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In 25 B.C.E., Romans founded a colony called Augusta Emerita in what is now Mérida, Spain.

Cool Finds

Iron Window Bars Unearthed at a Roman Public Bath in Spain

The crisscrossing bars were likely part of the bath’s changing room, called the apodyterium

Skull of Homo erectus from the Republic of Georgia

An Extreme Ice Age May Have Wiped Out Europe’s Earliest Humans 1.1 Million Years Ago

New research suggests the continent was devoid of hominins for about 200,000 years after a previously unknown cold snap

A group poses in front of Michigan State University's first observatory, circa 1888.

Cool Finds

Students Unearth Forgotten 142-Year-Old Observatory Buried on Michigan State’s Campus

Archaeology students have been working at the site since workers happened upon it in May

Smoke rises from buildings destroyed in the town of Lahaina last week by the Maui wildfires. A new study ties long-term exposure to smoke from wildfires to increased risk of dementia.

Long-Term Wildfire Smoke Exposure Linked to Dementia Risk, Study Finds

Among nine sources of particle pollution, fires and agriculture had the strongest link to dementia, according to a new analysis of a national survey

The remains likely belong to a Qinling panda rather than a Sichuan panda. Pictured: Qi Zai, a Qinling panda born in captivity

Cool Finds

Fully Intact Giant Panda Skeleton Discovered in Chinese Emperor’s 2,000-Year-Old Tomb

Archaeologists previously found a panda skull in a nearby Han burial, but its torso was missing

Scientists are investigating how blood cells or other parts of blood might be responsible for aging.

Old Mice Could Live Longer by Sharing Young Blood, Study Finds

After surgically attaching pairs of mice, scientists suggest the procedure could rejuvenate the older individuals, slowing their aging

The coins depict the god Apollo on one side and a horse surrounded by symbols on the other.

Cool Finds

Metal Detectorists Discover 2,000-Year-Old Gold Coins in Wales

The 15 artifacts are the first Iron Age gold coins ever found in the country

The Glimmer Twins, created by sculptor Amy Goodman

Statues of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards Unveiled in the Duo’s Hometown

The Rolling Stones bandmates both grew up in Dartford, Kent, where they met as teenagers

Artists have long used these rustic dune shacks in Cape Cod as creative retreats.

Tennessee Williams and Jack Kerouac Once Found Refuge in the Dune Shacks of Cape Cod. Now, Longtime Residents Are Being Forced Out

The National Park Service plans to lease out some of the structures, which have long been used by artists and writers

In Montana, a group of 16 young people are suing the state for violating their constitutional right to a "clean and healthful environment."

Montana Youths Win Key Climate Lawsuit on Their Right to a ‘Clean and Healthful Environment’

The ruling could set a groundbreaking precedent in answering the question: Does the government need to protect its citizens from climate change?

Boston artist Peter Stephenson completed The Wounded Indian in 1850.

‘Wounded Indian’ Sculpture Will Return to Boston—Decades After It Was Supposedly Destroyed

The piece was rediscovered in 1999 at a Virginia museum, which has finally agreed to hand it over

On August 10, homes, buildings and the harbor in Lahaina are burned to the ground after wildfires swept through Maui.

How Swaths of Invasive Grass Made Maui’s Fires So Devastating

Scientists have long warned that Hawaii’s cover of nonnative shrubs is kindling waiting to burn

Creation of the Birds, 1957, by Remedios Varo, is one of more than 60 works featured in a new Chicago exhibition about the Surrealist.

How Remedios Varo Became One of the ‘Witches’ of Surrealism

In Mexico City, the Spanish-born artist created dreamlike works that drew on magic, mysticism and more

A video screenshot of a rocket carrying the Luna-25 spacecraft launching from Russia on August 11. The spacecraft aims to be the first to successfully land in the vicinity of the moon's south pole.

Russia Launches Its First Spacecraft to the Moon in Nearly 50 Years

The country now joins India in a race to make the first-ever successful soft landing near the lunar south pole

The snake's new enclosure is specially designed to help the creature avoid hurting itself.

A Rare Two-Headed Snake Is Back on Exhibit at a Texas Zoo

Pancho and Lefty, as the western rat snake is known, has now healed from an injury it suffered more than two years ago

This triptych by Francis Bacon is listed as being owned by Roman Abramovich in the new database.

Ukraine Launches Database to Track Art Owned by Sanctioned Russians

The searchable list contains some 300 works by the likes of Pablo Picasso, Leonardo da Vinci and more

The theme for this year's festival is "Halloween in August."

The Puppets Take Manhattan, Celebrating a Rich Global Art Form

The International Puppet Fringe Festival honored puppeteer Ralph Lee, who died earlier this year

The surface of Mars’ Pontours rock contains a network of hexagonal mud cracks that hints at historical seasons of flooding and drying.

Mud Cracks on Mars Hint at Conditions That Could Have Formed Life Long Ago

Hexagonal ridges on the Red Planet’s surface suggest an ancient cycle of wet and dry periods, ideal for creating molecules necessary for cells

An aerial image of the banyan tree taken on August 10, 2023

Will Maui’s Beloved 150-Year-Old Banyan Tree Survive the Scorching Wildfires?

Amidst the devastation of Lahaina, a coastal town in Maui, the tree is burned but still standing

Fossilized poop, called coprolites, collected in Nong Yakong village, Chaiyaphum Province, Thailand. Coprolites are an important source for studying ancient parasites.

200-Million-Year-Old Poop Reveals Parasites That Infected a Crocodile-Like Reptile

The prehistoric fossil could help researchers understand the relationships between parasites and host organisms in the Late Triassic

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