Maris Fessenden

 

Maris Fessenden is a freelance science writer and artist who appreciates small things and wide open spaces.

Johannes Vermeer's "The Concert" was one of the most valuable paintings stolen from the Gardener Museum

Could This Video Solve One of History's Greatest Art Mysteries?

Footage shows an unknown man entering the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum the night before the infamous robbery

A family tunes in to the 1976 debate

Americans Have Always Loved to Hate Presidential Debates

Audiences are ambivalent — but they still tune in

Tsuyuko Nakao, 92 and Kinuyo Ikegami, 77 both survived the atomic bombing in Hiroshima, pictured here in 2010.

The Health Effects of the Atom Bomb Are Still Being Studied

Studies of Hiroshima and Nagasaki survivors influence worldwide radiation standards, even 70 years later

Blueberries: A Biography

The world's commercial blueberries all have their roots in New Jersey

The Sydney Opera House at night

He Designed the Sydney Opera House...But Wasn't Even Invited to its Opening

Somehow, an inexperienced architect and a mismanaged project still produced one of the world's most iconic buildings

Satellite images of the Moon moving around the Earth

Breathtaking Space GIF Gives Earth a New Perspective of the Moon

NASA's EPIC camera took the image a million miles from Earth

Black chicken served with bamboo shoots and caterpillar fungus

Why This Chicken is Black From Comb to Feathers to Muscles

The Ayam Cemani is the Goth of the chicken world

A resident walks along the border of an Indian enclave within Bangladesh

This Was the Turducken of Border Disputes

Dahala Khagrabari (#51) used to be a piece of India inside Bangladesh, inside India, inside Bangladesh

Iceberg Lake and melting glacier in Glacier National Park

Glaciers Are Retreating Faster Than Before

The future of Earth's glaciers is unsettling at best

Roofs became pleas for help for people and their pets following Hurricane Katrina

How Hurricane Katrina Changed Pets' Legal Status

The loss of thousands of pets to the hurricane encouraged lawmakers to rethink society’s responsibility to animals

Artist’s view of a black hole — the normal sized kind, mini black holes would be cuter.

Why Super-Small Black Holes Haven’t Destroyed the Universe

And probably won't

Sri Lakan Slender Loris

Why Primatologists Love Collecting Poop

There's intel inside monkey feces — in the form of DNA

Coal power plant in New Mexico

How Do U.S. Carbon Emissions Rank Internationally?

It's complicated

A mosaic of Mars from Mariner 6 and Mariner 7

How NASA Dealt With Images of an Alien Planet in the 1960s

The alien planet was Mars and the process was just a bit simpler than it is today

Most kids, even those with autism, don’t need to see this guy’s smile to tell he is happy.

Kids With Autism Can Read Emotions Through Body Language

A new study challenges the misconception that kids with the disorder lack empathy

An actor, playing the role of a vaccine against Ebola, performs at a school in Abidja, Ivory Coast, last September

Experimental Ebola Vaccine Gives 100 Percent Protection in Trial

An unusual trial design helped prove the vaccine safe and effective in less than a year

We Crave Comfort Food to Feel Less Alone

This is why you can't stop eating corndogs

An artist’s vision of what the night sky would look like from a planet at the heart of an ultracompact galaxy

These Super-Dense Galaxies Are Bursting With Stars

Life in these systems would have trouble starting, but the night skies would be spectacular to behold

Half of Devil's Kettle Falls plunges underground — then simply disappears

The Mystery of Minnesota's Disappearing River

Half a river is missing in the Judge C.R. Magney State Park

Players from the University of Sydney and McGill University grapple over the quaffle during the 2014 Quidditch World Cup in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Muggles, Rejoice: Quidditch is Becoming a Serious Sport

The Harry Potter-inspired game is now played by more than 300 teams around the world

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