Trending Today | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/trending-today/RSS feed for Trending TodayenThu, 15 Oct 2026 20:43:52 +0000It's Official: Timekeepers Have Gotten Rid of the Leap Second—and Introduced the Leap Hour Insteadhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/its-official-timekeepers-have-gotten-rid-of-the-leap-second-and-introduced-the-leap-hour-instead-180989685/Since 1972, experts have added 27 seconds to Coordinated Universal Time to keep it aligned with Earth's rotation, but it has been an imperfect fixThu, 15 Oct 2026 20:43:52 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/its-official-timekeepers-have-gotten-rid-of-the-leap-second-and-introduced-the-leap-hour-instead-180989685/Meet This Year's Chonky Champion of Fat Bear Week: Backpack, a Laid-Back 20-Year-Old Male Who's a 'Stoic Presence on the River'https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-this-years-chonky-champion-of-fat-bear-week-backpack-a-laid-back-20-year-old-male-whos-a-stoic-presence-on-the-river-180989595/The brown bear, who now weighs between 1,000 and 1,200 pounds after fattening up on salmon, earned his nickname as a cub. When he was little, he enjoyed riding on his mom's back as she swam across a riverThu, 01 Oct 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-this-years-chonky-champion-of-fat-bear-week-backpack-a-laid-back-20-year-old-male-whos-a-stoic-presence-on-the-river-180989595/Is More Protein Always Better? Despite the Craze Around the Nutrient, Research-Backed Evidence About Its Benefits Is Complicatedhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/is-more-protein-always-better-despite-the-craze-around-the-nutrient-research-backed-evidence-about-its-benefits-is-complicated-180989584/It can be difficult to see through the array of flashy, protein-packed products and determine whether you need more of it—and which foods to consume to get it. We asked health experts about the benefits and drawbacks of chasing proteinWed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/is-more-protein-always-better-despite-the-craze-around-the-nutrient-research-backed-evidence-about-its-benefits-is-complicated-180989584/A.I. May Have Solved a Longstanding Math Problem With a Million-Dollar Prize. It Ignited a Controversy Over Who Gets Credithttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ai-may-have-solved-a-longstanding-math-problem-with-a-million-dollar-prize-it-ignited-a-controversy-over-who-gets-credit-180989472/OpenAI announced a solution to the Navier-Stokes problem. But could its A.I. models have used data from two mathematicians working on a similar breakthrough?Thu, 10 Sep 2026 20:23:25 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ai-may-have-solved-a-longstanding-math-problem-with-a-million-dollar-prize-it-ignited-a-controversy-over-who-gets-credit-180989472/Peptides Are All the Rage, Promising Miracle Cures and Makeovers Delivered by Injection. How Did We Get Here?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/peptides-are-all-the-rage-promising-miracle-cures-and-makeovers-delivered-by-injection-how-did-we-get-here-180989454/Experts say the peptide craze is part of a broader phenomenon, as patients look beyond the regulated health system to address problems that doctors have struggled to treatWed, 09 Sep 2026 18:28:15 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/peptides-are-all-the-rage-promising-miracle-cures-and-makeovers-delivered-by-injection-how-did-we-get-here-180989454/Thieves Broke Into a French Museum and Made Off With Renoir Paintings Worth More Than $2.5 Millionhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-broke-into-a-french-museum-and-made-off-with-renoir-paintings-worth-more-than-25-million-180989462/Early today, burglars stole four artworks from the Renoir Museum, in the French Riviera, only to drop two of them as they escapedTue, 08 Sep 2026 19:21:19 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-broke-into-a-french-museum-and-made-off-with-renoir-paintings-worth-more-than-25-million-180989462/This 91-Year-Old Man Fell 71 Times While Hiking the Appalachian Trail. He Just Became the Oldest Person to Complete the 2,190-Mile Trekhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-91-year-old-man-fell-71-times-while-hiking-appalachian-trail-he-just-became-oldest-person-complete-2190-mile-trek-180989428/Dale Sanders finished the hike in just under a year. Nicknamed "Grey Beard," he's no stranger to age-defying feats of enduranceTue, 01 Sep 2026 18:24:07 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-91-year-old-man-fell-71-times-while-hiking-appalachian-trail-he-just-became-oldest-person-complete-2190-mile-trek-180989428/