Joseph Stromberg

Joseph Stromberg

 

Joseph Stromberg was previously a digital reporter for Smithsonian.

Languages that evolve at high elevations are more likely to include a sound that’s easier to make when the air is thinner, new research shows.

Do Geography and Altitude Shape the Sounds of a Language?

Languages that evolve at high elevations are more likely to include a sound that's easier to make when the air is thinner, new research shows

Do cats always land on their feet? Scientists figured out the answers to this and other pressing questions once and for all.

Do Cats Always Land on Their Feet? (and Other Absurd Scientific Studies)

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Scientists figured the answers to this and other pressing questions once and for all

Emerging research indicates that low doses of the active chemical psilocybin can have positive psychiatric effects.

Could “Magic” Mushrooms Be Used to Treat Anxiety and Depression?

Emerging research indicates that low doses of the active chemical psilocybin, found in the fungi, can have positive psychiatric effects

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How Do Death Valley’s ‘Sailing Stones’ Move Themselves Across the Desert?

These mysterious rocks have puzzled scientists for decades—until one geologist found the answer on his kitchen table

Designer Kate McLean creates detailed smell maps of cities around the world, such as this map of the the “Smelliest Block in New York.”

Mapping the Smells of New York, Amsterdam and Paris, Block by Block

Designer and cartographer Kate McLean charts the sweet scents and pungent odors that fill a city's olfactory landscape

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Scientists Discover the Genetic Reason Why Birds Don’t Have Penises

Developing bird embryos do have penis precursors, it turns out, but a genetic signal causes the penis cells to die off during gestation

A Neanderthal rib bone was discovered to have a lesion associated with a tumor (top specimen). The missing bone tissue is starkly apparent compared to a normal Neanderthal rib shown below.

Evidence for the Oldest Ever Bone Tumor Was Just Found in a Neanderthal Fossil

A 120,000-year-old rib bone, originally found in Croatia, shows that tumors aren't always caused by exposure to pollution

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The Hirshhorn Museum’s “Bubble” Project is Officially Cancelled

The inflatable structure, which would have served as a temporary space for lectures and events, will not go forward due to cost concerns

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VIDEO: This Helicopter is Controlled Entirely By A Person’s Thoughts

A new device can read your brain patterns to steer a toy helicopter—the mere thought of clenching your right fist veers the chopper right

Nitrogen-cooled tissue samples will represent half the life on earth.

What Genomic Research Can Tell Us About the Earth's Biodiversity

Smithsonian scientists are gathering wildlife tissue samples from around the world to build the largest museum-based repository

As part of the Star Songs project, X-ray emissions from the EX Hydrae system (above, near center)—in which one star pulls matter from its partner—are converted into music.

How to Convert X-Rays From A Distant Star into Blues, Jazz and Classical Music

A vision-impaired scientist, her coworker, and a composer team up to transform light bursts from stars into rhythms and melodies

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World’s Newest Atomic Clock Loses 1 Second Every 50 Billion Years

Tired of your clocks losing time? A new clock, which is the most accurate ever, uses ytterbium atoms and lasers to precisely define a second

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Plants Frozen Under a Glacier for 400 Years Can Come Back to Life

Long-buried mosses recently exposed in the wake of a Canadian glacier's retreat are sprouting new growth, a study shows

New archaeological analysis shows that King Richard’s remains were buried in an awkward position, leaning against the wall of a grave that wasn’t dug large enough.

New Study Finds That King Richard III Was Buried in a Hurry

The British king's remains, discovered in a parking lot, were dropped in an awkward position in a grave that wasn't dug large enough

Hirshhorn Board Divided on Future of the Bubble Project; Director Resigns

The split vote by the trustees of the contemporary art museum leads to the resignation of Richard Koshalek

A neurotransmitter called Nppb, we now know, plays a vital role in the sensation of an itch—and removing it can prevent itchiness entirely.

Discovered: The Molecule Responsible for Itchiness

A neurotransmitter called Nppb, we now know, plays a vital role in the sensation of an itch—and removing it can prevent itchiness entirely

Engineers and doctors 3D printed this custom-made splint that currently holds open the airway of a six-week-old infant and will be gradually absorbed into the body over time.

Doctors Use a Dissolvable 3D-Printed Tracheal Splint to Save a

An infant's collapsing airway now has a device holding it open; as his tissue strengthens, the splint will be absorbed into his body

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Scientists Finally Pinpoint the Pathogen That Caused the Irish Potato Famine

DNA analysis of 166-year-old potato plant leaves has revealed the disease strain that caused the starvation of millions

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The World According to Twitter, in Maps

A new geographic analysis of millions of tweets provides a remarkably broad view of humanity, by language, location and other factors

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The Water On the Moon Probably Came From Earth

New isotopic analysis of hydrogen in Apollo-era Moon rocks shows that the water locked inside them hails from our planet

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