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Articles

The Remnants of Prehistoric Plant Pollen Reveal that Humans Shaped Forests 11,000 Years Ago

The discoveries could boost indigenous populations’ claims to ancestral lands long thought to be untouched by human activity

The traditional geographic coordinate system identifies locations on the globe with a pair of long numbers. what3words proposes using language instead.

A Plan To Replace Geographic Coordinates on Earth With Unique Strings of Three Words

The startup what3words wants to change the way we talk about locations

Coffee with beignet's at Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans, LA.

American South

The History of the Chicory Coffee Mix That New Orleans Made Its Own

It started as a cost-saving workaround but stuck around for tradition’s sake

A baby loggerhead sea turtle with a solar-powered tag attached to its shell swims in the Gulf Stream just after release off the southeast Florida coast in 2009. NMSF permit 1551 applies to all images featured in this article.

New Research

Where Do Newly Hatched Baby Sea Turtles Go?

Special satellite tags that track baby sea turtles show that some ride the North Atlantic Gyre while others float in the Sargasso Sea

Shera nurses her four lion cubs at the Zoo.

National Zoo Celebrates Second African Lion Cub Birth in Three Months

On Sunday, 9-year-old lion Shera became the mother of four new additions to the pride

Late 18th century English cartoon on Catherine the Great's territorial ambitions in Turkey.

When Catherine the Great Invaded the Crimea and Put the Rest of the World on Edge

The Russian czarina attempted to show the West she was an Enlightened despot, her policies said otherwise

Chanel (Karl Lagerfeld), suit, pink wool and synthetic blends, white cotton, spring 1994, France, gift of Chanel Inc. Chanel (Karl Lagerfeld), necklace, gold plated metal, fall 1991, France, Gift of Depuis 1924.

Explore 250 Years of What Makes Fashion “Trendy” at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology

A new exhibit, “Trend-ology,” examines the origins of fashion’s hottest looks

Black Orpheus: How a French Film Introduced the World to Brazil

Decades later, the movie’s legacy lives on in popular culture and in the music videos of Arcade Fire

Pithovirus sibericum, TKTK

New Research

The World’s Largest Virus Was Just Resurrected From 34,000-Year-Old Permafrost

It’s not a threat to humans, but does show that ancient viruses can persist for millennia and remain a potential health threat

The Weddell Sea is covered in ice during the Antarctic winter. But in the winters of the mid-1970s, satellite imagery detected a large-ice free area the size of New Zealand.

Climate Change Felt in Deep Waters of Antarctica

A surge in freshwater at the surface may have shut down mixing of water layers in the Weddell Sea

Solomon Northup, portrayed by Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years A Slave.

Vintage Headlines

The New York Times’ 1853 Coverage of Solomon Northup, the Hero of “12 Years A Slave”

Northup’s story garnered heavy press coverage and spread widely in the weeks and months after he was rescued

A resident of "Dementia Village" goes grocery shopping with a caregiver.

For People with Dementia, Does It Take a Village?

A community in the Netherlands has become a model for how to help people feel at home even after they’ve lost their memory

Prototypes of the winning design from the 2012 "Reinventing the Toilet Challenge" are now being tested in India.

Tech Watch

Can This Toilet Save Millions of Lives?

A solar-powered toilet is the latest hope for the 2.5 billion people without access to clean water

Demaking, says Ed Fries, is "like haiku" for programmers, an exercise in "enforcing constraints on yourself as a tool for creativity."

Demaking Halo, Remaking Art: ‘Halo 2600’ Developer Discusses the Promise of Video Games

Ed Fries talks with Smithsonian magazine about programming the Atari 2600 and shaping the future of interactive media.

Celebrate Carnival Italian Style, By Pelting Your Neighbors With Oranges

Carnival celebrations can get a little crazy, but in one Italian town, it gets downright messy

New Research

Doctors’ Stethoscopes Can Transmit Bacteria As Easily As Unwashed Hands

New research shows that the instruments could be a vector for bacterial infections—a concern, as they’re infrequently sterilized

White rhinos help shape the ecosystem by increasing plant diversity and providing grazing patches for other animals.

New Research

Here’s What Might Happen to Local Ecosystems If All the Rhinos Disappear

African landscapes may become very different places if rhinos aren’t there to diversify plant life and create prime grazing spots for other animals

EEG technology allows people to play music and control vehicles with their minds. But can it translate a dog's thoughts into words?

Tech Watch

Checking the Claim: This Device Would Allow Dogs to Talk Like Humans

A team of oddball inventors claims they are developing a headset that translates a canine’s thoughts into words

How Motel Ownership Offers Indian-Americans a Gateway to the American Dream

America’s motels are owned mostly by families from the Indian state of Gujarat, a new exhibit tells the story of life behind the lobby walls

Monks celebrating Full Moon Day light thousands of small oil lamps around a pagoda in Pindaya, a small town near Inle Lake.

Photos: Burma’s Sacred Sites

Take a trip through this emerging destination with beautiful photos submitted to our annual photo contest

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