened structures. Look across enough of these sponges and you’ll come across something extraordinary: a slender, branching worm with one head deeply buried near the base and up to a hundred or more tails snaking outward through the sponge’s water-filled canals.

Each one of those tails ends in an anus; in other words, this worm has tens or even hundreds of anuses. Every one of them is alive, wriggling, sensing and exploring while the worm itself has its head deeply embedded in the sponge.

The juvenile worm settles at the sponge’s base. Then it grows — not linearly, like most animals — but by branching. Over time, its body splits again and again, forming a dendritic structure like a tree with a single trunk and hundreds of writhing branches. Each branch contains not just muscle and skin, but a full complement of organ systems: gut, nerve cord, blood vessels.

This kind of branching is extraordinarily rare in the animal kingdom. In fact, R. multicaudata is one of only three known animals to pull off this architectural trick. The others — Syllis ramosa and Ramisyllis kingghidorahi — are also sponge-dwelling worms, but they evolved their bizarre forms independently, a striking case of convergent evolution.

The way the worm creates these new structures is absolutely stunning. Every time its body splits into a new tail, the internal architecture also splits. The gut forks, the nerve cords divide, the blood vessels branch. Even the muscles reorganize to maintain integrity.

Researchers have discovered special “muscle bridges” at these junctions — distinct bands of muscle that seem to stabilize the body at its most vulnerable points. These bridges may also serve as developmental fingerprints, allowing scientists to trace the growth history of an individual worm.

How do you nourish a hundred butts?

Despite having a fully functional digestive system running through every branch, Ramisyllis multicaudata poses a profound riddle: its gut is empty. Again and again, researchers have dissected specimens, expecting to find sponge particles or microbes — anything that could explain how the worm fuels its massive body. But the gut reveals almost nothing.

This leads to an astonishing possibility: the worm may be absorbing dissolved organic matter directly from the seawater flowing through the sponge’s canals. If true, that would make it one of the few animals known to sustain itself this way. Another hypothesis is that the worm is somehow tapping into the sponge’s microbial residents or harvesting nutrients in a more cryptic manner.

What’s certain is that it’s not munching on its host. Sponge skeletal elements — called spicules — are almost entirely absent from its gut. And there’s no visible damage to the sponge that would suggest parasitism.

But this may not even be the most bizarre thing about this worm. When it comes to reproduction, it goes completely out of the box.

“Tails, go reproduce!”

When it’s time to mate, the worm doesn’t go looking for a partner. Instead, some of its tails transform.

Each branch prepares a tiny reproductive unit called a stolon — essentially a detachable butt filled with either eggs or sperm. Then, as if possessed by an independent will, the stolon grows a pair of eyes, develops its own brain and nervous system, and breaks off from the parent worm.

These “autonomous gonads” swim away from the sponge into the open water, where they seek out stolons of the opposite sex. After releasing their genetic payload, they die… if they were even alive to begin with.

Meanwhile, the parent worm stays put and regenerates the lost tissue. In this way, a single R. multicaudata can dispatch tens or even hundreds of DNA-packed stolons into the world — each one a tiny, temporary organism with its own rudimentary “mind”.

This challenges what it even means to be an individual. Where does the “self” of the worm reside? Is it in the buried head, unseen and unmoving? Or is it dispersed across the network of branching bodies, each with its own agency?

In evolutionary terms, R. multicaudata operates more like a colony of modules than a traditional singular organism. It blurs the boundary between unitary and modular life — between being one thing and being many. This organism forces biologists to reconsider long-held assumptions about individuality, agency, and what it means to be a coherent living being.

A reminder of the unknown

That a creature so radically strange could live in plain sight — in shallow coastal waters near a city like Darwin — is a humbling reminder. The ocean still holds countless secrets, even in places where we think we’ve looked.

In a world of octopuses with arms that can taste, and jellyfish that may live forever, this worm may still be the most baffling animal of them all. Not because of what it lacks, but because of how radically it reimagines what a body can be like.

