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Smart News

New Research

Germans and Americans Agree That They’re Allies, Disagree On Why

A new survey shows differing opinions on foreign policy and the importance of historical events

Cool Finds

Seventy Years Ago Today, Queen Elizabeth Secretly Partied with Commoners

Before she became Elizabeth II, the then-princess slipped into London’s streets incognito to celebrate Europe’s victory over Germany

Armor from the Old Arsenal Museum (Altes Zeughaus) in Solothurn, Switzerland

Cool Finds

Here’s How to Fight Wearing 15th Century Armor

Experts demonstrate some moves in a video while wearing full suits of plate armor

A drawing by explorer John Cleves as he mapped the northern poles.

Cool Finds

John Quincy Adams Was an Ardent Supporter of Exploration

The president planned to fund an expedition to the South Pole and South Pacific, but the research trip was canceled by his successor, Andrew Jackson

Cool Finds

A Streak in the Sky: Photographer Captures an Incredible Time-lapse Image of the Moon

Janne Voutilainen’s photo took nearly 40 minutes to shoot

Cool Finds

Here’s How to Make Harper Lee’s Crackling Cornbread

The recipe is offered with a side serving of dry wit

Cool Finds

Ancient Pit Home Unearthed in a Salt Lake City Suburb

Spear points and other artifacts found in the 1,500-year-old home

Cool Finds

Was the Loch Ness Monster Inspired by Earthquakes?

Just one of many monsters that might have geological origins.

New Research

The First GMO Is 8,000 Years Old

Scientists find that bacteria modified DNA in sweet potatoes millennia ago

Cool Finds

Probiotics Exist Thanks to a Man Who Drank Cholera

One man’s obsession with the immune system led to today’s probiotic fad

New Research

Reading Harry Potter Might Make You a Better Person

Young readers who identify with the Boy Who Lived may grow up to be more tolerant.

Cool Finds

Labyrinths in Prisons and Hospitals Might Actually Help People Relax

Labyrinths are experiencing a revival

A Falcon 9 rocket and unmanned Dragon space capsule blast off from Cape Canaveral last month to re-supply the International Space Station

Trending Today

SpaceX’s Capsule Has an Emergency Eject System

The spaceflight company hits another milestone in tests of its Dragon 2 and Falcon 9 systems

Trending Today

Here’s How NASA is Keeping The Satellites Around Mars From Running Into Each Other

NASA is beefing up traffic monitoring as more satellites enter orbit around the red planet.

Cool Finds

Why People Call Apartments ‘Pads’

The slang term has a sordid past

Trending Today

The Very First Self-Driving Semi Truck Has Hit the Road

The Freightliner Inspiration is the first commercially-licensed autonomous truck

An ocean sunfish hangs out with pilotfishes

New Research

Goofy Looking Ocean Sunfish Are Actually Active Swimmers and Predators

The idea that these giant fish are lazy is just wrong

Cool Finds

The Mystery of What Venus de Milo Was Once Holding

A distaff, thread and spindle could have been held in her upraised arms and would have been appropriate for the goddess of love

Trending Today

Two French Towns Are Battling Over a Saint’s Remains

Should Saint Bernadette be laid to rest in the town she made famous…or the one she chose to live in?

Trending Today

The Silk Road Never Really Existed

China is attempting to turn away from its isolated past with an immense new infrastructure project

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