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Check Out Yosemite’s “Firefall” Illusion Light Up El Capitan

The firefall is back this year, and it’s just as spectacular as ever

Ceres is much more than a rotating rock.

New Research

Organic Material Found on Ceres Hints at Potential for Life

Scientists are fired up about these building blocks of life

A Leaky Roof Has Forced the Johannesburg Art Gallery to Temporarily Close

But there’s some good news to comes out of this soggy situation

Sea surface temperatures are abnormally warm in the Pacific Ocean. Will that drive an El Niño event later this year?

Trending Today

Another El Niño Could Be On Its Way

There’s a 40 percent chance of the pattern later this year

The original design patent for the Statue of Liberty included this image, which isn't the final picture of what it would look like, but shows how far Bartholdi's image was developed by the time he applied for the patent.

The Innovative Spirit fy17

The Statue of Liberty Was Once Patented

Reading the original patent documents can help us learn more about this history of this American icon

An 1817 illustration of a draisine.

This Wooden Running Machine Was Your Fixie’s Great-Great Grandpa

The draisine was invented as a potential replacement for the horse during a shortage

The taxi of the future doesn't drive—it flies.

Cool Finds

Dubai Will Get Self-Flying Taxis This Year

Bypass traffic with the taxi of the future

The Ryuguji temple

How 13th-Century “Mermaid Bones” Came to Be Displayed in a Japanese Temple

According to legend, the ningyo washed ashore on the Japanese island of Kyushu in 1222

Yellow Fever Outbreak in Congo and Angola Finally Comes to an End

After almost 1,000 confirmed cases of the disease, the WHO has declared outbreak over

Logan (second from right) is the first ever boy American Girl doll.

Trending Today

American Girl Announces Boy

The toy titan’s newest doll is a boy named Logan

Seagrass grows near a village in the Spermonde Archipelago in Indonesia. Researchers there recently discovered that coastal areas with seagrass have less bacteria than grassless areas.

New Research

Seagrasses Reduce Bacteria in Polluted Waters

A new study suggests the mesmerizing fields could be important for the health of humans and sea creatures alike

The first-known photograph of the White House, by John Plumbe, Jr.

Five Cool Finds From Google Arts & Culture’s Presidents’ Day Collection

The platform is sharing more than 2,000 items steeped in political history

A former McDonald's, now a museum in Illinois. Richard "Dick" McDonald, one of the two McDonald brothers who started the chain (and who is played by Nick Offerman in a new movie) invented both the Golden Arches and the "over 1 million sold" sign.

Nick Offerman’s Character in “The Founder” Is Based on This Real Historical Figure

Richard “Dick” McDonald’s story in the film is true — to a degree

An undated photo of video-game pioneer Roberta Williams during the early days of Sierra On-Line, the company she and her husband founded.

The Pioneer of Graphic Adventure Games Was a Woman

Mystery House was the first home computer game ever to include graphics as well as text

An artist's rendition of Dinocephalosaurus carrying her baby through the ancient ocean.

New Research

This Ancient Reptile Gave Birth to Live Offspring

Rather than laying eggs like its modern bird and croc relatives this creature gave birth to live babies

The phone that made the first 9-1-1 call in the U.S. is still in Haleyville, Alabama, now on display in the town's City Hall.

‘9-1-1’ Has Meant ‘Help, Please’ Since 1968

The first 911 call ever placed came from the small town of Haleyville, Alabama

New Research

New Report Cautiously Supports Some Gene Editing of Embryos

A new report suggests that editing embryos to cure some genetic diseases may be permissable

USS Turner

Trending Today

Pentagon Investigates Missing Sailors from the U.S.S. Turner

After the ship exploded in New York Harbor in 1944, 136 sailors were classified as missing, but new research suggests some were buried on Long Island

This approximate true-color image of the Gusev Crater is one of the three potential landing sites for the Mars 2020 rover.

Life in the Cosmos

Check Out NASA’s Three Options for the 2020 Mars Rover Landing

Scientists have narrowed down potential sites for the next rover to set wheel on the red planet

Henrietta Lacks was a real person—and her cancer cells have led to many medical discoveries.

Trending Today

New Claims Prove the Henrietta Lacks Controversy Is Far From Over

The family of the woman who changed science forever is seeking compensation

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