Disneyland is turning 70 this summer, and festivities begin this weekend at Walt Disney’s first theme park. While past anniversaries emphasized a throwback to opening day nostalgia, this milestone wants to bring the party energy like no other. Thankfully, that doesn’t mean turning the castle into a Birthday cake, but the zany fun comes in the form of mix-taping the greatest hits with the latest number ones from the studio.

After attending the media week preview at the Disneyland Resort, that’s what we loved about this year’s theme. The unabashed excitement for so many characters, from the fairytale Disney Princesses, The Muppets and Star Wars icons to the niche like Duffy the Disney Bear and A Goofy Movie. There were also incredible moments as well, including new Pixar and Disney animation faves Inside Out, Turning Red, Encanto and Moana all over the resort’s 70th offerings. It’s certainly celebration of cartoon chaos and we welcome Robot Walt’s imminent arrival in July to coincide with the actual anniversary of the opening date of the park.

Some of the best things we found at the event were discovered on their own. When I wandered around Disney California Adventure I stumbled upon the most unhinged Disneyland 70 merchandise. And it confirmed that Disney really got all of its various types of fans when I looked upon the face of an official googly-eyed Mickey Mouse shirt, and a spinner-top colorful baseball cap. Yes, there’s the glam Loungefly Minnie ears and purses and Disney trendy lifestyle spirit jerseys, but the zany and bizarre get representation too. What’s hilarious is that those items weren’t made with meme comedy in mind, but actually straight from the Disney Vault of yester-merchandise.

And just across the way at the Animation building, a new set of visuals debuted in the musical lobby which highlighted added moments from Coco, Moana, Encanto, The Princess and the Frog, and Zootopia. When I need a time to just bask in the magic of animation while staying out of the heat, this is where I (like so many others) go, and it’s such an underrated gem that rarely gets a refresh–not since the release of Frozen! And the Encanto representation at DCA didn’t stop there–while we love “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”, I’m glad to get a break from it to let the other amazing songs shine. In the new World of Color: Happiness, Anxiety from Inside Out 2 (my rising sun sign of the emotions) presents a great sequence where Luisa’s “Surface Pressure” gets a moment on the water, and it was so cool to hear everyone sing along. Hot take: it’s the better song between it and Bruno. The Muppets opener for the show is an all-timer, too, with a muppety death defying act from Gonzo the Great.

World of Color: Happiness also finally featured a kaiju-sized Panda Mei on the mist screen projections set to “Nobody Like You” which led into the best in-universe run of real fake Disney pop hits, right into a Powerline moment from “A Goofy Movie”. The beat drop on “I2I” sent the crowds into a frenzy as Powerline electrified the stage like we were really at the show with the Goofs. We are loving the Max Goof inclusion too, as he joins his dad over at Disneyland for the Celebrate Happy Character Calvacade parade, right behind Duffy and ShellieMay Bear leading the way. I know they’re tossing around all the different nomenclatures around “Happy”, but this was for those of us who are into the offbeat or niche things of the Disney fandom.

For Star Wars fans, there’s even a new R2 unit available at Droid Depot, with exteriors to match the pinks, purples, blues and yellow of the 70th. And we also took a peek at the new scrap pieces that debuted earlier this month for May the Fourth at Savi’s lightsaber build experience. The ombre chrome look of the blaster emitter is a fierce need. Unfortunately, these pieces aren’t individually available for those who have already built their lightsabers for over 200 bucks–if you want to cop these parts you’ll have to try to get in on the limited time action with another whopping purchase before they’re gone.

Paint the Night, the rave-inspired answer to the Electrical Parade is back and we got to see it near the Small World promenade with a special new projection show on the ride’s facade. Spooky and bizarro Disney lore fiends got a treat here with a fun Grim-Grinning Ghosts montage right into “Hellfire” from The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Mr. Toad crazy eyes, the crone Evil Queen and Frollo giving children some gateway frightful imagery that they’ll obsess over later in life. At the end of my second night, it capped off with Wondrous Journeys which takes the pages of countless animation cells and brings them to life on the Disneyland Castle walls showcasing the stories that have spoken to generations for 100 years.

