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A new museum focused on the world of whales will open next year in Norway.

A New Museum in Norway Is Bringing Visitors Into the World of Whales—From Life-Size Orcas to Immersive Underwater Exhibits

Opening in 2027, The Whale will explore the science, behavior, evolution and cultural history of whales through art, storytelling, sound and architecture

The treasure was discovered by archaeologist José María Soler in 1963.

Thieves Steal 3,000-Year-Old Treasure in a ‘Super-Professional’ Museum Heist That Took Only Four Minutes

Officials were shaken after dozens of ancient artifacts vanished from the local archaeological museum in Villena, Spain. The thieves left only a few pieces from the Bronze Age treasure behind

Odysseus and Polyphemus (1896), by painter Arnold Böcklin, depicts Odysseus and his men escaping from the island of the Cyclops.

‘Odyssey’ Translator Emily Wilson Is Starting Over After Calling Christopher Nolan’s Blockbuster Film ‘Abysmal’

Nearly a decade after her acclaimed first translation was released, Wilson is taking a fresh approach to Homer’s ancient Greek epic

A µBites cookie, which is pronounced "microbites"

Would You Eat a Cookie Made From Upcycled Plastic? Scientists Propose a New Way to Deal With Waste and Provide Food in Extreme Environments

A team of researchers programmed yeast to turn broken-down plastic and agricultural waste into sweet treats called µBites. They might come in handy during deep-space missions or in disaster zones, although some critics say the food is impractical

Fabric remnants found in a Viking Age grave in Denmark

Cool Finds

Archaeologists in Denmark Discover Rare Fragments of 1,300-Year-Old Clothing Preserved Inside a Viking Age Grave

Researchers found the textile traces on a pair of metal brooches. When the accessories corroded, they released metallic salts that inadvertently preserved the fabric for centuries

A photo of Solenostomus snuffleupagus snapped in 2003

Meet the Newly Discovered Fuzzy Fish Species Named After Mr. Snuffleupagus From ‘Sesame Street’

The ghost pipefish’s scruffy appearance probably helps it look like floating algae, allowing it to blend in with its environment. Researchers had been on the hunt for this strange creature for years after first spotting one more than two decades ago

NASA has been planning and developing the Roman Space Telescope for 16 years.

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Launches to Find Exoplanets and Unravel Mysteries of Dark Matter and Dark Energy

The new observatory will complete three surveys of the universe in five years, although it’s designed to function at least twice as long. Its data could change scientists’ basic understanding of the cosmos

Scientists reconstructed the ancient forest canopy using fragments of fossilized leaves.

Forests Didn’t Fare Well During an Ancient Global Warming Event, Offering a ‘Cautionary’ Tale About Today’s Climate Change

An intense global warming event 56 million years ago caused a forest in modern-day Wyoming to lose around 60 percent of its canopy cover, and it took more than 100,000 years to bounce back, a study suggests

Researchers documenting and analyzing the inscriptions

Deep Inside a Spanish Cave, Roman Women May Have Worshipped a Mysterious Goddess

Best known for its Paleolithic art, Valencia’s Cova de les Dones also contains a Roman sanctuary where researchers say women appear to have played an active role in the worship of a female deity

An estimated one million to two million petroglyphs are spread across the Burrup Peninsula and the Dampier Archipelago, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Historical Pollution, Not Current Industrial Emissions, Damaged the World’s Largest and Oldest Collection of Ancient Rock Art, Study Suggests

Researchers say that past exposure to sulfur dioxide is likely to blame for the increased porosity of the Murujuga rock art created by the Ngarda-Ngarli people tens of thousands of years ago

Many stars orbit the Milky Way's central supermassive black hole. But S301's orbit, shown in red, is the only one known to be close enough to feel the effects of the black hole's theorized spin.

This Star Orbits Our Galaxy’s Heart at a Record-Breaking Speed—and Could Help Uncover Secrets About the Behemoth Black Hole There

The speedster travels at up to 56 million miles per hour, or about 8 percent the speed of light. It also gets very close to the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way

Pablo Picasso created Torero in 1949.

Cool Finds

A Landlord Found a Peculiar Print Hanging in a Vacant Apartment. It Turned Out to Be an Original Picasso That Had Been Missing for Eight Years

When “Torero” vanished from a Milwaukee art gallery in 2018, the owners didn’t know whether they’d ever see it again. The man who found the etching turned it over to the police earlier this month

Researchers observed bearded capuchins in Brazil eating birds (shown here), lizards, rodents, opossums, snakes and other small vertebrates.

When Fruit Is Scarce, These Monkeys Hunt Animals. The Behavior May Offer Clues About the Origins of Humans’ Meat-Eating Habits

The bearded capuchins of northeastern Brazil typically eat plant-based foods, but they turn to small vertebrates when those sources are limited. Our ancestors may have done the same, eventually allowing predatory behaviors to be more frequently passed on in our lineage

The studied species, brown-lipped snails, are native to Europe.

Snails Can Make Their Slime Sticky, Slippery, Foamy or Hard Depending on Their Needs. Here’s How They Tweak Their Multipurpose Mucus

The critters can alter the proportions of calcium and collagen in the versatile substance, which changes the protein structure. The different textures can help snails glide, climb or protect themselves

Hundreds of people pulled the keep of Hirosaki Castle closer to its original position.

1,800 Volunteers Pull a 400-Ton Japanese Castle Keep Back Toward Its Original Location After a Decade of Restoration Work

The chance to help move the castle keep drew thousands of applications from Japan and abroad. Groups of lottery winners took turns tugging on thick ropes attached to the massive structure

Mel Brooks starred in High Anxiety (1977), a satirical comedy of Alfred Hitchcock's filmography.

What Are Mel Brooks’ Favorite Movies? To Celebrate His 100th Birthday, the Comedy Legend Picks 20 Films to Screen Across Los Angeles

The eclectic program spans decades and genres, offering glimpses into Brooks’ comedic influences, personal history and enduring love of film

The historic Edistone Hotel is located in downtown Selma, Alabama.

A Historic Alabama Hotel Linked to the Civil Rights Movement Is Falling Apart. Can the Conservationists Fighting to Save It Turn the Tide?

Selma’s Edistone Hotel has witnessed pivotal chapters in American history, from Reconstruction to “Bloody Sunday.” Now, after years of neglect and a recent wall collapse, the Conservation Fund is working to secure its future

An archaeologist holds the triangular padlock found around the Polish woman's left big toe.

Why Was This 17th-Century Polish Woman Buried With a Padlock on Her Toe and an Iron Sickle Across Her Neck?

New research suggests that the people who buried the young woman took precautionary measures to stop her from coming back to life and exacting revenge on them

Illustration of the La Brea Tar Pit's ancient habitat, with the newly discovered toad species (center and right) and the Mexican burrowing toad (bottom)

Paleontologists Discover a New Species of Ice Age Toad at the La Brea Tar Pits, Offering Clues About the Area’s Ancient Climate

The fossilized remains, recovered in 1929, were part of La Brea’s relatively understudied amphibian collection. Since toads are cold-blooded and sensitive to environmental changes, the discovery can help researchers piece together past climate conditions

Freddie Mercury in the "Made in Heaven" music video

Freddie Mercury’s Boundary-Pushing Costumes Take Center Stage at the Victoria and Albert Museum to Mark the 80th Anniversary of His Birth

Eight ensembles from the Queen frontman’s career will be displayed across six stops in the London museum’s permanent galleries, offering a glimpse into the clothes behind his legendary stage persona

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