Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Smart News / Smart News Science

A wildlife camera trap caught five shots of this bobcat walking by the C&O Canal in Washington, D.C.

Unusual Urban Bobcat Spotted in Washington, D.C.

The closest verified bobcat sighting was 25 miles away, so how this one reached the city remains a mystery

Embedded hooks can restrict eating and may cause internal damage to organs or poisoning.

Fishing Hooks Pose a Long-Term Threat to Tiger Sharks

A new study found that 38 percent of tiger sharks observed off the coast of Tahiti had at least one hook stuck in their body

For decades, researchers have known that mice infected with the parasite Toxoplasma gondii lose their fear of cats. But there may be more to the story.

Brain Parasite Strips Rodents of Fears of Felines—and So Much More

Toxoplasma gondii infections don’t just make mice afraid of cats. They get reckless with all sorts of other stuff, too

Researcher Alexandra Green, recording cows

Cows Communicate With Unique Moos

A new study has found that the animals use distinct vocalizations across a range of emotional contexts

Brush-tailed rock-wallabies are endangered in New South Wales.

Australia’s National Park Staff Is Now Air-Dropping Food to Wallabies

Wallabies often survive the bushfires, but their natural food sources do not

Even for grasshoppers, being upside-down can be a high (blood) pressure situation.

Like Humans, Grasshoppers Grapple With Gravity’s Effects on Blood Pressure

After putting the insects into a linear accelerator, researchers got some surprisingly weighty results

Española tortoises are reared for five years before being released on the Galápagos' Española Island.

Diego, the 100-Year-Old Tortoise Who Fathered 900 Babies, Returns to the Wild

The breeding program brought the Española tortoise population back from the brink

Watch the Spectacular Eruption of One of Mexico’s Most Active Volcanoes

Officials say no one was hurt in the explosion. But over in the Philippines, a brewing eruption in threatens to be more severe

With the Khumbu valley and Cholatse peak in the background, shrubs grow at about 4,900 meters about sea level.

Plants Are Now Sprouting High in Himalayas as the Planet Warms

Just what this means for the fragile mountain ecosystem is unclear, but researchers say the need to find out is ‘urgent’

These scavenging bird could use a lesson or two in manners.

Vulture Poop Has Compromised a Customs and Border Protection Radio Tower in Texas

Officials are scrambling for a solution to the fecal fiasco

The high-status 16th-century woman (right) appears to have suffered from leprosy, a disfiguring disease that likely left its mark on her skin, tissues and bone.

Artists Reconstruct Centuries-Old Faces of Early Edinburgh Residents

Skulls uncovered beneath St. Giles’ Cathedral gave faces to a 12th-century man and a 16th-century woman

The Taliabu Grasshopper-Warbler is one of ten new bird species and subspecies described by ornithologist Frank Rheindt.

New Research

Ten New Bird Species and Subspecies Found in Indonesia

Previous bird-collecting expeditions never trekked inland, leaving a treasure trove of undiscovered warblers and leaftoilers

The venomous Indian cobra (Naja naja) is one of the deadliest snakes in the world.

Newly Sequenced Indian Cobra Genome Could Lead to Better Antivenoms

A genetic approach could circumvent the pitfalls associated with current antivenom synthesis techniques

A large meteorite can launch bits of molten rock into the atmosphere when it impacts Earth. When that molten rock cools, it forms tektites, shown here.

New Research

Crater From Giant Meteorite Strike Might Be Hidden Under Volcanic Plateau

Debris from the strike scattered across Earth, but the exact point of impact has been a mystery

A Chinese paddlefish specimen made in 1990 is seen on display at the Museum of Hydrobiological Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Wuhan, China. The Chinese paddlefish's sharp, protruding snout made it one of the largest freshwater species in the world.

The Chinese Paddlefish, Which Lived for 200 Million Years, Is Now Extinct

New research concludes the freshwater species likely disappeared between 2005 and 2010 due to human activity

Sweden's 1,200-year-old Rök stone is inscribed with more than 700 runes, some of which may discuss climate change.

New Research

Viking Runestone May Trace Its Roots to Fear of Extreme Weather

Sweden’s Rök stone, raised by a father commemorating his recently deceased son, may contain allusions to an impending period of catastrophic cold

The bicolored white-toothed shrew (Crocidura leucodon), a small mammal known to carry and transmit Borna disease virus to other animals.

A Shrew-Borne Virus Is Responsible for Deadly Brain Infections in Humans

First discovered in livestock hundreds of years ago, Borna disease virus has apparently been claiming human lives for decades

“Their bone size indicates that they were probably militiamen,” says archaeologist Nicholas Bellantoni. "Their femur bones show that they clearly walked a lot and carried a lot of weight back in their day.”

Cool Finds

Skeletons Unearthed in Connecticut May Belong to Revolutionary War Soldiers

If confirmed, the bones would be the first remains recovered from Revolutionary War soldiers in the Constitution State

The Heslington brain, revealed intact within a 2,600-year-old skull unearthed near modern day York, England

New Research

Super Resilient Protein Structures Preserved a Chunk of Brain for 2,600 Years

After death, most brains decompose within months or years. This one lasted millennia

An intentionally lit controlled fire burns intensely near Tomerong, Australia, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020, in an effort to contain a larger fire nearby.

More Than One Billion Animals Have Been Killed in Australia’s Wildfires, Scientist Estimates

Some researchers believe the number could be ‘a very conservative figure’

Page 262 of 545