Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Smart News / Smart News Science

An Atlantic spotted dolphin swims behind a Pilot whale.

Shedding Genes Helped Whales and Dolphins Evolve for Life at Sea

When adopting an aquatic lifestyle, cetaceans ditched genetic code related to sleep, DNA restoration and more

The wrestler's cap alludes to Hercules' defeat of the Nemean lion

Cool Finds

Jar Depicting Thracian Athlete Found in Grave of Sports Fan of Antiquity

Your move, fanatics of the 21st century

Cool Finds

California’s Saltiest Lake Is Home to This Arsenic-Resistant, Three-Sexed Worm

Prior to their discovery, only two species could survive in the super-salty, highly alkaline lake in the Sierra Nevada mountains

Previously, researchers believed giraffes' spots grew darker with age

Color of Giraffes’ Spots Reflects Social Status, Not Age

New research suggests male giraffes with darker coloring are more solitary, dominant than lighter-hued counterparts

New Research

If We Connect Fragmented Habitat, New Species Will Come, Study Shows

An 18-year study of longleaf pine savannah showed a 5 percent species increase per year when isolated plots were reconnected

That's the tea.

Your Soothing Cup of Tea May Contain Billions of Microplastics

That’s ‘several orders of magnitude higher than plastic loads previously reported in other foods,’ according to a new study

Researchers extracted DNA from more than 400 lions

Zambia’s Lions Roam Areas Previously Believed to Be Uninhabitable

A select group of migrating big cats ensures high levels of genetic diversity throughout the country’s lion population

Workers found traces of the fort while surveying the area ahead of redevelopment

Cool Finds

Construction Reveals Remnants of Roman Fort Below British Bus Station

Archaeologists found three defensive ditches, as well as coins, pottery and imported tableware

Trending Today

Climate Report Warns Oceans and Polar Ice Are in Serious Peril

The IPCC study shows that without immediate change, sea level will rise, fish stocks will crumble and glaciers and polar regions will thaw

Mother walruses like this one on a waterfront near Svalbard, Norway, are very protective of their young.

An Angry Walrus Mother Derailed a Russian Naval Expedition

The hulking marine mammal was likely trying to protect her calves

The crypt-keeper brainwashes victims, then consumes them from the inside out

Parasitic Crypt-Keeper Wasp Manipulates the Minds of Seven Fellow Insect Species

The ‘hypermanipulator’ is named after Set, the Egyptian god of war and chaos

New Research

These Prehistoric Sea Monsters Had a Mean Breast Stroke

A new study shows Mosasaurs not only swam using their tails but used powerful pectoral muscles for short bursts to ambush prey

Too cute to be nameless.

Help the Shedd Aquarium Name Its Rescued Otter Pups

The aquarium hopes the contest will help raise awareness about southern sea otters’ ongoing conservation needs

One 23-year-old supermom gave birth to 17 pups over her lifetime

New Research

Select Elephant Seal ‘Supermoms’ Produce Most Pups

The most successful seal mothers were those that ‘bred at every opportunity and lived long’

Artist's conception of a watery Venus.

New Research

Venus Could Have Been Habitable for Billions of Years

New simulations show the planet could have maintained moderate temperatures and liquid water until 700 million years ago

Even Shy Cats Are Bonded to Their Human Caregivers

A new study suggests that cats form ‘secure attachments’ to their owners, just like dogs and human babies do

Tawanda Kanhema, as pictured in 2018 at Zimbabwe's Victoria Falls

Meet the Photographer Single-Handedly Putting Zimbabwe on Google Street View

Thanks to Tawanda Kanhema, you can now take a virtual tour of Victoria Falls, the Great Zimbabwe National Monument and other attractions

The tool is set to go offline this Friday, but it will remain accessible as a physical art installation at Milan’s Fondazione Prada Osservertario

Art Meets Science

Art Project Shows Racial Biases in Artificial Intelligence System

ImageNet Roulette reveals how little-explored classification methods are yielding ‘racist, misogynistic and cruel results’

World’s Largest Privately-Owned Giant Sequoia Grove Is for Sale

And a conservation group needs the public’s help acquiring the property

The crocodile was 3 to 4 years old at the time of its death

Ancient Egyptians Hunted, Then Mummified, Crocodiles

New scans of a 2,000-year-old crocodile specimen suggest the animal was hunted specifically for mummification

Page 265 of 538