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After the manta ray filters out the tiny plankton from the water it ingests, the excess water exits through the dark gill slits on the ray's ventral side. 

Planet Positive

Why Conservationists Are Hopeful About the Manta Ray’s Future

The giant fish faces threats from poachers, boat strikes and climate change

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Readers Respond to the July/August 2022 Issue

Your feedback on Ukraine’s treasures, Mary Sears, and trains

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Six Times School Bus Drivers Were Heroes

A look back at some remarkable rescues

How does a nation committed to education increase access? Give kids a lift.

A Brief History of the School Bus

It’s as traditional as the ABCs. But the school bus has always been a vehicle for change

A male bison atop an arid hillside on Santa Catalina Island in California.

The Uneasy Future of Catalina Island’s Wild Bison

One of Hollywood’s weirdest legacies, the herd of beasts lives under the watchful eye of local conservationists

Left, the Pula Arena is the sixth-largest Roman amphitheater still standing and one of the best preserved. Right, the port in the coastal town of Fažana.

In Istria, Roman Ruins, Unique Wines and Prized Truffles Await

Journey to the coast of Croatia, where you’ll encounter an inviting coastline, ancient mummies and so much more

Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley envisioned the Anacostia museum as an outreach effort to the local community. 

What Community Means to the Smithsonian

Smithsonian museums preserve and celebrate history. Yet they have histories of their own that help connect us with Washingtonians and the world

One reader wonders: Why do we see the Moon during the day and not the Sun at night?

Why Can We See the Moon During the Day? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts.

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A Deadly World War II Explosion Sparked Black Soldiers to Fight for Equal Treatment

After the deadliest home-front disaster of the war, African Americans throughout the military took action to transform the nation’s armed forces

Hoffmann’s two-toed sloth babies need round-theclock care. Once they’re adults, they’ll be microchipped and released back into the rainforest.

Baby Sloths Are About as Cute As You Would Expect

A Costa Rica rescue center offers blankets and bottle-feeding at a nursery for these young animals

The real thing? Not quite. This regal chamber, King Arthur’s Great Halls, was erected in Tintagel, England, in the 1930s for a social club. 

Was King Arthur a Real Person?

The story of Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table has captivated us for a thousand years. But is there any truth behind the tales?

The Pekin Noodle Parlor in Butte, Montana, serves what owner Jerry Tam calls “Chinese American comfort food.”

Rooted in the American West: Food, History and Culture

The First Chinese Restaurant in America Has a Savory—and Unsavory—History

Venture into the Montana eatery, once a gambling den and opium repository, that still draws a crowd

At American Fossil Quarry, on privately owned land near Kemmerer, Wyoming, hammer- and chisel-wielding visitors pay $69 to $89 to spend up to four hours hunting for fossils. Finders, keepers.

The 50-Million-Year-Old Treasures of Fossil Lake

In a forbidding Wyoming desert, scientists and fortune hunters search for the surprisingly intact remains of horses and other creatures that lived long ago

Red, Green, and Blue Twisted Curves, 1979. The “spectator who looks at my work is part of the work itself,” Riley has said.

A New Exhibit Showcases the Mind-Bending Art of Bridget Riley

Six decades after she arrived on the scene, the British artist still makes waves

Sculptor-printmaker Elizabeth Catlett, photographed at Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1977.   

Women Who Shaped History

How Elizabeth Catlett Lifted Up Black Women Through Art

The pioneering sculptor defied trends to honor the daily lives of her subjects

After an attack by Russian forces in late March, smoke rises from an oil depot not far from Rynok Square in Lviv in western Ukraine

The Race to Save Ukraine’s Sacred Art

The Bohorodchany Iconostasis has withstood religious persecution, revolutions and world wars. Can it survive Russia’s brutal assault?

In the midst of fire- and drought-ravaged savanna in southeastern Madagascar, a curiously lush green forest is home to myriad unexpected life-forms, including a species of mouse lemur.

Into the Forbidden Forest

Famed American biologist Patricia Wright explores an astonishing breadth of biodiversity in the wilderness of Madagascar

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Readers Respond to the June 2022 Issue

Your feedback on the World War I memorial and the Smithsonian’s new ethical collecting policy

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The Story Behind One of the Most-Mocked Paintings in U.S. History

Long ridiculed, the Howard Chandler Christy artwork of the signing of the U.S. Constitution shows democracy at its most realistic

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Women Who Shaped History

Mary Sears’ Pioneering Ocean Research Saved Countless Lives in WWII

Allied victory in the Pacific depended on strategy, bravery and military might. It also depended on a brilliant marine scientist from Massachusetts

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