Articles

Could the Death Star Destroy a Planet?

Students in England concluded that the Star Wars space station could easily have destroyed an Earth-like planet

January 11, 2012

Moving Sidewalks Before The Jetsons

The public's fascination with the concept of "movable pavement" extends back more than 130 years

January 11, 2012

Waging War on Mammals in New Zealand

The family spent days in a cabin eating food, provided by the New Zealand Department of Conservation, which requested to stomp on kiwi-killing vermin

January 10, 2012

Dinosaurian Snorkels, Air Tanks and Tubas

Parasaurolophus is one of the most perplexing dinosaurs - what did it use its huge crest for?

January 10, 2012

The Hirshhorn Turns Labor Into Art with “Black Box: Ali Kazma”

Turkish video artist Ali Kazma captures the actions of a man who seems to be the most efficient stamper of paper ever at the Hirshhorn's Black Box Theater

January 10, 2012

What Is Enriched Uranium?

Naturally occurring uranium doesn't have enough of the fissile isotope U-235 to set off a nuclear reaction, but scientists found ways to increase the stuff

January 10, 2012

How to Plan a Party Based on Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party

I'm putting on my event planner hat to offer up the following ideas for a party inspired by an Impressionist painting

January 10, 2012

Prohibition’s Premier Hooch Hounds

January 10, 2012

The Civil War

How Newspapers Reported the Civil War

A collection of historic front pages shows how civilians experienced and read about the war

January 10, 2012

Charles H. Sternberg’s Lost Dinosaurs

On December 6, 1916, a German military vessel sunk a highly-valued shipment of Canadian dinosaurs

January 9, 2012

A Preview of CES: When Cars Become Smartphones

Is the day coming when your car will talk to your alarm clock and also check your heart rate?

January 9, 2012

Events January 10-12: Mission Impossible, Talking about Andy, Webby Talk

This week, experience Mission: Impossible in IMAX, rediscover the iconic work of Andy Warhol, and learn about the most innovative work happening on the Web

January 9, 2012

Did Bigfoot Really Exist? How Gigantopithecus Became Extinct

Dental, dietary and environmental clues help explain why the world's largest ape vanished

January 9, 2012

What Does Home Smell Like?

Salmon's powerful, ingrained sense of smell allows them to return to the exact stream of their birth for spawning.

January 9, 2012

The Tallest Mountains in the Solar System

Mount Everest is a just a peewee when compared with such giants as Olympus Mons on Mars

January 9, 2012

How Samuel Morse Got His Big Idea

On this day in 1838, Samuel Morse publicly demonstrated his telegraph for the first time. But how did he get the idea in the first place?

January 6, 2012

Seeing a New South in Joyful Noise and Undefeated

Two new films show how far we've come since The Birth of a Nation and In the Heat of the Night

January 6, 2012

Mobsters Tremble Before the Crime-Fighting, Red Flying Gondola

Science-fiction pioneer Hugo Gernsback predicted that, as long as police officers were stuck on terra firma, criminals always would have the edge

January 6, 2012

Charles R. Knight’s Prehistoric Visions

Charles R. Knight, one of the greatest paleoartists ever, battled his boss, artistic society and his own eyesight to bring prehistoric creatures to life

January 6, 2012

Fish Mimics Fish-Mimicking Octopus

The black-marble jawfish takes advantage of its coloring to blend in with an octopus and stay safe from predators

January 6, 2012