Attention at all passengers. You can now book your train tickets on Uber and get 10% back in Uber credits to spend on your next train journey.

So no excuses not to visit your in-laws this Christmas.

Trains now on Uber. Tees and sees apply check the Uber app. This is scientific American 60 second science.

I'm Christopher Intagata.

You never know if your loved ones are going to like what you bought them for the holidays.

But one thing you can count on, a huge... if your loved ones are going to like what you bought them for the holidays.

But one thing you can count on, a huge pile of paper trash, the detritus from unwrapping presents.

Americans spend more than $8 billion a year on wrapping paper, according to a recent report by

Sundale research, and we toss millions of pounds of that precious paper in the

garbage. Truth is, it's not that easy to recycle.

metallic or shiny wrapping papers can't be recycled,

neither can bows or ribbons,

and tissue paper doesn't have long enough fibers for recycling.

One municipal recycler suggests composting tissue paper instead.

And though we're spending a lot of money on wrapping paper and ribbons today,

Grandview research forecasts will be buying more decorative boxes, pouches, and bags in the future, which is a more sustainable

choice because those items can be used year after year.

Wrapping gifts in fabric, a Japanese tradition, is also growing in popularity.

And if you're wondering whether you should even bother

wrapping next year's presence, a 1992 study in the Journal of

Consumer Psychology found that people were happier with their gifts

when they got to unwrap them.

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