Meilan Solly

Meilan Solly

 

Meilan Solly is Smithsonian magazine's associate digital editor, history.

“A great deal of slow poisoning is going on in Great Britain,” Birmingham doctor William Hinds wrote in 1857, as widespread coverage of arsenic-related deaths began to turn the public away from the toxin

Arsenic-Laced Books Discovered in University Library

During the Victorian era, the toxin was commonly found hidden in wallpaper, paints and dyes

Fabergé Silver Elephant Automaton Royal Collection Trust

Automata History Comes Alive in the 'Marvellous Mechanical Museum'

The new exhibition at Compton Verney features a Fabergé elephant with swinging trunk and a gigantic kinetic sculpture by Rowland Emett

An interactive timeline details about 20,000 of the archaeologists’ finds, complete with images and descriptions of the wide array of objects

New Website Unearths Amsterdam’s History Via 700,000 Artifacts Spanning 5,000 Years

The recovered items span thousands of years, and include coins, cell phones, dentures and more

The continent is now losing 219 billion tons of ice a year, a staggering figure scientists say could raise sea levels six inches by 2100.

Antarctic Ice Loss Has Tripled Over the Past Decade

Since 1992, the continent has lost more than 3.3 trillion tons of ice, triggering a quarter-inch rise in global sea levels

The goal, Ruth Jarman says, is to “transcend the data so that it becomes something else"

'HALO' Makes Art Out of Subatomic Particle Collisions at Art Basel

The site-specific installation by British artist duo Semiconductor revisits the universe’s first moments

Researchers examined 400 photographs and 100 paintings dating between 1500 and 2015

Why Artists Have so Much Trouble Painting Lightning

A new study compares painted versus photographed depictions of lightning bolts' offshooting branches

Recordings are available via Soundcloud and the Google Arts & Culture platform

How to Hear the Met’s Historic Instruments' Singular Sounds

New audio recordings by the museum feature roughly 40 instruments, from Ming dynasty lute to the world’s oldest surviving piano

The hoard of £1 and £5 notes has a face value of about £30,000—or £1.5 million (roughly $2 million) in today’s currency

$2 Million in World War II-Era Cash Found Under Floor of Churchill's Tailor

The 30 bundles of £1 and £5 notes were likely stashed away amidst wartime uncertainty

Works by artists including Wassily Kandinsky, Emil Nolde and Ernest Kirchner were featured in both the 1937 "Degenerate Art" exhibition and the 1938 British show

How the Brits Refuted Nazi Germany’s ‘Degenerate Art' Exhibition

The 1938 show celebrated works by German Expressionists, defended artists on world stage

Greaves and her team state that there is a one in 10,000 chance or less that the connection is due to chance

Space Nanodiamonds Found to Be Source of Some Cosmic Microwave Radiation

The diamond dust in protoplanetary discs may solve a decades-old astronomical mystery

Mary Quant and models at the Quant Afoot footwear collection launch, 1967

The V&A Wants Your Help Locating Vintage Mary Quant Designs

The Welsh fashion designer pioneered high street fashion, popularizing bright patterns, miniskirts and hot pants

Top contenders include King Ahab of Israel, King Hazael of Aram-Damascus and King Ethbaal of Tyre

Could This Sculpted Head Depict a Little-Known Biblical King?

Archaeologists uncovered the enigmatic two-inch head at Abel Beth Maacah, site of an ancient crossroads

The app opens a 'portal' that allows users to step into a series of immersive AR experiences

Step Into Scotland With Immersive AR App

Portal AR allows users to traverse Britain’s highest peak, roam the halls of Edinburgh Castle and enjoy whiskey at Highlands distillery

Why Rattlesnakes Are Just as Dangerous Dead or Alive

After receiving bite from decapitated Western diamondback, Texas man required 26 doses of antivenom

Artist's rendering of the futuristic community, which is set for development over the next five years

Netherlands Will Welcome Its First Community of 3D-Printed Homes

Five concrete houses designed to look like “erratic blocks in a green landscape" will populate Eindhoven community

Inmates at Downview Prison co-created six banners for the upcoming Processions march

What to Know About This Weekend's Centennial British Suffrage March

About 45,000 women are expected to participate in four-city procession—projected to be one of the largest collective art events in British history

Don't you just want to squish that wittle face?

What Dogs Really Think of Your 'Puppy' Voice

Dog-directed speech may improve animals' attention skills and strengthen human-pupper bonds

The team’s findings compared the estimated visual acuity, or sharpness, of about 600 species.

How Does Your Vision Compare to Other Critters in the Animal Kingdom?

A new review of visual acuity compares the sight of 600 species, from mosquitoes to eagles

Jacob Epstein, Torso in Metal from "The Rock Drill," 1913-14

Tate Britain Confronts the Aftershocks of World War I

The museum's newest exhibition explores how British, German and French artists struggle to comprehend bloody conflict

Those who hold out for the second marshmallow may come from more affluent households, and their future success is based on this economic advantage rather than sheer willpower

Why Delayed Gratification in the Marshmallow Test Doesn’t Equal Success

Socioeconomic status, family background amongst factors accounting for children's varying levels of self-control

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