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Cool Finds

This man living in Dubai would need proper documentation if his bird is to fly — on an airplane, that is

Cool Finds

Falcons Can’t Fly Without Passports in the United Arab Emirates

ID documents are helping stamp out smuggling for the prized birds

Cool Finds

This is How Bread Takes Shape in Tajikistan

A poke, a slap, a prized tradition

Monique Hammerslag of the Dutch police force in Rotterdam with two of her recruits

Cool Finds

Inside a Dutch Police Academy…for Rats

Cigarette-sniffing rats are creating new job opportunities for their fellow rodents

Cool Finds

Teenage Girls Have Led Language Innovation for Centuries

They’ve been on the cutting edge of the English language since at least the 1500s

A hyalotype photo printed and mounted as a glass lantern slide, by William and Frederick Langenheim.

Cool Finds

This is the First Known Photo of the Smithsonian Castle

On the Smithsonian’s 175th birthday, a glimpse into the iconic Castle’s construction

Cool Finds

Bats and Balloon Bombs: The Weird Weapons That Could Have Won WWII

World War II’s lesser-known weapons were ingenious, indeed

Cool Finds

The Washing Machine of the Future May Use Beads Instead of Water

A new washing machine cuts down on water use with deep-cleaning polymer beads

Alpine cows near Berne, Switzerland.

Cool Finds

Swiss Troops Stormed France in the Name of Cheese (and Cows)

Thirsty cows + torrid heat = trouble between nations

Cool Finds

Blueberries: A Biography

The world’s commercial blueberries all have their roots in New Jersey

The Sydney Opera House at night

Cool Finds

He Designed the Sydney Opera House…But Wasn’t Even Invited to its Opening

Somehow, an inexperienced architect and a mismanaged project still produced one of the world’s most iconic buildings

Aldrin was became the second human to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.

Cool Finds

Astronauts Fill Out Customs Forms, Too

Read Buzz Aldrin’s expense report and customs form from his Apollo 11 mission to the moon

Giovanni Stanchi (Rome c. 1645-1672). Oil on canvas, 38 5/8 x 52½ in.

Cool Finds

This Renaissance Painting of Fruit Holds a Modern-Day Science Lesson

Hint: it’s in the watermelon

Satellite images of the Moon moving around the Earth

Cool Finds

Breathtaking Space GIF Gives Earth a New Perspective of the Moon

NASA’s EPIC camera took the image a million miles from Earth

Black chicken served with bamboo shoots and caterpillar fungus

Cool Finds

Why This Chicken is Black From Comb to Feathers to Muscles

The Ayam Cemani is the Goth of the chicken world

Cool Finds

Astronauts Have Some Weird Pre-Launch Traditions

Rituals are important when you’re about to rocket into space

Cool Finds

How Emojis Could Help People With Food Allergies

Bread emoji. Disappointed face emoji.

Cool Finds

A 13th-Century Sword Is Giving Historians a Headache

The sword’s inscription is an 800-year-old mystery

Cool Finds

Scientists Have Been Talking About Greenhouse Gases for 191 Years

The first explorations of the greenhouse effect began in 1824

Sri Lakan Slender Loris

Cool Finds

Why Primatologists Love Collecting Poop

There’s intel inside monkey feces — in the form of DNA

A mosaic of Mars from Mariner 6 and Mariner 7

Cool Finds

How NASA Dealt With Images of an Alien Planet in the 1960s

The alien planet was Mars and the process was just a bit simpler than it is today

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