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From left to right, panelists Eric Hollinger, Rachel Kyte, Cori Wegener and Melissa Songer discuss ideas for living in the Anthropocene.

Anthropocene

To Live in the Anthropocene, People Need Grounded Hope

A Smithsonian symposium about human impacts on Earth looked past warnings of global doom to discuss the necessary balance of achievable solutions

Around half of the San Gabriel Mountains are now a national monument.

San Gabriel Mountains Designated A National Monument

President Obama grants federal protection to half of the California mountain range

Abandoned wooden houses line the main street in St. Elmo, Colorado.

Halloween

Need Some Alone Time? Check Out America’s Coolest Ghost Towns

Old mines, abandoned buildings, and the occasional curse: Ghost towns cover the United States, and they make for a fun detour

A mass of insects teems around an outdoor lamp in Brazil.

The Potential Dark Side of Nobel-Winning LEDs: Pest Problems

The white lighting is clean and efficient but also a lot more attractive to flying invertebrates

Sponsor: National Portrait Gallery

Which of These Three Artworks Should Go on View at the National Portrait Gallery?

Vote for your favorite!!

International Space Station astronauts captured this photograph of Earth's atmospheric layers. The troposphere is the orange-red layer. The gray, just above that, is the stratosphere. Then, the blue is the mesosphere.

10 Weird Things Humans Have Sent Into the Stratosphere

Tied to high-altitude balloons, bacon and LEGO figures have reached heights nearing 100,000 feet

A fragmented painting of a pig-deer or babirusa (Babyrousa sp.) and hand stencil from one of the caves in Sulawesi, Indonesia.

Rock (Art) of Ages: Indonesian Cave Paintings Are 40,000 Years Old

Cave paintings of animals and hand stencils in Sulawesi, Indonesia, seem to be as old as similar cave art in Europe

DUBS Acoustic Filters have a fit and finish that help them resemble high-end earphones more than conventional earplugs.

Tech Watch

Building a Better Earplug

Using a series of acoustic filters, DUBS lower the intensity of sounds without muddying them

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Age of Humans

See How Humans Have Reshaped the Globe With This Interactive Atlas

Zoomable maps reveal the scope of humanity’s influence on Earth—and the innovations aiming to create a more sustainable future

Our fundamentally human social, ecological, and behavioral adaptations have, over time, ratcheted up our adaptability.

Anthropocene

The Moral Dilemma We Face in the Age of Humans

Humans are proficient problem solvers—but so far that trait has come at a cost. Can our species remain resilient without destroying the world?

Mario Batali on Why Farmers Should Be the True Stars of the Restaurant World

In his new cookbook, Mario Batali looks to farmers from across the country for inspiration

Fireworks over Beijing during 2013's Lantern Festival

To Limit Pollution, The Chinese Are Faced With Giving Up an Ancient Tradition

For the Chinese, who invented both gun powder and fireworks, foregoing old traditions may clean up the air—just a bit

Like his life's work, Edgar Allan Poe's death remains shrouded in mystery.

Halloween

The (Still) Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe

Was the famous author killed from a beating? From carbon monoxide poisoning? From alcohol withdrawal? Here are the top nine theories

Balloons taking off during the Mass Ascension at the opening of the International Balloon Fiesta at Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

New Mexico’s Skies Burst With Color During World’s Largest Hot Air Balloon Festival

The 43rd Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta sends hundreds of hot air balloons soaring into the sky

More and more people are dealing with routine health ailments through video calls.

Need a Quick Diagnosis? A Prescription for What Ails You? The Doctor Will Video Chat With You Now

One of the hottest trends in health care is telemedicine networks of doctors who diagnose ailments over the phone

Sealskin clothing, shown here on Aaju Peter, is waterproof, durable, and warm.

To Survive Climate Change, We Should Be More Like the Eskimos

Arctic Studies Center director Bill Fitzhugh says that studying northern cultures can help people adapt to climate change

One of the 4,700-year-old impact craters at Henbury Meteorites Conservation Reserve in Australia.

To Find Meteorites, Listen to the Legends of Australian Aborigines

Oral traditions may have preserved records of impacts over thousands of years and could lead to fresh scientific discoveries

There are more than 400 species of mantis shrimp, including some with claws that can strike with the speed of a bullet and crack glass. But it’s the animal's vision, sensitive to polarized light, that is helping scientists build a compact camera that can see cancer.

A Mantis Shrimp Inspires a New Camera for Detecting Cancer

The mantis shrimp’s eyes, which can see differences in polarized light, are informing researchers building a tiny, easy-to-use camera that can spot cancer

A team at the University of Arizona is developing seven state of the art mirrors for the Giant Magellan Telescope, currently under construction in Chile.

Making Super-Telescopes Requires Some Creative Engineering

The Giant Magellan Telescope, under construction in Chile, could help scientists answer big questions about the universe

Texas Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler tags out Tampa Bay Rays' Sam Fuld on a stolen base attempt.

Breaking Down the Science of the Stolen Base

What does it take to swipe second? Math and physics lend their advice

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