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A study, conducted by researchers in Berlin, shows that those who suck on a mint containing a particular type of bacteria actually reduce the levels of cavity-causing bacteria in their saliva.

Is Candy That Fights Cavities Too Good To Be True?

Researchers in Berlin find that sweets containing a special probiotic may help you avoid the dentist’s chair

Hövding is a helmet cyclists wear on their necks—not their heads.

The Bicycle Helmet That’s Invisible (Until You Need It)

Riffing off of airbag technology, Swedish designers have created a helmet, worn around the neck, that inflates during an accident

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Listen to Classic Holiday Music From Around the World

Go around the world this holiday with Smithsonian Folkways—no reindeer or sleigh required

The northern subtropical jet stream flows in Cameron Beccario's Earth.

Watch How the Wind Moves Around the Earth—It’s Hypnotic

This mesmerizing tool helps visualize the winds all over the globe and is known simply as “Earth”

More Than Three Years Later, Oil From the Deepwater Horizon Persists in the Gulf

Continued testing has found evidence of oil in the water, sediments and marine animals of the Gulf

StarCraft II Player Is Now Officially an Athlete, According to the U.S. Government

Kim Dong-hwan, a competitive StarCraft player, was just issued a P-1A visa—the type that’s usually given to athletes

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Powering the 21st Century

Powering the 21st Century

Two Scientists Share Credit for the Theory of Evolution. Darwin Got Famous; This Biologist Didn’t.

When the Linnean Society of London hears the case for natural selection in 1858, Darwin shared credit with biologist A.R. Wallace

The sun sets on the River Thames winding its way between the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament. The 210-mile river flows through several small English towns before it reaches the center of London, and eventually spouts into the North Sea. The 184-mile Thames Path, which hugs the river’s banks, is the longest riverside walkway in Europe.

Top Cities for the Cultural Traveler: London

NSA Metadata Collection Is Unconstitutional, Judge Says

A U.S. District Court Judge ruled that the NSA’s metadata surveillance violates the Fourth Amendment

Forget Bulky Smart Watches, Slip On a Smart Ring

A team of developers is taking orders for a ring that displays incoming text and email messages and helps locate lost phones

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Energy Innovation

Energy Innovation

Stop Ruining Your Christmas Cookies! Follow These Tips to Better Baking

Here are a few pointers on making the perfect cookies this holiday season

Cats have graced Asian households for millennia, as depicted in this 12th century print by Mao Yi.

Domestic Cats Enjoyed Village Life in China 5,300 Years Ago

Eight cat bones discovered in an archeological site in China provide a crucial link between domestic cats’ evolution from wildcats to pets

The inside of a newly assembled Ikea temporary home.

Ikea’s Getting Into the Refugee Shelter Business

Ikea’s latest installments are popping up in Lebanon, where around one million Syrians have sought refuge from the violence plaguing their own country

The Andromeda Galaxy

Think Big

What Does the Future of the Universe Hold?

The collision of our galaxy with the Andromeda galaxy is billions of years away, but it’s never too early to wonder what will happen

The crossword turns 100 this week.

What’s a 9-Letter Word for a 100-Year-Old Puzzle?

The crossword puzzle turns 100 this week — here’s how it rose to popularity

Villagers construct a new bridge over the Apurimac River, in Huinchiri, Peru, in 2012.

The Earliest and Greatest Engineers Were the Incas

Smithsonian Secretary G. Wayne Clough treks to Peru to see how Machu Picchu was built

Some Olympic Athletes Have To Crowd-Source Money to Get to Russia

While Olympic athletes may be our heroes, they aren’t getting rich off their work, and some have to crowd-source funding for their trips to Sochi

Every Year, a Swedish Town Builds a Giant Straw Goat, And People Just Can’t Help Burning It Down

In the 47 years that the town has erected Gävlebocken, it’s been set on fire 26 times

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