Blogs

Better Feet Through Radiation: The Era of the Fluoroscope

A margarita at Margaritaville in Key West

A World of Cocktails

Unmixed feelings about mixed drinks, from the Singapore Sling to the Spritz con Aperol, courtesy of a thirsty traveler

El Capitan, as seen here from the floor of Yosemite Valley, was once considered almost unclimbable.

A Short Talk With a Legend of Rock

"Climbing without risk isn't climbing," says Yvon Chouinard, American rock climbing pioneer and founder of Patagonia

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Ask Smithsonian: What Is Lightning? How Do Bees Make Honey? How Do Cats Purr?

Smithsonian experts answer your burning questions

A new study suggests that a daydreaming is an indicator of a well-equipped brain

The Benefits of Daydreaming

A new study indicates that daydreamers are better at remembering information in the face of distraction

Dinosaurs, such as this Apatosaurus at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, were landlubbers, not aquatic creatures.

Aquatic Dinosaurs? Not So Fast!

A cell biologist says dinosaurs spent their days floating in lakes, but his idea doesn't hold water

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Making Noise and Selling Ice Cream

Put the bumpy, sour, off-key sound of a mobile ice cream vendor on repeat and play it loud, and you've got an infectious earworm

Polio patients in iron lungs in 1952

Salk, Sabin and the Race Against Polio

As polio ravaged patients worldwide, two gifted American researchers developed distinct vaccines against it. Then the question was: Which one to use?

Howler monkey Chula cradles her new baby.

Cute Baby Animal Watch: Black Howler Monkey Edition

Breaking news: Cute baby monkey born at the zoo!

The eight bones of the new fossil foot discovered in Ethiopia.

New Hominid Fossil Foot Belonged to Lucy’s Neighbor

A 3.4-million-year-old fossil foot shows that early hominids had more than one way of walking around

Burning the midnight sauropod

Dinosaur Sighting: Our Lady of Sauropods

For an April Fool's prank, one of our readers created a burning sauropod

Shake off winter with a scavenger hunt in the Smithsonian Gardens.

Events April 3-5: Spring Break, Let’s Move! and Baseball Presidencies

Spend spring break at the National Portrait Gallery, explore the Smithsonian gardens, and learn about baseball's special place in our presidential history

The brain is more grid than tangle of spaghetti.

The Brain is Full of Surprises

New research suggests the brain is more organized than previously thought and alsothat a full memory can reside within only a few neurons

1950 depiction of a smoldering New York after a nuclear attack

Hiroshima, U.S.A.

In 1950, a popular magazine depicted what an atomic bomb would do to New York City—in gruesome detail

A selection of a new image of distant galaxies in the COSMOS field. Click to see the whole view.

Picture of the Week: A Deep View of the Universe

A new survey of a slice of the distant reaches of the universe reveals 200,000 galaxies

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When Runaway Planets Go 30 Million Miles Per Hour

A new discovery indicates some planets may be flung out of our galaxy at velocities a few percent of the speed of light

Naomi Braithwaite's footwear sketches for a design course at London College of Fashion

How Ideas Become Shoes: Creativity in Process

Using shoe design to understand human creativity

Current entrance to The Lot.

Historic Film Studios Gone, but Not Forgotten

The demolition of buildings in West Hollywood and New York City leads us to ask: "What parts of our film heritage are we going to keep?"

My Allosaurus ink

Allosaurus Ink

When I decided to get my first science tattoo, the choice was clear—it had to be Allosaurus

In northern Spain, pouring apple cider from bottle to glass is a sport requiring dexterity and skill, as demonstrated by this barman in La Calzada, Asturias.

More Brews and Booze from Around the Globe

Ignore everyone and beware of liquid that looks like water—because it's probably chacha, and in the Republic of Georgia, locals will make you drink it

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