Smart News Ideas &amp; Innovations

Scientists Have Been Studying Two Fake Human Pheromones for Decades

Two chemicals provided by a perfume company appear in a 1991 research paper and side-track years of work on human pheromones

March 13, 2015

There’s an Invader in the International Space Station

An Invader mosaic has found its way to space

March 13, 2015

A computer that passes the new test would be able to say which people in this scene from Pushkar, India, are carrying objects and which are riding bikes

Now the Turing Test Goes Visual

A proposed test would have computer programs not only pick out what is in a photo but what is happening

March 13, 2015

"The Legal Justice League" celebrates the first four women to sit on the country's highest court.

Celebrating the Women of the Supreme Court With LEGOs

What better way to hail the female trailblazers of the bench than miniaturizing them into tiny toys?

March 11, 2015

When Even the Simplest Word Looks Weird And Wrong You Have Wordnesia

We don’t really know why it happens, but at least there is a term for it

March 11, 2015

London’s Congestion Pricing Plan Is Saving Lives

By charging $17.34 for a trip downtown during peak hours, London has reduced traffic fatalities by 40 percent

March 10, 2015

Why’s Wikimedia Suing the NSA?

Wikimedia Foundation joins Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and others to protest mass surveillance online

March 10, 2015

How Dick Tracy Invented the Smartwatch

The detective’s two-way wrist radio paved the way for the Apple Watch and other wearables

March 9, 2015

This Is Next-Level Origami

From dancing cranes to protective structures, origami is popping up in science and tech

March 6, 2015

NASA’s Next Space Robot Was Inspired by a Baby’s Toy

Meet the Super Ball Bot, a flexible robot that could explore new planets

March 5, 2015

Paul Allen used his superyacht Octopus to locate a Japanese battleship near the Philippines.

Microsoft Billionaire Finds Enormous Sunken Japanese Battleship

Paul Allen used his megayacht to locate the long-lost ship, which has been missing since World War II

March 4, 2015

The FCC Just Voted to Preserve Net Neutrality

FCC passes “Preserving the Open Internet” rules by 3-2 vote

February 26, 2015

Screen shot of video "Global ship traffic seen from space - FleetMon Satellite AIS and FleetMon Explorer"

See Shipping Traffic Move Through Straits Around the World

A visualization shows a week’s worth of vessel movement

February 24, 2015

Amsterdam Is Out of Bike Parking

The city will create 40,000 new bike parking spaces by 2030

February 24, 2015

Save the Birds By Embarrassing Your Cat

Outfitting cats in colorful collars may be one key to preventing them from effectively preying on birds and other small animals

February 23, 2015

Is That Pill a Placebo? This Program Can Tell, Even If You Can't

A new algorithm could make it faster and less expensive to develop new painkillers

February 19, 2015

LED Skylights Perfectly Mimic Natural Sunlight

The lights fool human brains and camera eyes

February 18, 2015

Found: A New Tool in the Fight Against HIV

New approach offers “vaccine-like” protection against HIV

February 18, 2015