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Smart News

Why Some Autistic Kids Don’t Catch Yawns

Researchers once thought it had something to do with their troubles empathizing with others, but new research suggests something different

Once a Toxoplasma Parasite Infects Mice, They Never Fear Cats Again

Toxoplasma is estimated to infect nearly one-third of humans worldwide, but what these results mean for humans remains to be seen

Good Cop, Bad Cop Might Not Work

By combining brute force and gentle understanding cops can get the criminal to confess to his crime. The problem is, that might not actually work

Game Over: Former Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi Dies at 85

The man who oversaw Nintendo’s transformation into a video game company died today

“The Eight Years of the War of the American Revolution,” wood engraving by John Warner Barber c 1871. You’re really going to want to zoom in on this one.

This Engraved Infographic of the Revolutionary War Is From 1871

This engraved infographic from 1871 shows the major events of the Revolutionary War, and some beautiful subtle additions

Women Can Now Map Street Harassment, One Catcall at a Time

Some, however, are doubtful that the app will actually enact any change

Rosetta eyeing the comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Europe’s Space Agency Is Going to Harpoon a Comet And Ride It Into the Sun

A three billion mile hunt will climax soon when Rosetta, quite literally, harpoons a comet

Legos Helped Restore a 3,000-Year-Old Sarcophagus

Lego platforms propped the sarcophagus in place from the inside, allowing the researchers to work on the ancient materials without fear of collapse

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This Crazy, Hacker-Friendly 3D Scanner Helps Make a Copy of Anything You Can See

A 3D scanner, similar to Microsoft’s Kinect, is coming to your mobile device

The bartending robot James is here to serve.

Bartending Robot Can Tell If a Customer Wants a Drink or Is Just Standing Around

Using videos of thirsty customers lining up for bar-side drinks, they created algorithm equivalents for “I want a drink” body language

Was Beethoven’s Metronome Wrong?

Mathematic and musical detectives have discovered that perhaps Beethoven’s tempo was so strange because his metronome was broken

Four composite views of the Moon

NASA’s Captured the Intricate Beauty of the Dark Side of the Moon in One Short Video

Watch this time lapse trip all the way around the Moon

Flies, Chipmunks And Other Tiny Creatures See the World in Slow Motion

Flies, for example, can perceive visual stimuli four times faster than we can

Rivers across the U.S. are getting less acidic, including the Mississippi River.

Acid Rain Is Making Rivers… Less Acidic?

Acid rain is “dissolving the surface of the Earth,” making streams more alkaline in the process

A human genome, printed

One Woman Can Have Multiple Genetic Identities—Hers, Her Secret One, And All Her Kids’

The idea of there being one genetic “you” is up in the air

A squirrel scratches in Central Park

How to Catch, Clean And Cook a Squirrel

Two cups of flour, a nice zinfandel, a pinch of sun-dried tomatoes, and 3 chopped squirrels

The AR-15 Seems To Be the Weapon of Chioce in Random Acts of Violence

Of the 67 mass shootings in the US over the past three decades, more than three-quarters of the 143 guns used were obtained legally

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Google Earth Is Lending a Hand with Land Mine Clearing in Kosovo

Google has teemed with the Halo Trust, a non-profit that works to remove land mines and other unexploded ordinances that often linger after a conflict ends

There’s Evidence Midlife Crises Are Real, But No Good Explanation for Why They Happen

We all know the symptoms: the red sports car, the leather jacket, the journey to “find oneself,” the tattoos

How Many Diseases Can a New York City Rat Give You?

In New York City you are never more than six feet away from a rat and its diseases

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