What Earth Would Have Really Looked Like in Adam Driver's '65'

If you were to travel back in time you’d find a mix of the familiar and strange on our planet | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 10 days ago

This Breakthrough Could Make Longer-Lasting Batteries and Better Power Grids—if It Works

A new superconductor could revolutionize energy, but doubts surround the researchers, who published a similar paper in 2020 that was later retracted | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

Postal Service Unveils Forever Stamp Honoring Toni Morrison

A ceremony at Princeton celebrated the Nobel laureate whose words transformed American literature | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

Toxic Red Tide Is Back in Florida—Here's What to Know

Caused by an overgrowth of algae, the blooms can be harmful to humans, pets and marine wildlife | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

David Chipperfield Wins Pritzker Prize, the Highest Honor in Architecture

The civic-minded architect is respectful of the past as he pushes his field forward | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

Scientists Are Trying to Figure Out How Animals Follow a Scent to Its Source

Uncovering the varied strategies that animals employ could help engineers develop robots that accomplish similar tasks | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

Thousands of Artists Reimagine Vermeer's 'Girl With a Pearl Earring'

A Dutch museum selected winning works by five artists—and one A.I. image generator | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

Scientists Name New Fungus-Killing Compounds After Keanu Reeves

The bacteria are highly effective against a common plant pest and a pathogen that infects humans | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

This A.I. Used Brain Scans to Recreate Images People Saw

The technology, which was tested with four people, is still in its infancy but could one day help people communicate or decode dreams, researchers say | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

The Sideshow Magician Who Inspired Ray Bradbury—Then Vanished

Experts have been unable to verify the existence of Mr. Electrico, whose 1932 electric chair act supposedly affirmed the young author's interest in writing | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 11 days ago

Smiling Sphinx Statue Unearthed in Egypt

Researchers suspect the Roman-era limestone figure may depict the emperor Claudius | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

Bumblebees Learn to Open Puzzle Boxes From Each Other

New findings might suggest the insects have a capacity for culture, researchers say | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

Indie Film Studio A24 Buys Off-Broadway Theater

The studio made its first foray into live performance with the purchase of the Cherry Lane Theater | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

Why Scientists Are Studying the Stray Dogs Living at Chernobyl

A new study is a first step toward understanding how radiation exposure might affect DNA | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

'The Great British Bake Off Musical' Comes to London's West End

A new stage adaptation aims to capture the heart of the beloved baking show | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

Historic Treaty Protects Marine Life in the 'High Seas'

The United Nations agreement will help conserve 30 percent of the planet’s oceans by 2030 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

Adventurer Elise Wortley Recreates the Journeys of Famous Female Explorers

For historical accuracy, the 33-year-old Brit wears only the cotton dresses, yak wool coats and hobnail boots that her predecessors would have had | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

How Lunar Cycles Guide the Spawning of Sea Creatures

Researchers are starting to understand the biological rhythms that sync worms and corals to phases of the moon | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 12 days ago

Why Newborn Chicks Love Objects That Defy Gravity

A clever new study shows the cute critters will often scuttle toward a video of a rising ball | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

Ancient DNA Sheds Light on Europe's Hunter-Gatherers

Researchers looked at the genomes of several hundred people who lived before, during and after the last ice age | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

One Woman's Quest to Eat 244 Scones Across U.K. Is Now Complete

Over ten years, Sarah Merker has tried—and ranked—scones at National Trust sites in England, Wales and Northern Ireland | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

How Vacationers on Antarctic Cruises Are Filling in Scientific Gaps

From ships and submarines, citizen scientists can access remote areas ripe for new discoveries. But does the research make up for the climate impact? | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

Archaeologists Find Evidence of Earliest Known Horseback Riders

New research indicates that humans were riding horses as early as 5,000 years ago | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

Some Whales Use a Creaky 'Vocal Fry' Voice to Find Food

Like humans, toothed whales have three vocal registers: chest, falsetto and vocal fry | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

For 100 Years, the Alaska Railroad Has Been a Critical Artery Pumping Passengers and Freight Through the State

