Nobody knows when Fungie, a solitary cetacean, arrived in the waters off Dingle, a town on the southwest coast of Ireland.

A Dolphin Has Been Living Solo in This Irish Harbor for Decades

Named Fungie, the cetacean draws thousands of tourists to Dingle—and may teach us how to protect other solitary-sociable animals in the wild

Like statues, animals named after controversial historic figures are sparking a conversation about "relics of systemic oppression" in science.

A Bird Named for a Confederate General Sparks Calls for Change

McCown’s longspur has launched a renewed reckoning over the troubling histories reflected in taxonomy

For the first time, an ultra-black skin color or pigmentation that protects 16 varieties of deep-sea fishes has been documented.

Elusive, Ultra-Black Fish Are Cloaked to Survive in the Deep Ocean

Special pigment cells in deep-sea fish may provide clues to cancer treatment and stealthy new materials

In planning to re-open, Zoo staff have spent several weeks consulting scientific experts and preparing rigorous healthcare guidelines.

The National Zoo Will Reopen to the Public on July 24

Two bison, an Andean bear and a baby wallaby are among the new animals ready to welcome visitors back

In April, people queued at a testing tent in East New York in Brooklyn. COVID-19 rates are highest among black New Yorkers in Kings County.

Race in America

What ‘Racism Is a Public Health Issue’ Means

Epidemiologist Sharrelle Barber discusses the racial inequalities that exist for COVID-19 and many other health conditions

How will SARS-CoV-2 evolve?

Covid-19

How Viruses Evolve

Pathogens that switch to a new host species have some adapting to do. How does that affect the course of a pandemic like COVID-19?

Black-tailed prairie dogs are prolific diggers and construct complex burrow systems.

Smithsonian Voices

Why Prairie Dogs Are Ecological Heroes

Although many people view prairie dogs as pests, ecologists absolutely dig them

The neotropical rattlesnake, Crotalus durissus, inhabits at least 11 South American countries. This species of viper is widespread and thrives in dry climates.

Smithsonian Voices

The DNA of the Viper Reveals an Ancient Map of South America

Although vipers are famous for their venomous bites, it turns out these snakes have another story to tell

Anthropologist S. Ann Dunham (above, left) documented traditional crafts in Indonesia. Her field notes are now digitized and the Smithsonian is looking for digital transcribers.

Help Transcribe Field Notes Penned by S. Ann Dunham, a Pioneering Anthropologist and Barack Obama’s Mother

Newly digitized, Dunham’s papers reflect her work as a scholar and as a scientist and as a woman doing anthropology in her own right

Quantum physicist Amruta Gadge became the first to create a Bose-Einstein Condensate—the exotic, elusive fifth state of matter—remotely.

Covid-19

Five Scientific Achievements That Happened During Coronavirus Lockdown

Quarantine did not stop these innovators from discovering new species, creating the elusive fifth state of matter remotely, and more

In the early months of the pandemic, plastic bags quickly returned to grocery stores in states that previously banned their use while use of reusable bags was prohibited to supposedly reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Covid-19

COVID-19 Has Resurrected Single-Use Plastics—Are They Back to Stay?

Studies show that these products are not necessarily safer than reusable alternatives with respect to viral spread

John Rogers and his colleague Shuai Xu’s tech startup Sonica Health is submitting the device with a pulse oximeter and its algorithms to the FDA for approval later this month.

Covid-19

This Band-Aid-Like Patch Could Detect Early COVID-19 Symptoms

Northwestern University scientist John Rogers has developed a wearable that adheres to the throat and relays data to a physician

Our bodies carry many bacteria and fungi, not all of them harmful.

What Quarantine Is Doing to Your Body’s Wondrous World of Bacteria

The germs, fungi and mites that grow on our hands, face, armpits and elsewhere have become stranded during the age of social distancing

A survey of nearly 1,000 environmental education and outdoor science schools that serve primarily K-12 learners shows that 63 percent of such organizations are uncertain whether they will ever open their doors again, if pandemic restrictions last until year’s end.

Education During Coronavirus

Will COVID-19 Spell the End of Outdoor and Environmental Education?

The pandemic has been devastating to the field, according to a recent survey

This month's selections include Clean, Memory Drive and Uncrowned Queen.

Books of the Month

An Uncrowned Tudor Queen, the Science of Skin and Other New Books to Read

These five July releases may have been lost in the news cycle

Olympus Mons on Mars, the solar system's tallest mountain, as seen from the Viking orbiter

Mars Had Landslide-Powered Tsunamis That Put Earth’s Mega-Waves to Shame

A huge mass of material fell down a mountain and into the Red Planet’s ancient ocean.

Mars (photographed here by the European Mars Express orbiter) has a thin atmosphere--useful for landers parachuting down to the surface, and the subject of interest for orbiters like the UAE's Hope spacecraft.

What to Know About the Three Mars Missions Launching in July

Three different countries are about to send landers and orbiters to the Red Planet

Sunrise at the Tongariki site on Easter Island

Native Americans and Polynesians Met Around 1200 A.D.

Genetic analysis of their modern descendants shows that people from the Pacific Islands and South America interacted long before Europeans arrived

In Africa, ivory has been a status symbol because it comes from elephants, a highly respected animal, and because it is fairly easy to carve into works of art.

Why Is Ivory So Precious? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

A home burns as the Camp Fire moves through the area on November 8, 2018 in Paradise, California.

Covid-19

How COVID-19 Will Change the Way We Fight Wildfires

Prepare for the return of the Smokey Bear method as social distancing prevents firefighters from using more modern strategies

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