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Cormac Hondros-McCarthy, Lauren Shum, Parth Sagdeo and Ted Zhu celebrate their successful top prize spot at the Make for the Planet Borneo hackathon in Kuching, Malaysia in June 2018.

This Lobster Trap Aims to Protect Endangered Whales — and Fishers’ Livelihoods

A team of engineers is designing a low-cost, lineless, self-surfacing lobster trap that would prevent right whale entanglement

Smallpox raids, like this one in Milwaukee, focused on immigrant families.

History of Now

How New York Separated Immigrant Families in the Smallpox Outbreak of 1901

Vaccinations were administered by police raids, parents and children were torn apart, and the New York City Health Department controlled the narrative

Herschel Grynszpan in a photo from the German archives

History of Now

How a Jewish Teenager Went From Refugee to Assassin to Puppet of Nazi Propaganda

Herschel Grynszpan wanted to avenge the crimes committed against European Jews. Instead, his actions were used as a justification for Kristallnacht

“Little Foot’s” skull and a 3-D rendering of the endocast.

Detailed Scans of Ancient Human Skull Reveal Structure of the Brain and Inner Ear

The skull of “Little Foot,” one of the oldest known hominins, continues to teach researchers about human evolution

On an 1870 cover of Harper's Weekly, President Ulysses S. Grant is shown greeting the Oglala Chief Red Cloud who came to visit him in Washington, D.C.

Ulysses Grant’s Failed Attempt to Grant Native Americans Citizenship

In a forgotten chapter of history, the president and his Seneca Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Ely Parker, fought for Native American rights

Still from Oscar Micheaux's "Within Our Gates"

Why We Need to Keep Searching for Lost Silent Films

Early motion pictures give us an important window into our collective past

Inupiat hunters set out with harpoons to catch seals during the spring hunt of June 13, 2005, on the Chukchi Sea near Shishmaref, Alaska.

‘The End of Ice,’ and the Arctic Communities Already Grappling With a Warming World

A new book highlights the changes endured by inhabitants of the Arctic, serving as a harbinger of what’s to come in lower latitudes

Seth Rogen playing Dr. Frankenstein in the upcoming sixth season of "Drunk History"

‘Drunk History’ Bends History in All the Right Directions

The sixth season, premiering January 15, brings a new crop of historical tales to television

A newly collared mule deer is released onto its winter range.

New Tracking Technology Reveals Hidden Animal Migration Routes

Using improved GPS collars, scientists are mapping more herd migration routes than ever before, a key to conservation efforts in the western United States

The American Society of Civil Engineers estimates in its 2017 Infrastructure Report Card that 240,000 water main breaks occur yearly in the U.S., with 2 trillion gallons of treated drinking water escaping.

These Technologies Could Put an End to Leaky Water Mains

Two inventors have come up with radically different approaches to try to solve the widespread problem of aging water infrastructure

"House A" excavation detail

In Land of Lincoln, Long-Buried Traces of a Race Riot Come to the Surface

Archaeologists recently uncovered the remains of five houses that lay witness to the tragedy that set Springfield, Illinois, on fire in 1908

George Washington takes command of the Continental army.

The Plot to Kill George Washington

In The First Conspiracy, thriller writer Brad Meltzer uncovers a real-life story too good to turn into fiction

The Key Marco Cat was unearthed at Marco Island off Florida’s southwestern shore in the late 19th century.

This Hand-Carved Panther Statuette Embodies a Lost Civilization’s Harmony With Nature

Calusa Indians harnessed the bounty of Florida’s estuaries with respect and grace

Muir and Roosevelt posed at Glacier Point in Yosemite.

Hike in the Footsteps of Teddy Roosevelt

Energetic Teddy was a hiking fanatic—follow his trail on these trips

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Ingenious Minds

How Jean Bennett Found a Way to Treat Hereditary Blindness in Children

In conversation with chef Spike Gjerde, the molecular geneticist explains how she is paving the way for the future of gene therapy

The bony growths found in pre-Hispanic skulls in Panama suggest communities were diving for oysters and pearls thousands of years ago.

Panama

Skulls With ‘Surfer’s Ear’ Suggest Ancient Pearl Divers in Panama

Thought to occur mainly in cold-water environments, a new study shows “surfer’s ear” bone spurs can grow even in the tropics

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America at War

This Map Shows Where in the World the U.S. Military Is Combatting Terrorism

The infographic reveals for the first time that the U.S. is now operating in 40 percent of the world’s nations

Kevin Lafferty emerges from the waters off Anacapa Island near Ventura, California, after spearing fish in March 2018. He’s advising a UCSB PhD student on research to determine if reef fish inside protected marine reserves have more or fewer parasites than depleted fish populations outside the reserve. It’s to test a pattern that has emerged in other studies: that parasites thrive with richness and abundance of marine life.

In Praise of Parasites

They worm into snails and infect the brains of fish. They’re also examples of sophisticated evolution and keys to ecosystem balance.

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Ingenious Minds

How Drag Helped Sasha Velour Cope With the Loss of Her Mother

The drag queen talks with breast cancer specialist Laura Esserman about gender identity, expression and celebration

A polarized-light microscopy image (in background) of a section from the Allende meteorite is one-thousandth of a millimeter thin.

The Oldest Material in the Smithsonian Institution Came From Outer Space

Decades after the Allende Meteorite plunged to Earth, scientists still mine its fragments for clues to the cosmos

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