It really does feel like Disney wanted to reach far and wide for the park’s big anniversary this year–and not be afraid to get a little zany in the process.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

The things that people like and dislike lie at the heart of their personality, shaping everything from their choice of friends to the lifestyle they live and their career. Yet preferences are also shrouded in mystery. Tracking down the influences that lead to people’s tastes and opinions is a challenging task fraught with uncertainty. Still, many psychologists have had a go, and their results have often been surprising. Here are ten strange things psychologists have learned about preferences.

Related: 10 Things That Restored Our Faith in Humanity

10 Minecraft Satisfies Children’s Innate Urges

The popular video game Minecraft is a rarity in modern entertainment. It can occupy kids and adults for hours. Keeping children engaged with one thing for so long is an impressive feat in a world that is seriously worried about decreasing attention spans. Now, psychologists think they know how Minecraft does it. In part, it is because “sandbox” games like Minecraft satisfy the same psychological urge in children as real sandboxes.

Like other mammals, young humans use play to develop skills to help them survive and mate. Because human survival is heavily based on the ability to make things, like shelters and tools, children feel a strong urge to do so during their playtime. It is also exactly what Minecraft allows them to do, explaining why they like it so much. The game’s many creative possibilities and its survival and social aspects may also help.^[1]

9 Thrill Seeking Is Biological

Some people claim that the rush of jumping out of a plane or riding a rollercoaster feels like nothing else, while others are reluctant to ever let their feet leave the ground. The former group might accuse the latter of being scared or insist they will love these activities once they try them. Still, psychological studies suggest that this is not the case. A person’s preference for cautiousness may be explained by their hormones.

Specifically, the hormones dopamine and cortisol help explain why some people prefer thrill seeking and others like to be cautious. Dopamine is sometimes referred to as a pleasure hormone, as it is present when people do things they like. On the other hand, cortisol is a stress hormone. When a thrill seeker does something like ride a rollercoaster, their dopamine levels go up, and their cortisol levels go down. However, their cautious counterparts experience the opposite effect.^[2]

8 Attractive Qualities Can Become Unattractive

It is common for people’s preferences to change over time. After all, time gives them a chance to learn more about something. However, new information does not always cause people’s tastes and opinions to shift. Sometimes, it is the very same qualities that make them like something or someone in the first place. This can happen in relationships, and the phenomenon is known in psychology as “fatal attraction.”

An example of fatal attraction would be liking a partner because of their powerful job, then becoming unhappy when they spend too much time at work. This makes some sense, but it is really strange that the more strongly they are attracted to that quality at first, the more likely it is to cause the couple to break up later. This could be because people first become attracted to very prominent traits of others, which may be extreme.^[3]

7 Why “Sadbait” Is Surprisingly Popular

“Sadbait” is a lesser-known relative of “ragebait,” a common type of online content that tries to make people so angry that they cannot resist engaging with it. As the name implies, sadbait tries to do the same thing by making people sad instead of angry. It often features people crying and sharing stories of their hardship, along with gloomy music. Although it sounds like something people should want to avoid, it is surprisingly popular.

Experts have attributed its success to a preference for strong displays of emotion online. This is a highly effective way for creators to hook viewers, but sad clips are especially potent because sharing emotions that are usually private can make viewers feel close to the creator. However, not all sadbait needs to show real people. AI images have been just as good at evoking feelings and getting engagement, and so have animated cats.^[4]

6 Some People Prefer Parasocial Relationships

When people feel close to a content creator or celebrity they have not met in real life, what they have is called a “parasocial relationship.” These are actually very common. Studies from 2024 found that 52% of more than 1,080 people from the UK and the U.S. reported having one, and over a third said they felt close to a YouTuber. Most surprisingly, some preferred the relationship with their YouTuber over some real-life relationships.

