Skiing robots will race in a sideline competition.

Winter Olympics

Meet the Robots of the 2018 Olympics

The Pyeongchang games will have bots to clean, dance, serve drinks, provide translation and more

Jim Martinson using his sit ski at Crystal Mountain Resort, Washington

Winter Olympics

The Unbreakable Spirit of American Paralympians Is Embodied in These Artifacts

Smithsonian’s Sports History collections honor the indomitable innovators of the Paralympic community

Genetic testing is opening up new ethical questions for parents.

Ask Smithsonian

Now You Can Genetically Test Your Child For Disease Risks. Should You?

Genomics is cheaper and more available then ever, but its usefulness for parents has yet to be proven

Video games can help train the brain to hear better.

Can a Video Game Train You To Hear Better In a Crowded Room?

A new study finds it’s possible to teach the brain to better distinguish between speech and background noise

Staff from nearly every major museum in the world has visited CMA to study how they might incorporate digital.

The Cleveland Museum of Art Wants You To Play With Its Art

The digital-savvy museum is using more than a dozen interactive games to collect data on how visitors digest artwork

Mass start speed skating sounds like chaos.

Winter Olympics

A Primer on the Four Olympic Events Debuting in Pyeongchang

The Winter Games hope to stay popular, with new disciplines that create shareable videos or feature men and women competing together

Behold, the unsung hero of the Winter Olympic Games: ice.

The Beijing Winter Olympics

The Slick Science of Making Olympic Snow and Ice

Crafting the ideal ice rink or bobsled course takes patience, precision and the skill of an Ice Master

Reports of weird, wondrous, and worrying objects in the skies date to ancient times.

How UFO Reports Change With the Technology of the Times

Fears of Zeppelins, rockets and drones have replaced the “celestial wonders” of ancient times

Is this the future of grocery shopping?

Five Questions You Should Have About Amazon’s New AI-Powered Store

Will it destroy retail as we know it? Is it spying on you? Will it weaken your resolve not to buy that $8 gourmet chocolate bar?

Will blue packets replace pink ones soon?

New Research

Heart-Stopping Arrow Poison Could Be the Key to Male Birth Control

A non-toxic version of the compound interrupts fertilization in rats

View from the cockpit of Solar Impulse 2 as the plane heads for landing in Abu Dhabi.

Future of Energy

Inside the First Solar-Powered Flight Around the World

A new documentary highlights the challenges overcome by the experimental aircraft, Solar Impulse

Healthcare providers leave a village after completion of a culling operation in response to a bird flu outbreak in Budgebudge, West Bengal, India.

The Next Pandemic

The Pandemic Everyone Fears Is Flu In the Wrong Place At the Wrong Time

Governments should constantly be preparing for outbreaks, instead of just hastily responding to threats as they arise

A printed ring through the color-change process

These 3D-Printed Objects Can Turn Any Color You Want

MIT researchers hope a process that uses a special photochromic dye to change an object’s color in response to light will one day reduce waste

The spandex in Under Armor suits U.S. speedskaters will wear has a slightly gritty texture, which designers claim makes them more aerodynamic by breaking the vacuum that can form around skaters’ arms and legs.

Winter Olympics

Look at the High-Tech Gear Olympians Will Be Wearing

From jackets heated with electronic ink to personal airbags for skiers, these are some of the most innovative wearables you’ll be seeing in PyeongChang

How 9/11 Drastically Altered U.S. Flight Security

Two months after the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. government created the Transportation Security Administration, or TSA

New research concludes that there are many “Lost Einsteins” in America – children who had the ability to become inventors but didn’t because of where they were born.

Expose Talented Kids From Low-Income Familes To Inventors and They’re More Likely To Invent

A new analysis sheds light on how we might better serve America’s “Lost Einsteins”

Ice skates signed and worn by Sonja Henie, the Norwegian figure skater who was instrumental in popularizing the sport. Her impressive array of spins and jumps won her three Olympic gold medals.

The First Ice Skates Weren’t for Jumps and Twirls—They Were for Getting Around

Carved from animal shin bones, these early blades served as essential winter transport

Could a secret ingredient make crumbling concrete a thing of the past?

With Fungi in the Mix, Concrete Can Fill Its Own Cracks

Adding fungus might be one way to endow concrete with the ability to repair any damage, without the need for human intervention

Approximately 80 percent of all pharmaceuticals used by Americans are produced overseas.

The Next Pandemic

A Saline Shortage This Flu Season Exposes a Flaw in Our Medical Supply Chain

Most IV saline bags used in U.S. hospitals are made in Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria has shown how troubling it can be to rely on one producer

Have Scientists Found a Greener Way to Make Blue Jeans?

An engineered strain of E. coli bacteria can produce a precursor to synthetic indigo using fewer nasty chemicals than traditional methods

Page 61 of 154