Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Health

A slum in Nairobi

In Kenya, Where One in Four Women has Been Raped, Self Defense Training Makes a Difference

After a short training course, rape in a group of adolescent girls dropped from around 25 percent to under 10 percent

Can We Blame Men for Menopause?

It’s hard to see how a genetic predisposition to sterility would be helpful

Biotech Companies No Longer Have the Right to Patent Human Genes

Companies can still patent DNA they build themselves, methods for isolating genes or specialized knowledge they gain through genetic research

None

Spaceships Made of Plastic Could Carry Us to Mars

Plastic is way better than aluminum at blocking cosmic rays

New At-Home Test Could Tell Women If Their Pregnancy Has Terminated

Women who both do and do not want to be pregnant could benefit from the new test

A Survey of Women With Broken Bones Shows the Prevalence of Domestic Abuse

One in three women has been the victim of domestic abuse.

None

This New Photo App Can Help Doctors Brainstorm What, Exactly, That Weird Thing Growing on Your Leg Is

It’s like Instagram but with rotting toes and tumors instead of filters

Five-year-old don Filippino’s abnormally swollen skull.

Florence’s Powerful Medici Family Suffered from Rickets Because of Too Much Time Spent Indoors

Study of the Medici’s children shows that they suffered from rickets, or the bone softening affliction caused by a lack of vitamin D from sunlight or food

None

People Don’t Seem to Get What ‘Designated Driver’ Means

A new study found that around 40 percent of designated drivers drink, and almost 20 percent do so to the point that their own ability to drive may be impaired

None

Today Is National Doughnut Day

Yes, this is a real holiday. Yes, it means free doughnuts

Most Adults Don’t Recognize a Drowning Child

As opposed to what Hollywood would lead us to believe, drowning is a quiet, easily overlooked affair

None

To Measure Elephant Obesity, One Researcher Assesses Pachydermal Butts

It turns out that it’s really hard to figure out if an elephant is fat

None

Discussion

Discussion

Michael Pollan and Ruth Reichl dine at Bell & Anchor in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

Michael Pollan and Ruth Reichl Hash out the Food Revolution

Be a fly in the soup at the dinner table with two of America’s most iconic food writers

None

Without Vaccines, Hundreds of Children in Pakistan Have Died From a Measles Epidemic

Health workers hope the arrival of 11 million vaccines in June will get the epidemic under control, though some families are suspicious of the shots

If You Have a Medical Emergency on a Plane, Chances Are a Fellow Passenger Will Treat You

Only 0.3 percent of people who have a medical emergency on a plane die mid-flight or shortly after landing

None

Stiffening Arteries May Be at the Heart of ‘Senior Moments’

Stiffening arteries could cause bleeding in the brain

None

We Fall Back on Habits, Good or Bad, When Stressed

Setting up healthy new habits, not controlling your behavior when stressed, may be the more effective way to cut back on eating or spending sprees

Nearly 40 Percent of Medical Students Are Biased Against Overweight Patients

Thirty-nine percent had a moderate to strong bias against overweight people, and 25 percent of them did not realize they were biased

Page 99 of 118