Articles

Yes, Spiders Eat Spiders

Portia spiders, known for their remarkable intelligence, have some of the most astonishing hunting skills in the arthropod community

Stegosaurus and Ceratosaurus are among one of the most successful groups ever to have evolved.

Celebrate Dino Month With Three New Dinosaur Books

From PhDs to 4th graders, something for everyone

This golden goodness relies on a mathematical concept known as the silver ratio.

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Using Math to Build the Ultimate Taffy Machine

A mathematician dives into taffy-pulling patents to achieve optimum confection creation

Bloom's mobile harvester collects algae biomass from waste streams in the United States and Asia.

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This Startup Is Harvesting Wild Algae to Make Your Next Pair of Sneakers

Co-founder Rob Falken found a way to turn algae into a foam that can be used in sneaker soles and on surfboards

Why Churchill Approved a Risky Mission on a Nazi Stronghold

Churchill knew he needed a very public military success to boost morale back home

In search of distinctly American beer hops.

Wacky, Wonderful, Wild Hops Could Transform the Watered-Down Beer Industry

The diversity of hops reflects a diversity of tastes and traditions that are part of an extraordinary evolution in beer

Ask Smithsonian

When Was the First Map Produced and More Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

Pan Am promoted its "First Moon Flights" Club on radio and TV after the Apollo 8 mission in 1968, saying that "fares are not fully resolved, and may be out of this world."

I Was a Card-Carrying Member of the "First Moon Flights" Club

My card is now a historical museum artifact, but I’ll never give up my dream to fly to the Moon

Mangroves are rich and biodiverse coastal ecosystems that flood and emerge with the tides. Now villagers are burning these trees to better their lives.

Madagascar's Mangroves: The Ultimate Giving Trees

Locals already use the trees for food, fuel and building materials. Now they're burning them to make lime clay

Waiting three years for his visa to come through, Wahdat rarely left his home.

The Tragic Fate of the Afghan Interpreters the U.S. Left Behind

These men risked their lives for the U.S. military. Now many would like to come to America but are stranded — and in danger

Re-enactor John Holman displays a newly discovered letter alongside period objects including a hardtack-crate desk.

Newly Discovered Letters Bring New Insight Into the Life of a Civil War Soldier

A mysterious package holds long-lost correspondence from a young Union infantryman

Grant called “wars of extermination” “demoralizing and wicked” in 1873.

Secrets of American History

Ulysses S. Grant Launched an Illegal War Against the Plains Indians, Then Lied About It

The president promised peace with Indians — and covertly hatched the plot that provoked one of the bloodiest conflicts in the West

The creators of SurviVR consulted with members of the FBI and the NYPD, various intelligence analysts, Navy Seals and other security, terrorism and survival experts.

Face an Active Shooter in Virtual Reality, and You May Be Better Prepared to Survive a Real-Life Encounter

A new VR program called SurviVR aims to train employees how to deal with an active shooter situation in the workplace

Six Places on Earth That Scientists Say Look Like Other Planets

The eerie resemblance these locales have to Mars and beyond has attracted researchers for years

Wild Inside the National Zoo: The Future of Maned Wolves

After three years of being paired, maned wolves Echo and Zayda produce two new pups at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute

Wild capuchins make stone tools, but don't know how to use them.

Wild Monkeys Unintentionally Make Stone Age Tools, But Don't See the Point

Scientists observe a “unique” human behavior in wild animals

Zak van Biljon photographed Kennedy Lake in British Columbia using infrared film.

Art Meets Science

Looking at Nature Through Infrared Film Will Have You Seeing Red

See the world on a whole different spectrum

To make Tumor Paint, Jim Olson's team extracts molecules from the deathstalker scorpion (Leiurus quinquestriatus).

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How Scorpion Venom Is Helping Doctors Treat Cancer

When injected into the body, Tumor Paint lights up cancers. The drug could lead to a new class of therapeutics

This Champion Pumpkin Weighs More Than a U-Haul

At the annual Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Weigh-In, a pumpkin weighing 1,910 pounds took the crown

Anthropologists have long debated the origins of human violence.

Can Resource Scarcity Really Explain a History of Human Violence?

Data from thousands of California burial sites suggests that a lack of resources causes violence. But that conclusion may be too simplistic

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