Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

New Research

The Grevy's zebra (left) and the plains zebra may be tough to tell apart—until you examine their dietary preferences via their poop.

New Research

Big African Animals Are Pickier Eaters Than We Imagined

To the surprise of ecologists, plant-eaters manage to coexist on the savanna by each choosing different favorite foods

Every latrine has it's own unique smell.

These Perfumers Are Analyzing the Stench of Toilets

Fair warning: Toilet chemistry is not for the faint of stomach

New Research

Scientists Have Finally Figured Out Why Swiss Cheese Has Holes

No, it’s not gas from bacteria

New Research

60 NASA Scientists are Trying to Build a Better Parachute

The Supreme Council of Parachute Experts wants to construct a parachute that can help a heavier craft land on Mars

New Research

Scientists Just Mummified a Human Leg to Test Ancient Egyptian Techniques

It took 208 days for Swiss scientists to mummify a fresh leg using natron

New Research

Investigating the Case of the Earliest Known Murder Victim

A 430,000-year-old skull discovered in a Spanish cave bears evidence of deliberate, lethal blunt force trauma

The dark gray object lurking above the Herschel crater on Mars is the Martian moon Phobos, as seen by the Viking Orbiter 1 in 1977

New Research

Did Mars Steal its Moons From the Asteroid Belt?

Scientists still aren’t sure where the odd little moons came from, but they have ideas

A jawbone from an ancient Taimyr wolf that lived about 35,000 years ago

New Research

Humans May Have Domesticated Dogs Tens of Thousands of Years Earlier Than Thought

Genetic analysis from an ancient wolf show just how complicated dog evolution was

New Research

After Two Years On the Job, Women’s Confidence Plummets

New research shows dropping levels of ambition and confidence for mid-career women

New Research

Atheists Remind People of Death

New research shows that atheists trigger death-related thoughts

New Research

When People Want an Upgrade They Tend to Break and Lose Their Old Gadgets

Researchers call it the “Must-Have Effect”

Java sparrows are both vocalists and percussionists.

New Research

These Sparrows Sing to the Beat of Their Own Drum

Java sparrows amp up their tunes with acoustic beak taps synchronized with chirps

The ancestor of all living snakes, depicted on the prowl in the South American forests it likely inhabited 110 million years ago, likely possessed a pair of tiny hind limbs and hunted at night.

The Mother of All Snakes Looked Surprisingly Modern

New research indicates why the slithery beast’s body appears pretty much as it did 110 million years ago

Saurornitholestes sullivani attacks a subadult hadrosaur Parasaurolophus tubicen

New Research

Meet Your New Favorite Dinosaur: The Velociraptor’s Cousin

A keen sense of smell gave this dino an edge

Vampire Healing: Young Blood Can Mend Old Broken Bones

It’s old blood, not old bones, that makes fracture healing difficult among the elderly

New Research

Will Your Doctor One Day Pay You?

New research shows that incentive-based health programs really do work

New Research

These Scientists Want to Unleash an Army of Caterpillars to Destroy Cocaine Crops

Colombian scientists say the insect could replace cocaine-killing herbicides.

New Research

Postal Workers Are Bitten By Dogs Nearly 6,000 Times Per Year

Los Angeles, Houston lead the list of cities with the most dog attacks

New Research

Asteroid Impacts Once Made the Earth’s Oceans Boil for A Whole Year

Life had it rough back then

New Research

Satellite Data Underestimated how Fast Sea Levels Were Rising

The oceans are rising faster than scientists thought.

Page 212 of 301