Smart News

The variable stars flickering to the golden ratio are RR Lyrae — a class of pulsars first found in the constellation Lyra (bisected by the Milky Way here)

New Research

Pulsing Stars Flicker in a Pattern Close to the Golden Ratio

The famed ratio, which shows up in art, architecture and nature, can also be found in space

New Research

Gene Changes Make Humans’ Sense of Taste Unique

Our ability to eat bitter plants help distinguish us from our ancestors and chimpanzees today

New Research

The Universe’s Oldest Stars Likely Lit Up Way Later Than Once Thought

Data gathered by the European Space Agency’s Planck telescope indicates that the universe was dark for about 550 million years after the big bang

New Research

Has Facebook Become the Internet?

The social network’s worldwide reach is leading to some serious confusion

Trending Today

Here’s The Most Expensive Painting Ever Sold

A Gauguin painting broke the price record this week, selling for nearly $300 million

New Research

Chimpanzees May Have Their Own Form of Bilingualism

Humans aren’t the only primates capable of learning new “words” for the same object

Cool Finds

Neil Armstrong Had a Secret Stash of Moon Stuff

“Lost” Apollo 11 artifacts are now found

Rosa Parks addresses a crowd in 1989 on the 25th anniversary of the signing of the civil rights legislation.

Trending Today

The Library of Congress Now Has Rosa Parks’ Personal Letters

The loan of over 10,000 documents from the Civil Rights icon’s personal life reveals her complexity and inner struggles—as well as one solid pancake recipe

A yellow crazy ant

Cool Finds

Invasive, Acid-Spraying Ants in Hawaii Are Deforming Native Seabird Chicks

The ground-dwelling chicks are pestered by invasive ants spraying acid

One of the HIV-prevention medications, a pill called Truvada

New Research

A Setback for HIV Prevention Trial: Getting People To Take the Medicine

Women didn’t take their preventative medications, even those proven to work, for fear of side effects

New Research

Pigeons' Brains Work Kind of Like Ours

A small study showed impressive categorizing abilities in three pigeons

Cards Against Humanity now owns a private island in Maine.

Cool Finds

Cards Against Humanity Has a Private Island

“Hawaii 2” started as a joke, turned into an island owned by the card game and licensed to its players

A Buddhist monk prays in a temple. Scientists recently discovered the mummified body of a Buddhist monk some say is in a long-term trance.

Cool Finds

Is This Mummy Dead…Or Meditating?

Some Buddhists claim this well-preserved monk is in a deep meditative state

The results of agriculture changed our mouths, but not completely for the better.

New Research

Before Agriculture, Human Jaws Were a Perfect Fit for Human Teeth

The emergence of agricultural practices initiated major changes to the jaw structure of ancient humans, leading to dental problems we still experience

Trending Today

Starving Sea Lions Are Piling Up on California Beaches

It's the third year of a crisis that's confusing scientists

New Research

How Space Travel Can Damage Our Immune Systems

Research finds that living in low-gravity conditions can take a toll that goes far beyond an aversion to dehydrated foods

Dyed droplets are propelled off leaves by simulated rainfall

New Research

Life-Giving Rain Also Spreads Deadly Plant Disease

High-speed cameras show how leaf flexibility influences raindrop dispersal into the air — along with pathogens picked up from infected plants

New Research

Creating Drought-Tolerant Plants By Hacking Their Natural Responses

Which new technique will help plants survive with less water?

Hikers in the North Cascade mountains of Washington, on the Pacific Crest Trail

Trending Today

The Pacific Crest Trail Is So Popular It Needs a New Permit System

Only 50 people per day will be allowed to start thru-hikes from the southern terminus

An Enigma deciphering machine from the German navy

Cool Finds

Notes From Alan Turing’s Code-Breaking Days Found in Roof Insulation

The rare code-breaking documents include sheets used to calculate settings for the machine working on "Enigma"

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