Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Cool Finds

The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

The FBI Was Still Investigating John Wilkes Booth a Century After Lincoln’s Death

The blog Wonders and Marvels came across the FBI file on John Wilkes Booth

Cool Finds

A Team of Developers Wants to Print Out Wikipedia—All 1,000 Books Of It

A crowdfunding campaign seeks to make a print copy of the online encyclopedia

The first map of the new Hollywood development, from 1887.

Cool Finds

Hollywood Was Once an Alcohol-Free Community

Modern Hollywood is a far cry from its intrepid female founder’s “dream of beauty”

None

Cool Finds

Like All of Nature, Humans Will Go to Extreme Lengths to Stay in the Light

Michael Langan shows our basic instincts

The storming of the Bastille

Cool Finds

The French Revolution in Pictures

The French Revolution Digital Archive has more than 14,000 images from the Revolution of 1789

This illustration appeared on the cover of Tribal Force #1, which came out in 1996

Cool Finds

Tribal Force, the First Comic to Feature a Team of Native American Superheroes, Is Returning

Tribal Force was the first comic to feature a superhero team made entirely of Native American characters

Oysters

Cool Finds

Connecticut’s Trying to Stop Oyster Thieves

Even after centuries of trying, the state hasn’t figured out how to stop the stealing of shellfish

Cool Finds

Nineteen States Allow Teachers to Spank Children

In 2006, 223,190 students were punished physically in public schools in the United States

A green light on the back of the Armatrix iP1 shows the gun is armed. When disarmed, the light is red.

Cool Finds

Will Smart Guns Actually Save Lives?

Smart guns, like the Armatrix iP1, will only fire for their owner

Pawel Althamer's Draftsmen's Congress at the New Muesum

Cool Finds

Write on the Walls at New Museum’s New Exhibit

At Pawel Althamer’s exhibit at the New Museum in New York City, visitors are invited to participate in the creative process

Erosion of a Bronze Age Post in the Thames

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Are Calling on Average British Citizens to Save Eroding History

The sea is devouring medieval towns, uncovering shipwrecks, and eroding valuable archaeological sites.

Cool Finds

China’s Growing Number of “Baby Hatches” Allow Parents to Anonymously Give Away Their Children

China will install at least two baby hatch facilities in each of the country’s provinces

Park Place, Brooklyn after the 1888 blizzard.

Cool Finds

It Wasn’t Always the City’s Job to Remove Snow

Even if everybody isn’t happy with the quality of snow removal, they should be pleased it’s not their responsibility

Cool Finds

Caffeine Kick Not Doing It For You? Try a Mild Electric Shock—The Pentagon Is

Direct jolts of electricity to the brain give a burst of alertness

Can you see me now?

Cool Finds

To Avoid Deer Strikes, Finland Is Painting Deer Antlers With Reflective Paint

Attempts to keep motorists from hitting animals usually center around making cars and roads safer, but the Finns are heading straight to the source

A painting by one of Darwin's children, found on the back of one of the manuscript pages of "On the Origin of Species."

Cool Finds

See the Doodles Darwin’s Children Made in His “On the Origin of Species” Manuscript

While Darwin contemplated speciation and evolution, his kids envisioned battling vegetables and tropical birds

Thor und die Midgardsschlange. A scene from Ragnarök, the final battle between Thor and Jörmungandr.

Cool Finds

The Vikings’ Apocalypse Is Coming Up

According to old Norse mythology, we’re 100 days into the end of the world

A kiwi emerges.

Cool Finds

Watch a Kiwi Chick Hatching

A kiwi’s egg weighs about 15 percent of the female’s body weight

Cool Finds

Hamburg Plans to Become Car-Free By 2034

But should there really be zero cars?

Page 204 of 281