Articles

Still Life With Spirit and Xitle by Jimmie Durham, 2007, goes on view at the Hirshhorn Museum.

Meet the Man Who Dropped a Boulder on a Chrysler

Ex-pat rebel sculptor Jimmie Durham's funny work is celebrated in the capital of the country he left

Is Donald Harvey the Most Prolific Serial Killer in America?

Donald Harvey, a mild-mannered hospital worker, called himself the "Angel of Death"

New anti-Zika measures go way beyond bug spray.

All the Extremely Absurd Ways People Are Fighting Zika at the Rio Olympics

Donning facial masks, wearing Zika-proof uniforms and freezing sperm: Does any of this stuff actually work?

Meet SwagBot, the Robot Cowboy That Can Herd and Monitor Cattle On Its Own

University of Sydney engineers have developed a four-wheeled robot to keep tabs on massive farms in Australia's outback

Crocodiles sun themselves at Disney's Animal Kingdom in Buena Vista, Florida in 2012.

Forced Closer to Humans, Crocodiles Face Their Greatest Existential Threat

These armored reptiles have long been considered indestructible, but new threats are shifting the equation

The Secret Meaning of Food in Art

Discover 17th-century drinking games and coded political messages in this unique food tour of the Metropolitan Museum's art collection

Future of Energy

This Dutch Startup Is Making Bricks From Industrial Waste

StoneCycling turns ceramic tiles and toilets, discarded glass and insulation into new, eco-friendly building materials

This 3D model of a microbial community within the human gut allows researchers to study how bacterial changes influence overall health.

How Miraculous Microbes Help Us Evolve Better, Faster, Stronger

Invisible yet crucial, our microbial partners add a gene-swapping plot twist to evolutionary theory

The Tent of Casually Observed Phenologies.

Art Meets Science

Can the Art of Divination Help People Cope With Climate Anxiety?

A Brooklyn-based artist strives to create emotional connections with the looming threat of climate change.

A drone shot of a researcher collecting data on cryoconite holes on the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Journey to the Center of Earth

The Tiny World of Glacier Microbes Has an Outsized Impact on Global Climate

Microbes living on glaciers collectively cover an area the size of New Hampshire—and they could have a big influence on global climate

Madame President

History of Now

The History of Women Presidents in Film

Why the science-fiction genre was the first to imagine a female commander-in-chief

Indigenous cultures of Alaska have enjoyed the frozen treat known as akutuq for many centuries. An Inupiaq word meaning “to stir,” akutuq traditionally consists of animal fat mixed with seal oil, whipped together with handfuls of berries and freshly fallen snow to make a frothy, frozen concoction.

Smithsonian Journeys Travel Quarterly: Alaska

What Is Eskimo Ice Cream?

Answer: Not your typical summer dessert

Does 'The Last Supper' Really Have a Hidden Meaning?

Could the painting actually contain a message from Leonardo?

A wild pony blocks the trail.

The Only Place on the Appalachian Trail Where You Can See Wild Ponies

More than 100 ponies roam free on the slopes of Virginia's highest peak

Is this supposed to be a democracy or what? (Shown here: North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un visiting Mangyongdae Revolutionary School in 2014.)

Metaphorically Speaking, Your Nervous System is a Dictatorship

Except when it's an oligarchy. Or a democracy. Or all three.

Scientists are able to detect the DNA of tumor cells floating in blood.

The Innovative Spirit fy17

Are We Close to Having a Blood Test That Detects Cancer?

New research into "liquid biopsies" is promising, but there's still not proof they can find cancer in a healthy person

How You Wound Up Playing 'The Oregon Trail' in Computer Class

From the 1970s to 1990s, the government-owned Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium dominated the educational software market with more than 300 games

Organic! Doesn't always mean what people think it means.

Age of Humans

Podcast: Our Food, Our Selves

Food is a focal point for understanding broader environmental problems. In this podcast, we learn how food buyers are influenced in surprising ways.

The Egyptian Pharaoh With the Biggest Ego

Though little is known about Khufu, the pharaoh who oversaw the Great Pyramid's construction, vicious rumors about him persist today

Images are fast outpacing words as the major means of communication.

Commentary

How to Avoid the Pitfalls in the Politics of Graphic Messaging

The director of the National Portrait Gallery offers a few pointers on how to acquire visual intelligence

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