Smart News

Human Diseases May Have Doomed the Neanderthals

Stomach ulcers, herpes, ringworm and other tropical diseases may have all contributed to the Neanderthal demise

April 12, 2016

Can Great Apes Be Vaccinated Against Ebola and Other Diseases?

Vaccinations could be the best defense against devastating population drops

April 12, 2016

The Age Suit at the Liberty Science Center lets users feel what it's like to get older.

Could Virtual Reality Inspire Empathy for Others?

Virtual reality could allow users to step into someone else's shoes, experiencing things like having migraines or swapping genders

April 12, 2016

A wild boar and her little squeakers explore in Duisburg Forest, Germany.

Weird Animals

Radioactive Boars Rampage Around Fukushima

A boom in the wild boar population is causing problems for farmers near the site of the 2011 nuclear disaster

April 12, 2016

Romp with Ramona, Ribsy and Henry Huggins at Grant Park in Portland.

Celebrate Beverly Cleary’s 100th Birthday With a Trip to Her Sculpture Garden

Ramona's creator is even more timeless thanks to Portland's tribute in bronze

April 12, 2016

During World War II, Anne O’Hare McCormick wrote an editorial in the New York Times that urged people to pay attention to Hungary's Jews.

New Project Uncovers What Americans Knew About the Holocaust

You can help historians learn how newspapers in the U.S. documented the persecution of European Jews

April 11, 2016

Rust Belt cities like Detroit had the greatest disparities in life expectancy between rich and poor.

The Poor’s Life Expectancy Varies Based on Where They Live

The life expectancy gap between New York and Gary, Indiana is over four years

April 11, 2016

Major construction: Coming to an art museum near you.

Museum Building Is Booming in the United States

In a seven-year period, museums in the U.S. spent around $5 billion

April 11, 2016

After Decades of Decline, Tiger Populations Could Be on the Rise

Though the latest numbers seem hopeful, the majestic creatures are not out of the woods yet

April 11, 2016

A recipe for an ingredient to make a Philosopher's Stone handwritten by Isaac Newton.

Isaac Newton Used This Recipe in His Hunt to Make a Philosopher’s Stone

The recently publicized document was kept in a private collection for many years

April 11, 2016

The Planet-Hunting Kepler Telescope Entered Emergency Mode

The probe suddenly went into a safe mode for unknown reasons last week

April 11, 2016

Two watercolors by Egon Schiele, "Self-Portrait With Red Hair And Striped Oversleeves" and “Seated Boy With Folded Hands,” are being returned to the family of their original owner.

In "Solomonic Solution," Museum Returns Two Nazi-Looted Artworks to 95-Year-Old Descendant

After nearly 20 years of fighting, the Leopold Museum in Vienna has agreed to return the watercolors

April 8, 2016

Researchers Piece Together Ancient Plesiosaur Attack

After examining bite marks on a 70-million-year old diving bird, researchers figure out who tried to have it for dinner

April 8, 2016

Humans and Neanderthals May Have Had Trouble Making Male Babies

The Neanderthal Y chromosome hasn't persisted in modern humans

April 8, 2016

Supermassive Black Holes May Be More Common Than Previously Thought

Astronomers have found a huge black hole in a "cosmic backwater," opening the possiblity there could be many more in the universe

April 7, 2016

The three volumes of the newly-discovered copy of Shakespeare's First Folio.

A New Copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio Was Found in a Scottish Library

Only a few hundred copies still survive

April 7, 2016

Pig Heart Beat for Over Two Years in Baboon's Belly

Researchers take big step forward in the quest to develop cross-species organ transplants

April 7, 2016

This Booker T. Washington stamp was part of a series depicting influential educators.

How Booker T. Washington Became the First African-American on a U.S. Postage Stamp

At the time, postage stamps usually depicted white men

April 7, 2016