Helen Thompson

Helen Thompson

 

Helen Thompson writes about science and culture for Smithsonian. She's previously written for NPR, National Geographic News, Nature and others.

Archaeologists Ben Potter and Josh Reuther, both of the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, excavate the burial pit at the Upward Sun River site.

Ice Age Babies Surrounded by Weapon Parts Found in Alaska

Unearthed at an ancient hunting camp in Alaska, the infant remains are offering clues to the burial rites of early Americans

Bill Nye enthusiastically greets students and faculty at Cal State Fullerton in California earlier this year.

Bill Nye on the Risks of Not Debating With Creationists

Bill Nye the Science Guy has a book out on evolution. Here’s what he has to say

A hermit thrush perches on a branch in the Pennsylvania woods. Its songs have long been compared to human musical scales.

This Bird’s Songs Share Mathematical Hallmarks With Human Music

The hermit thrush prefers to sing in harmonic series, a fundamental component of human music

The image of a witch brewing her cauldron reigns in Halloween celebrations today. But, what actually went into witches cauldrons?

How Witches' Brews Helped Bring Modern Drugs to Market

Got nausea, headaches or heart trouble? You can thank medieval witches’ potions for helping to cure what ails you

A common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) isn't as scary as its name might suggest.

Seven Vampires That Aren’t Bats (Or Bela Lugosi)

From flying frogs to deep-sea squid, meet some of the other nosferatu of the animal kingdom

A group of great tit birds (Parus major) perch on a dead tree stump during a snowfall in Poland.

Ten Species That Are Evolving Due to the Changing Climate

From tropical corals to tawny owls, some species are already being pushed to evolve—but adaptation doesn’t guarantee survival

To be or not to be human? That's a question some scholars still feel is up for debate when it comes to Homo floresiensis.

Ten Years On, the Flores “Hobbit” Remains an Evolutionary Puzzle

Why was the 2004 unveiling of a small hominin dubbed <em>Homo floresiensis</em> such a big deal?

John Kress takes the stage at the Smithsonian symposium "Living in the Anthropocene".

From Pandemics to Pandas, Get the Scoop on Hot Topics Discussed at the Smithsonian's Anthropocene Event

At the National Museum of Natural History, leading minds met to discuss the impact of climate change on, well, everything

A fragmented painting of a pig-deer or babirusa (Babyrousa sp.) and hand stencil from one of the caves in Sulawesi, Indonesia.

Rock (Art) of Ages: Indonesian Cave Paintings Are 40,000 Years Old

Cave paintings of animals and hand stencils in Sulawesi, Indonesia, seem to be as old as similar cave art in Europe

Monarch butterflies catching the sun on an oyamel tree in a Mexican overwintering site.

Five Surprises That Emerged From Monarch Butterfly Genomes

Sequencing 101 butterfly genomes has revealed a few of the monarch's secrets, including some keys to its epic annual migration

A Burning Man tribute to the last remnants of humanity, a buried Statue of Liberty, depicted in the 1967 science fiction film, Planet of the Apes.

Six Weird Ways Humans Are Altering the Planet

From deep holes to flying sheep, some signs of human activity might really perplex geologists in the far future

I don't mind being nursed along, ca. 1915: In addition to being associated with loose morals and lower class status, private duty nurses at the turn of the century were also often portrayed as romantic love interests for their patients.

The Evolution of the Nurse Stereotype via Postcards: From Drunk to Saint to Sexpot to Modern Medical Professional

A postcard exhibit at the National Library of Medicine shows how the cultural perception of nurses has changed over the decades

A model of Spinosaurus, based on data published in Science today, gets rock star treatment at a National Geographic photo shoot. A feature story, including the image above, will appear in National Geographic's October issue.

Meet the Mighty Spinosaurus, the First Dinosaur Adapted for Swimming

A mysterious mustachioed man helped paleontologists piece together the life story of the long-lost, semi-aquatic “Egyptian spine lizard”

Cyclists Inspecting Ancient Petroglyphs, Utah, 1998: Texas-based photographer Terry Falke captures several of the exhibition's themes in this image of cyclists examining petroglyphs and bullet holes in a stratified rock face by the side of the road in Utah. "You’ve got the ultimate strata, which is man-made, so the idea is that we are impacting, we’re leaving our mark on the Earth over time as well," says Talasek.

What Does "Deep Time" Mean to You?

An art exhibition at the National Academy of Sciences offers perspective on our geological past and future

Matt Dean (left) and Jim Dines (right) analyzed pelvic bones of whales and dolphins from 29 different species.

Promiscuous Whales Make Good Use of Their Pelvises

Hips don’t lie: Whale pelvic bones are not vestigial but instead evolved to help the marine mammals maneuver better during sex

Roman Vishniac, [Dancers Emily Frankel and Mark Ryder, Vishniac Portrait Studio, New York], early 1950s.

See Jewish Life Before the Holocaust Through a Newly Released Digital Archive

Roman Vishniac’s extensive work, now open to the public, is ready for some crowd-sourced historical detective work

A digitally-colorized scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of Ebola virus particles.

Tracking the 2014 Ebola Outbreak Through Its Genes

Genetic detective work also revealed 395 mutations unique to the virus in West Africa

A wolf yawning in the snow near Hesse, Germany.

Yawning Spreads Like a Plague in Wolves

Evidence of contagious yawning in chimps, dogs and now wolves suggests that the behavior is linked to a mammalian sense of empathy

An urban spider hangs out in downtown Los Angeles.

Friendly Neighborhood Spiders Get Bigger in Cities

A study of orb-weaving spiders in Australia shows a correlation between urbanization and fatter arachnids

Scientists observed the view down the borehole via a computer at the surface as they drilled into the Antarctic ice to reach Lake Whillans.

Thousands of Microbe Species Live in This Buried Antarctic Lake

Drilling through half a mile of ice let scientists uncover the first solid evidence of life in a subglacial lake

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