Articles

Salvador Dalí with his pet ocelot, Babou, and cane. 1965.

Catalonia

Travel Through the Landscapes That Inspired Salvador Dalí

Three destinations in northeastern Spain offer a unique glimpse into the life of the famous surrealist

Young birds that grew up with added urban background noise showed signs of faster aging than birds without.

Noise Pollution Might Cut Birds’ Lives Short

Stressed out teen birds have enough to deal with—noise seems to be one factor that could seal their fate

This Secret Boat Was Built for a WWII Invasion That Never Happened

In 2011, declassified CIA documents shed light on a covert government program dating back to WWII

These wrinkly rodents continually surprise researchers.

How Eating Poop Makes These Mole-Rats More Motherly

New research suggests a colony’s queen stimulates babysitters by transferring a type of estrogen through her feces

The portrait John S. McCain III by Steve Pyke, 2005, went of view today at the National Portrait Gallery in memory of the U.S. Senator who died August 25.

The Portrait That Captures the Defining Features of John McCain’s Life and Career

A photograph of the straight-talking Arizona senator goes on view In Memoriam at the Portrait Gallery

The next generation of robotic hands will have to be extremely dexterous, but also simple to build. The three-fingered version designed by engineer Matei Ciocarlie can adapt to a wide array of objects, yet hold each of them in a firm grasp (composite image shows the more open hold on an apple and a tighter pinch on a marker). Its semi-soft fingers are controlled by a series of wire “tendons” that lead to a single motor in a robot’s wrist.

The Quest to Build Robotic Hands

Humans can readily manipulate all kinds of objects. But robots need better mechanics—and a lot more intelligence

Why Texas Just May Be the Best State for Fall Foliage

With its rolling prairies and limestone cliffs, historic towns and oak-filled nature parks, Texas Hill Country is a land apart

Sometimes, it's okay to skip leg day.

For Men, Gains in the Gym May Come at a Cost to Sperm

There might be a tradeoff between how strong men look and sperm count

U.S. Troops in the Pacific Treat Themselves to a Little R&R

A brief respite from the frontlines of the Pacific War sees American troops trying to inject a little comfort into their lives

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Smithsonian Voices

Biologists Say Chesapeake Bay Cownose Rays Travel to Florida and Back

While scientists have unraveled one mystery about cownose ray migrations, there are still many unknowns surrounding the animals. Read more: http://www.smi

How do animals think and feel?

Do Animals Experience Grief?

A growing body of evidence points to how animals are aware of death and will sometimes mourn for or ritualize their dead

Captain James Cook set out on a voyage across the Pacific 250 years ago, seemingly on a scientific voyage. But he carried secret instructions from the Navy with him as well.

Captain Cook’s 1768 Voyage to the South Pacific Included a Secret Mission

The explorer traveled to Tahiti under the auspices of science 250 years ago, but his secret orders were to continue Britain’s colonial project

New research shows that fish can tell the differences between quantities. What does that mean for our special human brains?

One Fish, Two Fish, Fish Can Count(ish?)

New research shows—again—that fish “count” like humans do. Are our cognitive evolutionary roots fishier than we thought?

Why Depth Charges Don't Have to Touch a Submarine to Sink It

It's 1942 and the USS Silversides, a U.S. submarine submerged in the Pacific, is frantically trying to dodge depth charges dropped by a Japanese warship

The Viet-Cajun seafood boil at Grand Catch, in St. Paul.

Why Every Food Lover Should Visit the Twin Cities

Minnesota's Twin Cities are forging a new identity, one that celebrates the region's Nordic past while embracing its multicultural present

Mean Dog (Verso: Man Leading Mule), c. 1939-1942, by Bill Traylor, poster paint and pencil on cardboard

Born Into Slavery, Bill Traylor Would Become a Leading Light of Self-Taught Art

A new show at the Smithsonian American Art museum highlights his work

P.D. East (above as a young man) proclaimed that his Petal Paper was “a sheet designed to keep everyone happy.” That did not last.

Secrets of American History

What Made P.D. East the Fearless Wit of Forrest County

The newspaper man's bravery rocked the racist establishment of the South—and heralded a new era of political satire

When Was the Earliest Internet Search?

Years before the birth of the Google, a forgotten experiment laid the groundwork for the ubiquitous search engine

The show honors the "living legacy” of Native peoples (above: Idalis Ramírez Rojas and her daughter Ingrid of eastern Cuba) in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean and on the U.S. mainland.

This Culture, Once Believed Extinct, Is Flourishing

A new exhibition explores the cultural heritage of the Taíno, the indigenous people of the Caribbean

A photograph of the fossil turtle Eorhynchochelys sinensis, which lived about 228 million years ago and sported a beak but no shell.

Newly Discovered Turtle Ancestors Chomped With Beaks But Bore No Shells

A 228-million-year-old fossil fills gaps in the tale of turtle evolution—and raises a few questions

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