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Evolution

Woolly rhinos may have used their flattened horns to sweep away snow and expose edible vegetation underneath.

Woolly Rhino May Have Been A Tibetan Native

When the Ice Age began, these large mammals spread out to northern Asia and Europe

Kanzi the bonobo is quite the musician

Six Talking Apes

“Talking” apes are not just the stuff of science fiction; scientists have taught many apes to use some semblance of language

Still from Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Rise of the Chimp Movies

Project Nim and Rise of the Planet of the Apes are very different movies, but both question the ethics of chimpanzee research

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The Cambrian Explosion in Song

What does a music teacher do when he ends up teaching science?

Scientists are still trying to figure out why primates have excellent vision.

Snake-Spotting Theory Brings Primate Vision into Focus

Do camouflaged predators explain why monkeys, apes and other primates evolved superior eyesight?

One of the most famous hominid fossils is the skull of a 3-year-old child found in Taung, South Africa. The child lived about three million to two million years ago. The skull has holes punched into its eye sockets; they were made by the talons of a large bird akin to an African crowned eagle.

The Top Ten Deadliest Animals of Our Evolutionary Past

Humans may be near the top of the food chain now, but who were our ancestors’ biggest predators?

Clarence Darrow was a trial attorney made famous for his defense of a Tennessee educator accused of breaking a state law banning the teaching of evolution in public schools.

Everything You Didn’t Know About Clarence Darrow

A newly released book brings new insight into the trial attorney made famous by the Scopes monkey trial

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A Flowering Plant, Set in Stone

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Five Reasons Anti-Evolution Measures are a Bad Idea

This is the story of a missing link that never was.

Piltdown Man, Paleoanthropology’s April Fool’s

This is the story of a missing link that never was

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When is the Right Time to Mate?

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Why Bird Brains Bloom in Spring

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Quagga: The Lost Zebra

In South Africa, quaggas were hunted to extinction in the late 1800s

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The Shark That Will Give You More Nightmares Than Jaws

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Eyes Give Life to the Face

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Bird Sets Up Protection Racket to Ensure Meals

An illustration of German-born fossil collector Albert Koch's "Hydrarchos" as it appeared on display.

Ask Smithsonian 2017

How Did Whales Evolve?

Originally mistaken for dinosaur fossils, whale bones uncovered in recent years have told us much about the behemoth sea creatures

From hiccups to wisdom teeth, our own bodies are worse off than most because of the differences between the wilderness in which we evolved and the modern world in which we live.

The Top Ten Daily Consequences of Having Evolved

From hiccups to wisdom teeth, the evolution of man has left behind some glaring, yet innately human, imperfections

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Where Little Fiddler Crabs Like to Hide

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Comparing Apples and Oranges

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