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Senators Kenneth Wherry (pictured at left) and J. Lister Hill conducted the first congressional investigation into homosexuality in the federal workforce.

Trending Today

State Department Apologizes for the 'Lavender Scare'

For decades, the agency purged gay and lesbian workers believing their sexual orientation made them security risks

The asteroid Vesta, explored by NASA's Dawn spacecraft in 2011 and 2012

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A Sneaky Asteroid Buzzed By Earth Yesterday

The space rock passed by at about half the distance between our planet and the moon

New Research

The Part of Your Brain That Recognizes Faces Continues Growing Later in Life

That is, at least until you hit 30

Clare Hollingworth poses in the streets of Saigon in 1968.

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The Legendary Reporter Who Broke the Beginning of World War II Is Dead

Clare Hollingworth redefined the role of war correspondent

A model of the binary star system KIC 9832227, which could explode around 2022.

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Catch a Star Exploding in Action in 2022

Just five years from now a pair of stars are predicted to merge, forming a glittery and bright new point in the sky

A plaque outside of the Rosslyn, VA garage where the informant code-named "Deep Throat" met with journalist Bob Woodward during the Watergate investigation.

Cool Finds

The Parking Garage Where Deep Throat Spilled the Beans on Watergate Is Being Torn Down

Demolition is scheduled for early this year

Inventor Sir Clive Sinclair demonstrates his battery-assisted pedal powered tricycle at Alexandra Palace, London.

This Three-Wheeled, Battery-Powered Plastic Car-Bike Was a Giant Flop in 1985

But today, some have asked if Sir Clive Sinclair was just ahead of his time

China has vowed to build over 50,000 new toilets and refurbish 100,000 more in a bid to improve sanitation for tourists.

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China Will Transform 100,000 Toilets for the Sake of Tourism

Officials vow to flush out outmoded commodes

A portrait of John D. Rockefeller circa 1900, after he had built Standard Oil into the largest oil company in the United States.

John D. Rockefeller Was the Richest Person To Ever Live. Period

Standard Oil, his company, is one of the biggest reasons we have anti-monopoly laws

The Pioneer Cabin Tree in 2006

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One of California’s Iconic “Tunnel Trees” Has Fallen

The Pioneer Cabin Tree was likely hundreds of years old

Members of an anti-flirt club

Cool Finds

New York State Once Introduced an Anti-Flirting Bill

The law aimed to crack down on public displays of affection of all kinds

People lined up to buy the first iPhone in New York, June 29,2007

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What Tech Writers Said About the iPhone When It Debuted Ten Years Ago

Not everyone thought the sleek phone/browser/music player would have mainstream appeal

Jeanette Epps tries on a space suit

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The International Space Station Will Finally Welcome a Black Astronaut

In May 2018, flight engineer Jeanette J. Epps will begin her mission on the ISS

A daguerreotype portrait of Samuel Morse by his student, Mathew Brady, circa 1844-1860.

The Innovative Spirit fy17

The Inventor of the Telegraph Was Also America’s First Photographer

The daguerreotype craze took over New York in the mid-nineteenth century

Joan of Arc on horseback in an illustration from a 1505 manuscript.

Remembering Joan of Arc, The Gender-Bending Woman Warrior Who Changed History

The Maid of Orleans and her holy voices were in many ways too different to live

Whiskey? Check. Man bun? Check. Presidential presence? Check.

Cool Finds

In This New Portrait, George Washington Trades His Curls for a Man Bun

The first president turns hipster at a new D.C. restaurant

A wide view of the rift in Larsen C as seen on November 10, 2016. The crack has since lengthened by about 12 miles.

Trending Today

An Iceberg Larger Than Rhode Island Is Poised to Break From Antarctica

Its break from the ice shelf could spell trouble for the frozen expanse

Cool Finds

Tens of Thousands of Plastic Eggs Washed Up on a German Beach

It was an eggstravaganza

An artist’s conception of the Lucy spacecraft flying by the Trojan asteroid Eurybates (left) and Psyche, the first mission to a metal asteroid (right).

Trending Today

NASA Just Announced Two New Missions, But Shelved Others

Though the new missions have exciting prospects, some scientists aren’t thrilled by the decision

The new fossil groundcherry Physalis infinemundi from Laguna del Hunco in Patagonia, Argentina, 52 million years old. This specimen displays the characteristic papery, lobed husk and details of the venation.

New Research

Researchers Uncover Fossils of 52-Million-Year-Old Tomatillos

The pair of ancient fruits suggest that the nightshade group to which they belong is much older than scientists once thought

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