Smart News

A mid-century Band-Aid tin.

Get Stuck on Band-Aid History

Small injuries are a commonplace problem, but before the Band-Aid, protecting papercuts and other such wounds was a huge hassle

The British Navy was a big deal in the 1700s.

Jane Squire and the Longitude Wars

The sixteenth-century debate over how to determine longitude had a lot of participants—and one woman

An African Elephant in Tanzania

The UK May Implement a Near-Total Ban on Its Ivory Trade

Though the ivory trade was banned internationally in 1990, the UK permits the sale of items crafted before 1947

A line of men in green in the United Arab Emirates

Agoraphobic Photographer Captures the World With Some Help From Google Street View

A new exhibition shows how Jacqui Kenny has photographed stunning images of the planet without leaving her London home

Cool Finds

Stunning Video Captures Humpback Whales Catching Fish With Nets of Bubbles

It's a complicated but ingenious way to catch a meal

The remnant's of Kepler's supernova imaged with modern instruments.

How a 1604 Supernova Presented a Challenge to Astronomers

The supernova provided proof to Galileo, Kepler and others that the heavens were not fixed–although they were wrong about what caused the bright star

The Sharp Rise and Steep Descent of AOL Instant Messenger

The free instant messaging service introduced millions to the joys of online communication, but it fell behind in the social media age

Themira lohmanus

Cool Finds

New Species of Fly Found Breeding on Central Park Duck Droppings

The creatures are likely drawn to the area by the high concentrations of duck poop

Beatrice Fihn, Executive Director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), poses at the headquarters of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), in Geneva, Switzerland.

Trending Today

International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons Wins Nobel Peace Prize

The grassroots coalition spearheaded a U.N. treaty to outlaw nuclear arms and hopes to make them taboo, like chemical weapons

Mad cow disease, like other prion diseases, is still not fully understood.

More Than 30 Years Since Their Discovery, Prions Still Fascinate, Terrify and Mystify Us

Figuring out what they were was just the beginning of a field of research into prions and prion diseases that's still growing

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visiting Canada's new National Holocaust Monument last week

Canada to Replace Holocaust Plaque After Uproar

The plaque dedicating the country's new national Holocaust memorial was criticized for making no reference to Jews or anti-Semitism

A painting of an aurora seen in Japan on September 17, 1770, in the book "Seikai"

Using 18th-Century Writings and Illustrations, Scientists Model an Ancient Magnetic Storm

The vibrant aurora lit up the night sky over the city of Kyoto, Japan, some 250 years ago

Trending Today

An October Harvest Moon Rises Tonight

The full moon closest to the equinox rises soon after sunset, casting a glow early evening that helps farmers bring in their crops

Cartoonist Bil Keane in his studio in 1990.

‘Why ‘The Family Circus’ Was Always So Sentimental

Cartoonist Bil Keane landed on a formula that worked and he stuck to it

British novelist Kazuo Ishiguro during a press conference at his home in London, Thursday Oct. 5, 2017.

Trending Today

What to Know About Literature's Newest Nobel Winner British Novelist Kazuo Ishiguro

The author of <i>The Remains of the Day</i> and seven other books explores themes of memory, time and self-deception

The star of this dive was the discovery of a bronze arm, mottled from centuries underwater.

Antikythera Shipwreck Yields New Cache of Treasures, Hints More May Be Buried at Site

The discovery of an ancient bronze arm is a rare archaeological find

Pumpkin spice has become completely divorced from pumpkin pie.

Even Colonial Americans Liked Pumpkin Spice

A recipe for pumpkin (or rather, “pompkin”) spice appears in America’s oldest cookbook

The late 19th and early 20th centuries were full of inventions such as this--the "Pinkert Navigating Tricycle," which was meant to be used on water.

People in the 1800s Dreamed of Bicycling on Water

Despite numerous patents, nothing really ever came of this fad

Close-up of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" (1893)

Trending Today

The Founder of Primal Scream Therapy Has Died. What Exactly Is Primal Scream Therapy?

Arthur Janov believed encountering trauma from childhood could help free people from adult neuroses

Anne Frank in 1940

Investigators Are Turning to Big Data to Find Who Betrayed Anne Frank

Many experts believe that someone alerted Nazi authorities to the hiding place of Frank and her family, but the culprit has never been determined

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