They said watching YouTube videos cheered them up more than speaking to casual friends, such as neighbors and co-workers. One psychologist from the study suggested that this is because their parasocial partners cannot reject them or tell them they are too busy. They can log on anytime and listen to someone they feel close to. As for the creators, many feel connected to their followers but do not feel expected to reach out to them individually.^[5]

5 People Prefer Romance in Winter

People’s preferences can be shaped by aspects of the world around them, such as the weather. For example, they are likely to prefer hot drinks to iced ones during winter. But sometimes the connection between the climate and their inclinations is less clear. For instance, research shows that people are more likely to choose to watch romantic movies during cold months. Surprisingly, the reason may be related to ancient survival instincts.

Many species huddle together to survive in the cold. Humans do something similar, spending more time indoors with others. Yet nobody consciously decides to do this, and if the theory of “social thermoregulation” is true, they do not have to. The theory suggests that cold snaps cause people to seek more social connections, which causes them to spend more time with others. Romantic movies also satisfy that desire for social connection, so people prefer them during winter.^[6]

4 Liking Laughter Isn’t Uniquely Human

Despite the popularity of sadbait, it is probably fair to say people prefer to laugh. Laughing is something babies do from as young as three months old, and by eight months, they know how to make adults do it. As they get older, the ways they evoke laughter become more complex. Practical jokes, for example, require people to see things from their victim’s perspective, anticipating their expectations and reactions. So it is surprising to learn that animals like jokes too.

Great apes have been observed teasing each other, and dolphins, elephants, parrots, and even rats appear to enjoy a laugh. Charles Darwin observed that dogs also seem to have a sense of humor. Of course, it is hard to know from watching them if they are laughing or why. Humans are thought to like laughing because it helps strengthen social bonds, but scientists do not know yet if this is true for other species.^[7]

3 Sharing Food Shapes Feelings

Shared meals are another means by which people build stronger social connections. They have likely been a feature of human societies since cavemen were cooking over campfires, and they have actually been shown to make eating more pleasurable. Eating produces endorphins, which are hormones that make people feel good. And when people do an activity at the same time as another person, they produce up to twice as many endorphins. This has an interesting impact on their preferences and choices.

For example, people seem to place more trust in those they have shared meals with. One study from the University of Chicago showed that people preferred to invest money with those they had eaten with, even if they only shared some candy. The research also showed that people who shared snacks were quicker at reaching an agreement during negotiations, suggesting that people may be less rigid in their preferences when they conflict with the wishes of others they trust.^[8]

2 Comfort Foods May Not Exist

Supposed “comfort foods” may vary by culture, but many think the concept is universal. Comfort foods are meant to be familiar, often high-calorie dishes that people turn to in times of crisis, like ice cream after a breakup. However, the truth about whether people really prefer certain foods when there is turmoil in their lives is more complex. Some research suggests that people dealing with problems actually like to try new things.

Another unusual finding about comfort foods is that men prefer to eat them when celebrating, not for comfort. Women are more likely to eat them when in a low mood, although respondents in that study said such foods made them feel guilt, not joy. People do not necessarily prefer sweet foods when struggling or sad, either. Pizza actually topped a poll of America’s favorite comfort foods, and chicken soup is also a popular choice.^[9]

1 Randomness Helps Reveal True Preferences

Supermarkets confront shoppers with shelves full of competing versions of the same products. The number of slightly different variations of a single product can be even more extreme online. There comes a point where it is all too much, when people are presented with so many choices that they cannot form a preference. This is known as “analysis paralysis.” It is often underpinned by a fear of making a bad choice and missing out on something better.

People often try to solve analysis paralysis by seeking more information about the choices, but this rarely helps. What actually seems to work is letting fate play a role. One study in Switzerland found that by flipping a coin to see whether they should stick with an initial decision, people actually showed more satisfaction with their choice. Strangely, they were even more likely to prefer their first choice when the coin told them to change it.^[10]

When Devin Peterson bit into a Scotch bonnet pepper, he expected fire. What he got instead was something much tamer.

