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Smart News / Smart News Science

The rock from the Apex Chert in which the fossils were found

New Research

At 3.5 Billion Years Old, Are These the Oldest Fossils?

A new analysis of this decades-old find suggests that they were indeed once biological life—but not all are convinced

The newly lifted funding ban allows for more research of viruses like influenza, SARS, and MERS. But critics worry it's a risky step.

The Next Pandemic

NIH Lifts Ban on Funding High-Risk Virus Research

Manipulating viruses could help prepare the U.S. for future pandemics, but it could also risk starting the next outbreak

Artists rendering of ‘Oumuamua

New Research

Unusual Interstellar Visitor Could Be Shard of Ice

A new study of ‘Oumuamua suggests it’s water ice covered with 20 inches of dry carbon compounds

The original Thames beater (top) compared to the replica made by a carpenter (bottom).

Researchers Whack Fake Skulls to Learn About Neolithic Weapons

Was the ‘Thames Beater’ used to kill? Four crushed model skulls say yes

This laughing doormouse chuckled its way into the winning spot of the "On the Land" category.

Award Winning Images Capture the Goofiness of the Animal Kingdom

Enjoy these masterpieces in animal silliness

A Falcon 9 launch vehicle takes flight during a resupply mission on June 3, 2017. This was the first time that a Dragon spacecraft has been reused.

SpaceX Successfully Launches a Fully Recycled Mission to the Space Station

A previously flown rocket will launch a previously flown spacecraft to the space station

New Research

Shadows of Saturn’s Rings Mess With Its Upper Atmosphere

The Cassini probe’s final swoops through the rings found that they impact the planet’s ionosphere

New Research

Dinosaurs Were Around Before Saturn Had Rings

Data from the Cassini space probe suggests that the rings may be as young as 150 million years old

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New Research

New Map Reveals What Lies Below Greenland’s Ice

This map of ‘naked’ Greenland is the most detailed yet and can help in refining climate predictions

Ounce for ounce, this bird is worth more than gold.

New Research

How the Arrival of One Bird Brought $223,000 to a Pennsylvanian Town

The rare black-backed oriole showed up outside Reading, Pennsylvania, and birdwatchers flocked to the scene

Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai soon after its formation in 2015

New Research

How the Rapidly Changing Shape of This New Island Could Teach Us About Mars

Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai has lasted longer than it should, and the processes that formed the island are of interest to NASA

New Research

The Physics Behind the Layers in Your Latte

Layered lattes are a cool trick, but the science of why it happens could help in manufacturing and even studying the ocean

Birdwatch for Science This Holiday Season

Get outdoors for the Audubon’s annual Christmas Bird Count

The Southern Pole of Inaccessibility. The thing sticking up in the middle is the bust of Lenin.

These Places Are Actually The Middle of Nowhere

These “poles of inaccessibility” are among the world’s most remote places

An illustration of Washington's imagined deathbed scene, painted about 50 years after his death.

George Washington’s Hard Death Shows the Limits of Medicine in His Time

He’s one of the United States’s most revered figures, but his last hours were plagued by excruciating illness

New Research

99-Million-Year-Old Tick That Feasted on Dino Blood Found Trapped in Amber

Sorry, there’s no DNA left. But the find does provide the first strong evidence that the parasites preyed on dinosaurs

New Research

This Giant Penguin Was the Size of a Human

The ancient mega-penguins waddled around New Zealand some 60 million years ago

What Lurks Below Jupiter’s Great Red Spot?

New results from the Juno spacecraft are helping to unlock the secrets of this centuries-old storm

The reproductive organs of Schlumbergera, known as the Holiday Cactus. This was heady stuff in Erasmus Darwin's time.

Charles Darwin’s Grandfather Was Famous for His Poems About Plant Sex

Erasmus Darwin’s poetics influenced his grandson’s vision of nature

Maria Telkes, known as the "Sun Queen" for her focus on solar energy.

Future of Energy

This 1940s Solar House Powered Innovation and Women in STEM

As far back as the 1940s, people were worried about running out of fuel. The sun seemed like a feasible alternative

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