A South Korean athlete receives acupuncture treatment

Winter Olympics

When Treating Sports Injuries, Does the West Do It Best?

As the Olympics kick off in South Korea, two radically different approaches to training and treating athletes will be on display

The Olympic Flame was lit from the sun's rays using a parabolic mirror, during the final dress rehearsal for the lighting ceremony at Ancient Olympia, in southwestern Greece, on Monday, Oct. 23, 2017.

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Your Burning Questions About the Olympic Torch, Answered

Curious minds will want to know that the blaze is lit not with matches or a lighter, but using a method that dates to Ancient Greece

Coal miners walk through a tunnel at the Consol Energy Bailey Mine in Wind Ridge, Pennsylvania in 2013.

Why Black Lung Disease Is Deadlier Than Ever Before

As President Trump prepares to send miners back to work, a near-obsolete illness is once again ravaging coal country

The genetics of the little skate changes our understanding of vertebrate evolution, from ocean to land-dweller.

New Research

What a Walking Fish Can Teach Us About Human Evolution

New research on the little skate reveals the genes it shares with land animals—and a common ancestor from 420 million years ago

Seismic shockwaves after a meteorite’s collision could affect systems all over the planet.

The Meteorite That Killed the Dinosaurs May Have Also Triggered Underwater Volcanoes

In a new study, scientists peered into 100 million years of seafloor history to find something strange

Is SpaceX Being Environmentally Responsible?

Falcon Heavy’s flashy space car may not have been the best idea—for Mars

Snowy owls may be a nice surprise in more Southerly climes, but these charismatic birds are also at risk.

A Winter Boom of Snowy Owls Masks a Host of Climate Threats

Despite their seeming abundance, these far-flung raptors are in danger

Every dazzling jump on the ice—like Yuzuru Hanyu's quadruple Lutz at the 2017 Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Moscow, Russia—requires a mastery of balance, rotational speed and angular momentum.

Winter Olympics

How Physics Keeps Figure Skaters Gracefully Aloft

Every twist, turn and jump relies on a mastery of complex physical forces

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

The American eel fishery has historically focused on mature eels (as shown here), which are exported around the world. But these days, there’s more money to be made from juveniles.

The Epic Fight Over the Enigmatic Eel

The slippery fish is at the center of a Canadian national debate about economics, conservation and Indigenous rights

A replica of Foucault's famous experiment at the Museo Nazionale della Scienza e Tecnica in Milan, Italy

Ask Smithsonian

How Does Foucault’s Pendulum Prove the Earth Rotates?

This elegant scientific demonstration has been delighting everyday people for nearly 200 years

Once common along highland streams in Costa Rica and western Panama, the variable harlequin frog, Atelopus varius, is now endangered throughout its range, thanks in large part to a disease caused by the amphibian chytrid fungus.

These Captive-Bred Frogs Are Facing Predators and the Chytrid Fungus to Make It in the Wild

Scientists in Panama release 500 harlequin frogs, some wearing transmitters, in a first attempt to reintroduce the endangered species

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

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

Images created by NASA with satellite data helped the U.S. Department of Agriculture analyze outbreak patterns for southern pine beetles in Alabama, in spring 2016.

Can Scientists Forecast Algal Blooms and Pest Outbreaks Like We Do the Weather?

With big data, ecologists have the ability to predict short-term ecological phenomena over the span of days and seasons rather than decades

English Bulldogs illustrate the dramatic turn dog evolution has taken at the hands of humans.

The Evolution of Petface

The same traits that make these dogs adorable threaten their health and well-being

Why the Shift to Farming Ruined This Ancient City’s Health

The switch from a hunter gatherer society to a farming one appears to have resulted in a more sedentary lifestyle for the inhabitants of Catalhoyuk

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

Image from the cover of Emma Byrne's new book, Swearing is Good For You.

The Science of Swearing

A new book explains the neuroscience of why we swear—and how it can sway our listeners

Close-up view of the of jawbone, showing details of the crown topography and dental features.

New Research

Earliest Human Remains Outside Africa Were Just Discovered in Israel

If accepted as Homo sapien, the jaw-dropping jawbone would push back the human exodus out of Africa by nearly 100,000 years

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