The chili was rated at 800 Scoville units — supposed to deliver a good sting — but the sensation didn’t match at all. Peterson, a flavor chemist at The Ohio State University, knew something wasn’t adding up. For over a century, the Scoville scale has been the gold standard for measuring a pepper’s heat, pegging spiciness to the concentration of two molecules: capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin. But now, it seemed, some chilies were defying the math.

So began a scientific detective story that would upend what we thought we knew about chili heat — and point the way toward a condiment of the future: the anti-spice.

When Scoville Falls Short

Capsaicinoids — like capsaicin — bind to specific nerve receptors in our mouths. It’s the same receptor that responds to scalding heat or a wasp sting. In other words, spiciness is technically pain rather than flavor. This fiery illusion is what makes spicy food thrilling — or unbearable.

Peterson and his colleagues set out to find out why some peppers taste milder than their Scoville rating suggests.

They began with 10 powdered chili varieties, including the fiery Scotch bonnet, the sharp African bird’s eye, and the citrusy Fatalii. Each sample was analyzed using a method called liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to precisely measure its capsaicinoid content. Then, the team added equal amounts of these compounds — enough for a mild but noticeable kick of 800 Scoville units — to samples of tomato juice.

Trained tasters evaluated each sample. What they found was that despite identical levels of heat molecules, the perceived spiciness varied dramatically between peppers. Some samples seemed up to 50% less hot than expected.

That was a clear signal. Something else in the chili was modulating the burn.

Meet the Anti-Spice Molecules

To dig deeper, the researchers performed additional chemical analyses and crunched the numbers. What emerged were three standout suspects: capsianoside I, roseoside, and gingerglycolipid A. These compounds were most abundant in the peppers with unexpectedly low heat.

All three are glucosides — molecules that include a sugar unit. When added alongside capsaicinoids, these compounds dulled the perceived burn without adding any noticeable flavor. A new set of 37 taste testers compared chili-laced tomato juice with and without the mystery compounds, applying the samples to opposite sides of their tongues to ensure a fair comparison.

The anti-spice molecules consistently reduced the chili burn by 0.7 to 1.2 points on a 15-point scale. They are effectively anti-spice compounds. They take the edge off.

Exactly how they do this isn’t fully understood yet. Peterson speculates that the glucosides may interact with the same nerve receptors that capsaicinoids target, altering how they send burning signals to the brain.

Barry Smith, a sensory scientist at the University of London, called the experimental design “very clever” and praised the use of the “half-tongue” testing method. “It shows the Scoville scale isn’t a very precise instrument for describing how hot a chili is,” he noted in an interview with New Scientist.

A New Frontier for Flavor — and Medicine

These anti-spice molecules could help create a new class of culinary tools. Imagine a natural ingredient that lets you dial down a sauce that turned out too fiery — or lets your spice-averse kids enjoy the same food as you.

“Sometimes when I’ve ordered food with my kids and it’s too spicy, that’s a no-go,” Peterson said. “So, the idea of having some kind of a natural compound to dial it back may be appealing.”

In time, growers might even breed peppers with more or less of these compounds to match different taste profiles — hotter, milder, or just better balanced. “Knowing about these anti-spice chemicals could allow growers to breed or genetically modify plants so they lack them to create valuable, even hotter chilies,” Peterson told New Scientist.

The molecules may also hold medical promise. Because they seem to suppress the same nerve pathways that signal pain, they could inspire new, non-opioid analgesics — pain relievers without the risk of addiction.

“This opens up new avenues for pharmaceutical development,” Peterson added. “The discovery of natural dietary compounds that reduce pungency presents promising opportunities for both the food and pharmaceutical industries.”

As with menthol, which cools the tongue through a similar neural trick, future research might explore whether these anti-spice molecules can blunt other sensations as well. Could they, for instance, tame the burn of wasabi or the tingle of ginger?

For now, the humble chili pepper — equally feared and cherished — shows that it can still be full of surprises.

The findings appeared in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.