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Archaeologists excavating a new theater uncovered near Jerusalem's Western Wall

Roman Theater Uncovered Near Jerusalem’s Western Wall

Never finished or used, the small theater has been sought for more than a century by archaeologists

7,500 frogs captured by smugglers were rescued from their trips to plates

Thousands of Turkish Frogs Rescued From Smugglers

A delicacy often exported to European countries, frogs are a tightly regulated commodity in the country

California Becomes First State to Introduce Gender-Neutral Birth Certificates

The new law also makes it easier for residents to legally change their sex designation

Nine letters written by Barack Obama from 1982 to 1984 are being made available to the public for the first time

Barack Obama’s Letters From Three Decades Ago

As a striving college student and recent graduate, letters by the future president depict a man coming to terms with his identity and future

When they know humans are looking at them, dogs turn out to make a lot of facial expressions

Fido’s Making That Puppy Face on Purpose—He’s Trying to Tell You Something

A new study suggests dogs use their facial expressions to communicate

Cool Finds

Stone Age Britons Feasted While Building Stonehenge

A new exhibit shows that the builders gorged on animals from as far away as Scotland

An Orionid meteor

Trending Today

Look Up: The Orionid Meteor Shower Will Streak Through Skies This Weekend

Bits of Halley’s Comet are raining down on Earth, and the show will peak in the wee hours of Saturday morning

Quick, durable and environmentally friendly, 3-D printing is becoming an increasingly popular technique in construction.

3-D Printed Cycling Bridge Unveiled in the Netherlands

It is reportedly the first-ever civil infrastructure project built with a 3-D printer

A Hybrid III model crash test dummy.

These Dummies Gave Us a Crash Course on Auto Safety

Many of your car’s safety features owe a lot to these inanimate people

President Kennedy meets with Gen. Curtis LeMay and the pilots who discovered the Cuban missiles.

JFK Faked a Cold to Get Back to Washington During the Cuban Missile Crisis

The president was in Chicago when he got the news that he needed to make a decision

New Research

Over Three Quarters of Flying Insects Disappear From German Nature Preserves

A combination of habitat loss, pesticide use and climate change may be behind the dramatic three-decade decline

In this Oct. 30, 1965, Associated Press file photo, members of the Youth Wing of the Indonesian Communist Party (Pemuda Rakjat) are watched by soldiers as they are taken to prison in Jakarta.

Declassified Records Show U.S. Knew About, Supported 1965 Massacre in Indonesia

One cable referred to the brutal transition of power as a “fantastic switch”

New Research

Latest AI Teaches Itself to Play Go With No Human Help

DeepMind’s AlphaGo Zero taught itself how to play Go, becoming the greatest player in history in just 40 days

A centuries-old hun luang puppet is seen in a Thailand museum. Artisans there have recently revived the style of theater using them.

After 149 Years, Thailand’s Royal Puppets Dance Again

The ancient art of Hun Luang all but vanished until passionate artisans revived the style in time for the late king’s royal funeral

All But Two Adélie Penguin Chicks Die in “Catastrophic” Breeding Season

A WWF official described it as “Tarantino does Happy Feet”

The Climeworks device in Iceland that can filter carbon dioxide from ambient air and send it underground

First ‘Negative Emissions’ Plant Opens in Iceland, Turning Atmospheric CO2 Into Stone

The plant’s operators hope to halt the warming of the Earth, but many challenges remain for the plan to work on a large scale

A marble bust of Napoleon that has resided in Madison borough hall for 85 years has been revealed to be a long-lost artwork by revered French sculptor Auguste Rodin.

“Lost” Rodin Sculpture Discovered in New Jersey Borough Hall

It took decades for someone to notice the artist’s signature, which was facing the wall

Memorial to a species, Brent Stirton, South Africa, Grand title winner 2017

Art Meets Science

Tragedy and Beauty of Nature on Display in This Year’s Best Wildlife Photos

The 16 award-winning images range from whimsical birds to the tragic aftermath of a poaching raid

Egyptians bringing in the harvest

New Research

Volcanic Eruptions Could Have Spurred Revolts in Ancient Egypt

A new study comparing eruptions and uprisings looks at how volcanoes meddle with annual Nile floods

Reaching the summit of the Matterhorn made Annie Smith Peck well-known.

Three Things to Know About Pants-Wearing Mountaineer Annie Smith Peck

Peck wasn’t wealthy and her family, who did have money, didn’t approve of her globe-trotting, mountain-climbing, pants-wearing lifestyle

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