The Necco candy factory used to produce piles of Sweethearts.

The Pharmacist Who Launched America’s Modern Candy Industry

Oliver Chase invented a lozenge-cutting machine that led to Necco wafers, Sweethearts and the mechanization of candy making

The complicated tree of human evolution could include extinct species that have not yet been discovered.

Artificial Intelligence Study of Human Genome Finds Unknown Human Ancestor

The genetic footprint of a “ghost population” may match that of a Neanderthal and Denisovan hybrid fossil found in Siberia

We appear to be experiencing a loneliness epidemic.

Can a Pill Fight Loneliness?

A University of Chicago scientist thinks the hormone pregnenolone might reduce lonely people’s fear of connecting—and their risk of serious health problems

Lego's Duplo bricks have been in production for 50 years.

How Lego Patents Helped Build a Toy Empire, Brick by Brick

The Danish toy company invented its basic brick, then designed a toddler-friendly version, before adding mini figures to the mix

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Ingenious Minds

Astrophysicist Mercedes Lopez-Morales Is Grooming the Next Generation of Planet Hunters

“The Daily Show” correspondent Roy Wood, Jr. talks with the astrophysicist about adrenaline, fear, curiosity and attracting younger generations to science

The Patents Behind Pasta Shapes

When you sit down to a bowl, be it gnocchi or Kraft macaroni, consider the design work and innovation that have gone into it

Though the technological challenges for a future Mars mission are considerable, a proposal to "live off the land" using resources on the Red Planet might dramatically simplify exploration plans.

A Smithsonian Researcher Reflects on What It Will Take to Land Humans on Mars

In a new book on space exploration, Smithsonian curator emeritus Roger D. Launius predicts boots on the Red Planet ground by the 2030s

The watch was cleared for adults by the FDA early last year; now it’s been cleared for children too.

This Smartwatch Can Help Detect Seizures in Kids

The Embrace is one of a growing number of wearables capable of detecting seizures and alerting caregivers

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Ingenious Minds

Studying the History of Life on Earth Keeps This Paleontologist Optimistic

Smithsonian scientist Nick Pyenson explains how taking an interest in natural history can help us understand our future

At the start of the 1960s, color television was still a relatively novel technology.

Color TV Transformed the Way Americans Saw the World, and the World Saw America

A historian of 20th century media argues that the technological innovation was the quintessential Cold War machine

The Accidental Invention of Bubble Wrap

Two inventors turned a failed experiment into an irresistibly poppable product that revolutionized the shipping industry

GM's head of design Harley Earl drove the "Y-job" to and from work for 11 years.

How General Motors Introduced the Idea of a ‘Concept Car’

Eighty years ago, the Buick Y-job was billed as the car of the future

The species Orobates pabsti represents a group of animals that lived after the first animals to walk on land but before the evolution of modern lizards.

Scientists Used a Robot to Study How Prehistoric Lizards Walked

OroBOT, a robot version of an ancestor to the dinosaurs, is helping fill in some gaps in the evolution of walking

Almost all American cheeses are based on European cheeses that are familiar to both producers and consumers. Not this one.

The Quest for a Totally American Cheese

Move over, Camembert! Three creameries in the U.S. are developing a recipe for a unique cheese they are calling Cornerstone

The Nexus Air Taxi could have Uber airborne within a decade.

Seven Unforgettable Inventions Unveiled at This Year’s CES

From a self-driving suitcase to a flying taxi, these concepts made a splash at the huge trade show in Las Vegas

An 1894 advertisement shows the interior of a Pullman dining-car belonging to the Cincinnati, Hamilton, and Dayton Railway. The view through the window depicts the Mosler Safe Company factory in Hamilton, Ohio.

The Rise and Fall of the Sleeping Car King

George Pullman’s unbending business acumen made him a mogul, but also inspired the greatest labor uprising of the 19th century

Nine Innovators to Watch in 2019

These big thinkers are set to make news this year with exciting developments in transportation, energy, health, food science and more

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

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

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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

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