Along with celebrations, the centennial offers a chance to consider the effects the rail system has had on the state and its people | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

Japanese American Artists Recall the Trauma of Wartime Incarceration

Smithsonian podcasts explore the legacy of Executive Order 9066 and the camera that almost didn’t make it to the Juno spacecraft launch | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

The Most Enigmatic Works in Art History

A new book highlights 100 artistic curiosities, from the nude "Mona Lisa" to portraits of a dog-headed saint | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

How Edith Wilson Kept Herself—and Her Husband—in the White House

A new book about the first lady reveals how she and the ailing President Woodrow Wilson silenced their critics | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 13 days ago

Judy Heumann, Mother of the Disability Rights Movement, Dies at 75

After becoming New York City's first teacher in a wheelchair, Heumann spent decades advocating for Americans with disabilities | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

Kids Discover That EpiPens May Not Work in Space

After returning from space, the life-saving drug epinephrine had partially changed into poisonous benzoic acid | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

Researchers Examine 3,500-Year-Old Brown Bear Preserved in Siberian Permafrost

Found in 2020, the animal was originally declared to be a cave bear from the Ice Age | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

Dutch Artists Compete to Paint Like Vermeer in New Reality Show

The contestants are tasked with recreating six of the old master's lost works | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

Dictionary.com Adds More Than 300 New Words

Additions like “digital nomad,” “anti-fat” and “liminal space” reflect the dynamic nature of the English language | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

The Unusual European Journey of Thor the Walrus

It's rare to see one of these massive marine mammals in Western Europe, but Thor spent several months delighting crowds in multiple countries | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

Scientists Discover Oldest Known Fossils of Pollen-Carrying Insects

It’s unclear whether the creatures were pollinating prehistoric plants or just getting a snack | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

The Brief but Shining Life of Paul Laurence Dunbar, a Poet Who Gave Dignity to the Black Experience

A prolific writer, he inspired such luminaries as Maya Angelou and Langston Hughes | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 14 days ago

Hidden Chamber Revealed Inside Great Pyramid of Giza

Researchers used cosmic-ray imaging to uncover the 30-foot-long corridor | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

Four Astronauts Arrive at the International Space Station

Despite a launch delay and docking issue, the space travelers are now onboard the orbiting laboratory | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

The Lincoln Memorial Is Getting a New Underground Museum

Crews are starting work on the $69 million project this month and hope to finish by 2026 | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

Rare Jurassic-Era Insect Discovered at Arkansas Walmart

The species had not been recorded in eastern North America for more than 50 years—and never documented in the state | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

129-Year-Old Vessel Still Tethered to Lifeboat Found on Floor of Lake Huron

The 'Ironton' has been perfectly preserved since the day it sank in 'Shipwreck Alley' | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

Behind the Scenes of the New Reality Series, ‘The Exhibit’

Seven artists compete for a $100,000 purse and an exhibition at the Hirshhorn in this ground-breaking show airing on the Smithsonian Channel | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

NASA's Moon Dust Problem Might Finally Have a Solution

Researchers sprayed liquid nitrogen at spacesuit-clad Barbie dolls to test their novel idea | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

In Namibia, Lions Are King of the Beach

As the big cats return to hunting fur seals on the Skeleton Coast, a new project tries to keep people out of the way | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

Mina Miller Edison Was Much More Than the Wife of the 'Wizard of Menlo Park'

The second wife of Thomas Edison, she viewed domestic labor as a science, calling herself a "home executive" | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 17 days ago

These Mythical Sea Monsters May Have Been Whales With Unusual Dining Habits

Tales of creatures like the Norse “hafgufa” suggest ancient and medieval people may have seen whales trap feeding | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 18 days ago

New Sleeper Train Will Connect Amsterdam and Barcelona

The proposed route is part of a broader push to increase cross-border rail travel in Europe | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 18 days ago

Ancient Comb Made From Human Skull Unearthed in England

The Iron Age artifact may have been used as an amulet rather than a hairstyling tool | Continue reading


@smithsonianmag.com | 18 days ago