Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Biology

An octopus in the eastern Pacific

Global Warming Could Increase Biodiversity

Gentle global warming could be a boon for marine biodiversity

None

Storeowners Hope Cute Little Baby Faces Will Stop Crime

One street in London is hoping to dissuade potential looters by putting a gigantic baby face between them and their loot

None

Wracked by Face Cancer, Tasmanian Devils Fight Off Extinction

Tasmanian devils are on the verge of extinction, but a captive breeding program may be able to bring them back

How Does It Feel To Have Half a Brain? Not Bad, Actually

“Patient R” is missing three key parts of his brain, and yet he’s conscious and self-aware

Electron Microscope Zooms In, Finds Life on Life on Life

There’s a bacterium on a diatom on an amphipod on a frog on a bump on the log in the hole in the bottom of the sea!

None

Dogs Chasing Their Tails Are Akin to Humans With OCD

For dogs engaged in this futile repetitive behavior, there might not be much of a choice, just like people suffering from OCD

Is This Mother Giraffe Mourning Her Dead Baby?

Mother giraffes join the ranks of elephants, polar bears, chimpanzees, gorillas,and other animals in the practice of mourning their dead

None

This Pea Aphid Thinks it’s a Plant

Pea aphids can harness sunlight to aid in energy production

None

Yes, We’re Actually Still Looking for the Yeti

Scientists are accepting DNA samples from cryptozoologists who claim to have evidence of the Yeti

None

This Woman Wants You to Buy Her, Piece by Piece

Filmmaker Storm Theunissen tired to find out just how much she could get for the various pieces of her

None

Shark Week Loses its Bite, and That’s a Good Thing for Sharks

After 25 years of man-eating, Discovery’s Shark Week embraces conservation

None

New Lacewing Species Discovered… on Flickr

Wildlife photographer Guek Hock Ping discovered a new species. Only, he didn’t know it

Longhorn cattle in Houston, Texas.

Why Do Cows Have Spots?

Cows’ mottled coats may have evolved to help keep flies away.

Clear rosin represents the mother’s tissue, while the fetus is suspended in white.

Why 3-D Printed Fetuses Represent the Future of Medical Imaging

A 3-D printed fetus might seem strange, but it represents an opportunity to improve medical education and imaging.

Goats beware.

When It’s Okay to Kill 80,000 Wild Goats

The Galapagos recently finished exterminating 80,000 invasive goats from the island

Mycoplasma mycoides, 2011

Teaching Molecular Biology with Watercolors

Molecular biology professor David Goodsell is just as skilled with a microscope as with a paint brush

The fountains of Enceladus as seen by Cassini

If Humans Are Ever Going to See Alien Life, Here’s Where It Will Happen

Scientists are all atwitter over Enceladus, one of Saturn’s moons and one of the most likely places in our solar system to harbor life

Shark Teeth Have Built-in Toothpaste

Sharks may have the healthiest teeth in the animal kingdom

Can you tell what this man is feeling?

Old People Aren’t Hiding Their Emotions, You Just Can’t Read Them Through Their Wrinkles

Wrinkles make it difficult for younger people to read the facial expressions of those older than them

Loud Sex Will Get You Eaten By Bats (If You’re a Fly)

Flies now join likes of Romeo and Juliet, and Tristan and Isolde, determined but doomed lovers who would do anything - including die - for love

Page 98 of 105