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Inside Idiom, which uses mirrors to provide the illusion of infinite length

Trending Today

You Can See a Swirling Sculpture Made of 8,000 Books at a Library in Prague

Officials are managing an influx of tourists coming to see “Idiom,” a seemingly infinite tunnel of books by the artist Matej Krén, at the Municipal Library

Researchers investigated Pompeii's water system, including the "water castle" pictured here, which served as the water distribution structure for Pompeii's aqueduct. 

New Research

The Public Baths of Ancient Pompeii Were Actually Pretty Gross—Until the Romans Built an Aqueduct

Hygienic conditions were poor in the city’s older bathing facilities, a new study reveals. The analysis sheds light on Pompeii’s water systems and residents’ bathing habits

The "Tumat puppies" were discovered with their fur, skin and stomach contents still intact.

Contents of a Wolf Pup’s Stomach From 14,400 Years Ago Are Teaching Researchers About the Lives of the Last Woolly Rhinos

Analysis of woolly rhinoceros DNA recovered from the permafrost-preserved wolf further hints that the Ice Age beasts went extinct because of a sudden shift in the climate

The Arnolfini Portrait, Jan van Eyck, 1434

All Nine of Jan van Eyck’s Surviving Portraits Are Coming Together for the Very First Time in History

The Northern Renaissance painter’s innovative techniques altered the course of art history. An upcoming exhibition in London brings together his 15th-century portraits from collections across Europe

Dealing with centuries of darkness and eye parasites doesn't seem to affect Greenland sharks' vision.

Greenland Sharks Can Survive for Centuries—and Maintain Long-Lasting Vision, Despite Living in the Dark

The long-living sharks aren’t as blind as once thought and have DNA repair mechanisms that may help prevent their vision from degrading, a study suggests

Europa, one of Jupiter's moons

Jupiter’s Moon Europa Is a Top Candidate for Hosting Alien Life. But It May Lack the Geologic Activity Needed to Birth Microbes

On Earth, deep-sea vents may have given rise to the planet’s first life. But nothing of the sort seems to be happening at the bottom of Europa’s ocean, a study suggests

An artistic illustration of the MAVEN orbiter and Mars

NASA to Resume Search for Missing Mars Orbiter, but Prospects of Re-establishing Communication With It Seem Slim

Scientists haven’t heard from the MAVEN orbiter since December 6. It had been studying the Martian atmosphere for over a decade

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide

Spaceflight Temporarily Changes the Position and Shape of Astronauts’ Brains, MRI Data Suggests

The biggest changes happen in brain regions involved with processing sensory information and coordinating movement, according to a new study

Tour guides will livestream walk-throughs of the underground space, adorned with mosaic floors and colorful wall frescoes.

New Livestream Tour Takes Tourists Underneath Rome Into Never-Before-Seen ‘House of Griffins’

Beginning in March, visitors can virtually explore the 2,000-year-old subterranean dwelling, open to the public for the first time

When the portrait of the man is flipped upside down, a woman's face is visible in his beard.

Could This Portrait of an Elderly Man With a Young Woman’s Face Hidden in His Beard Be a Long-Lost Study by Peter Paul Rubens?

When a dealer saw the unsigned painting at auction, he wondered if it might be an original piece by the renowned 17th-century Flemish artist. Experts are divided on the work’s attribution

The box was discovered in the Roman-era grave of a young woman. Archaeologists suspect it may have contained ointment for pain relief, as the woman's remains show signs of lesions and joint inflammation.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Unearth Intricately Decorated Box Carved From Deer Bone That May Have Once Held Ancient Ointments

The box was excavated from a Roman-era grave in England. It was found among a trove of artifacts spanning roughly 8,000 years of human activity

A worker bee (left) and a queen bee (right) slurp up artificial nectar during laboratory experiments.

Queen Bumblebees’ Tongues Aren’t Built for Slurping Nectar—Which Might Keep the Royals Homebound

Queen bumblebees have sparser hair on their tongues than worker bees, which makes them less efficient at lapping up nectar, new research suggests

A neural circuit that processes motivation and reward seems to act as a "brake" when faced with an unpleasant task, a study suggests.

Can’t Get Started on a Daunting Task? This Brain Circuit That Slams the Brakes on Motivation Might Be to Blame

Monkey experiments hint at a “motivation brake” pathway between two brain regions. Manipulating it may lead to new treatments for depression and other psychiatric conditions

Claudette Colvin, photographed here in 1998, helped end segregation on public transportation.

Women Who Shaped History

Months Before Rosa Parks Made Headlines, Claudette Colvin Refused to Give Up Her Seat for a White Woman on a Segregated Bus

Colvin, a lesser-known figure who took a stand against racial discrimination as a teenager in Montgomery, Alabama, has died at age 86

The Northerner sank in 1868 and has been resting upright on the lakebed of Lake Michigan off the coast of Wisconsin ever since.

See a 157-Year-Old Great Lakes Shipwreck in Stunning Detail With This New 3D Scan

Last year, maritime archaeologists revisited the “Northerner” in Lake Michigan and captured hundreds of still images, which they stitched together to create a digital replica of the vessel

Researchers were shocked to find a shock wave around a dead star. 

This Mysterious Gas Cloud Spotted Around a Dead Star Is Beautiful—but Astronomers Say It Shouldn’t Be There

The stellar corpse is spewing star stuff, which is heating and compressing surrounding gas, resulting in a multicolored display. But it’s missing a component thought to be necessary for this phenomenon

Cloud-9, shown in magenta. The circle represents the region where researchers focused their search for stars—the peak of radio emission.

Astronomers Find an Odd Space Cloud, Like a Galaxy Without Stars, That Could Shed Light on the Secrets of Dark Matter

Named “Cloud-9,” the discovery is a new type of celestial object known as a RELHIC, which is unlike anything scientists have ever observed

Though the wooden buildings have long since rotted away, the postholes and beam slots are still there.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Stumble Upon Mysterious Medieval Village While Preparing for New Wind Farms in England

The previously unknown settlement appears to have been abandoned at some point in the 1300s, but researchers don’t know why

Same-sex behaviors seem to be common among rhesus macaques.

Biologists Reveal How Same-Sex Sexual Behavior May Have Given Some Primates an Evolutionary Advantage

Nonhuman primates like bonobos and chimpanzees might engage in same-sex sexual activities to strengthen bonds, particularly in harsh environments or within strict social structures, a new study suggests

Bowie lived in the two-story house between 1955 and 1967.

You Can Soon Step Inside David Bowie’s Childhood Bedroom, Restored to the Way It Looked When He Was 16

The musician’s former home in south London is scheduled to open to the public in late 2027 following an extensive restoration, which will transport visitors back in time to 1963

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