There’s a definite post-Christmas feel to this latest selection of links to articles you probably missed.
Astronomers take yet another look at interpreting the Star of Bethlehem and relating it to the actual biblical accounts.
Virgin births are not quite as rare as we might think — except for humans.
Five things you didn’t know about Christmas Trees, including their ability to turn to glass at very low temperatures.

While on plants, there’s a new herbicide craze sweeping America … goats. Turns out they eat almost anything (well who knew?) and so are quite good at clearing overgrown land.
But how do we clear all our drugs out of the water supply? It seems that a lot of the drugs we take come out the other end and survive the sewage system and water purification. So not only are we getting minute doses of all sorts of chemicals, but fish are getting blissed out on Prozac! OK the article is US-centric, but there is no reason to presume the UK is any different. [Long read]
Where do you go to see wildlife? You would think you’d go to the depths of the country. But there is far more wildlife in our towns and cities than we realise — and some ecologists are now realising it is worth studying. Again the article is US-centric but urban areas in the UK are just as full of wildlife if you know where (and how) to look.
For some reason we seem to find blue eyes attractive. But how do they get their colour? Well actually they don’t, they are just not brown. Here’s a brief explanation.
[NSFW] Scientists have been looking at female ejaculation and come to the conclusion it comes in two varieties. Much to the disbelief of many girlies, apparently.
While on the subject of “lady bits” … Girls do you fancy turning your vagina into a video game controller? Turns out there is a product imminent to do just that, and let you do your Kegel exercises at the same time. Brings a whole new meaning to Wii.
Spoon Theory. Christine Miserandino developed her spoon theory as an analogy of what it is like to live with sickness or disability. An enlightening read and also a great analogy.
OK, so lets get onto something much more fun … Champagne.
First off here’s something which (starts to) explain some of Champagne’s chemistry which makes it so alluring.
Although it seems that Champagne hasn’t always been bubbly, and we probably have the 17th-century Benedictine monk Dom Pérignon to thank for the fizz. Rebecca Rupp has the history.
Meanwhile Stephen Clarke in the Guardian goes on a short Champagne tour and is enchanted by some of the small houses like Roger Brun, in the village of Aÿ near Epernay.
And then of course there is that other winter-time favourite: mulled wine. Everyone seems to have their own favourite recipe, but Andy Connelly, again in the Guardian, has a method.
Maybe after all that alcohol we’d better have some food, although nothing too heavy. Avocados need big herbivores to spread their giant seeds. But there aren’t too many elephants left now in the avocado’s native Mexico, so we humans have taken over the job.
And then there is the other food of the Gods, the olive. And yes, according to Greek legend it was indeed a gift from the Gods.
Which brings us nicely to history and the cult of Edward the Confessor, our last truly Anglo-Saxon king.

Still on history, I bring you chirographs … the way Medieval lawyers ensured their documents were verifiable.
And finally I’ll leave you with some strange predictions from 1930.