Joseph Stromberg

Joseph Stromberg

 

Joseph Stromberg was previously a digital reporter for Smithsonian.

The Vast Majority of Raw Data From Old Scientific Studies May Now Be Missing

A new survey of 20-year-old studies shows that poor archives and inaccessible authors make 90 percent of raw data impossible to find

A golden eagle swoops for a rabbit.

Beautiful Anatomical Skeletons, Posed and Photographed As Sculptures

Photographer Patrick Gries transforms ordinary specimens, stripped of fur and flesh, into art that showcases motion, predation and evolution

Frozen seafood in the lab, ready for DNA testing.

The DNA Detectives That Reveal What Seafood You're Really Eating

Genetic sequencing allows scientists to uncover increasingly prevalent seafood fraud

More Than Three Years Later, Oil From the Deepwater Horizon Persists in the Gulf

Continued testing has found evidence of oil in the water, sediments and marine animals of the Gulf

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Watch A 1,400-Pound Right Whale Skull Arrive At the Smithsonian

A rare specimen from an endangered species is donated to the Natural History Museum's collections

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These Carnivorous Plants Glow Under Ultraviolet Light to Attract Prey

Their florescent blue glow lures ants to their death. Mask it, and the plants barely catch any

A closeup of one of the rocks, with a patch of dust brushed away by Curiosity's instruments, that provides evidence of an ancient lake.

Curiosity Found Evidence of An Ancient Freshwater Lake on Mars

Drilling into Martian rock revealed that it formed at the bottom of a calm lake that may have had the right conditions for sustaining life

The Art and Science of Growing Snowflakes in a Lab

Physicist Kenneth Libbrecht can make snowflakes with elegant spindles or blocky tabs by manipulating temperature and humidity

One of the ancient human fossils found in Spain's La Sima de los Huesos.

Scientists Just Sequenced the DNA From A 400,000-Year-Old Early Human

The fossil, found in Spain, is mysteriously related to an ancient group of homonins called the Denisovans, previously found only in Siberia

A friendly label, instead of a threatening warning, might cut down on the vandalization and theft of scientific instruments.

How Do You Protect Scientific Equipment From Vandals? With A Friendly Warning

A friendly label, instead of a threatening warning, might cut down on the vandalization and theft of scientific instruments

A row of servers, housed in an Iceland data center.

Is the Future of the Internet in Iceland?

With free air cooling and 100 percent renewable electricity, does it make sense to outsource our data to Iceland?

Where Do Humans Really Rank on the Food Chain?

We're not at the top, but towards the middle, at a level similar to pigs and anchovies

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This Could Be the Oldest Flowering Plant Ever Found in North America

A new look at Smithsonian's fossil collection turned up a remarkably ancient flowering plant—scientists think it's at least 115 million years old

One species ant can build floating rafts (above), resilient bridges and temporary shelters using nothing but their own bodies.

Watch Fire Ants Use Their Bodies To Form Living Architecture

One species of ant can build floating rafts, resilient bridges and temporary shelters using nothing but their own bodies

A mounting body of research shows that the circumstances and chronic stresses of poverty interrupt the development of the brain.

How Growing Up in Poverty May Affect a Child’s Developing Brain

A mounting body of research shows that the circumstances and chronic stresses of poverty interrupt the development of the brain

Compared to a control brain (top), neuroscientist James Fallon’s brain (bottom) shows significantly decreased activity in areas of the frontal lobe linked to empathy and morality—anatomical patterns that have been linked with psychopathic behavior.

The Neuroscientist Who Discovered He Was a Psychopath

While studying brain scans to search for patterns that correlated with psychopathic behavior, James Fallon found that his own brain fit the profile

New research shows that plastic particles can absorb pollution and carry it into fish, leading to biomagnification as it moves up the food chain to humans.

How Plastic Pollution Can Carry Flame Retardants Into Your Sushi

Research shows that plastic particles can absorb pollution from water, get eaten by fish and carry the toxins up the food chain

Researchers have found neurological abnormalities that persist long after the symptoms of a concussion have faded away.

Four Months After a Concussion, Your Brain Still Looks Different Than Before

Researchers have found neurological abnormalities that persist long after the symptoms of a concussion have faded away

Despite warming temperatures, the sea ice around Antarctica is increasing in extent.

Why Is Antarctica’s Sea Ice Growing As Temperatures Rise?

New research shows that the explanation for the counterintuitive growth of sea ice near the South Pole can be found blowing in the wind

Photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher captures tears of grief, joy, laughter and irritation in extreme detail. Above: Tears of timeless reunion

The Microscopic Structures of Dried Human Tears

Photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher captures tears of grief, joy, laughter and irritation in extreme detail

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