Smart News

On the show, experts give contestants advice about Vermeer’s lost paintings.

Dutch Artists Compete to Paint Like Vermeer in New Reality Show

The contestants are tasked with recreating six of the old master's lost works

Dictionary.com regularly adds new words with staying power to its online listings.

Dictionary.com Adds More Than 300 New Words

Additions like “digital nomad,” “anti-fat” and “liminal space” reflect the dynamic nature of the English language

Thor rests in Scarborough Harbor in England on December 31, 2022.

The Unusual European Journey of Thor the Walrus

It's rare to see one of these massive marine mammals in Western Europe, but Thor spent several months delighting crowds in multiple countries

An illustration of Tillyardembia, an earwig-like insect that may have pollinated non-flowering plants some 280 million years ago.

Scientists Discover Oldest Known Fossils of Pollen-Carrying Insects

It’s unclear whether the creatures were pollinating prehistoric plants or just getting a snack

Tourists visiting the Great Pyramid in Giza, Egypt, earlier this week

Cool Finds

Hidden Chamber Revealed Inside Great Pyramid of Giza

Researchers used cosmic-ray imaging to uncover the 30-foot-long corridor

The astronauts launch into space at 12:34 a.m. Eastern time on Thursday. They'll join seven other astronauts aboard the ISS, before four others return to Earth in a few days. 

Four Astronauts Arrive at the International Space Station

Despite a launch delay and docking issue, the space travelers are now onboard the orbiting laboratory

This cross-section view shows the Lincoln Memorial atop the undercroft, part of which will house a new museum.

The Lincoln Memorial Is Getting a New Underground Museum

Crews are starting work on the $69 million project this month and hope to finish by 2026

Giant lacewings date back to the Jurassic Era and hadn't been seen in eastern North America for more than 50 years, until this discovery.

Rare Jurassic-Era Insect Discovered at Arkansas Walmart

The species had not been recorded in eastern North America for more than 50 years—and never documented in the state

An anchor is still attached on the bow of the sunken schooner barge Ironton, lost in a collision in 1894. 

129-Year-Old Vessel Still Tethered to Lifeboat Found on Floor of Lake Huron

The 'Ironton' has been perfectly preserved since the day it sank in 'Shipwreck Alley'

Researchers used Barbie dolls to test liquid nitrogen's effectiveness at removing Moon dust simulants from a replica spacesuit. (Left: before spraying; center: after spraying; right: after spot cleaning)

NASA's Moon Dust Problem Might Finally Have a Solution

Researchers sprayed liquid nitrogen at spacesuit-clad Barbie dolls to test their novel idea

A digital reconstruction of a humpback whale trap feeding, a behavior with striking similarities to the feeding habits of the "hafgufa" described in medieval Norse texts.

These Mythical Sea Monsters May Have Been Whales With Unusual Dining Habits

Tales of creatures like the Norse “hafgufa” suggest ancient and medieval people may have seen whales trap feeding

A new overnight route will connect Amsterdam and Barcelona starting in the spring of 2025.

New Sleeper Train Will Connect Amsterdam and Barcelona

The proposed route is part of a broader push to increase cross-border rail travel in Europe

The comb measures roughly two inches and has nearly a dozen teeth.

Ancient Comb Made From Human Skull Unearthed in England

The Iron Age artifact may have been used as an amulet rather than a hairstyling tool

The artificial sweetener erythritol is widely used a sugar substitute. 

Artificial Sweetener Tied to Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke, Study Finds

Erythritol was not proven to cause these health problems, but some experts recommend limiting intake

For the first time, researchers have discovered remnants of Roman-era wooden spikes meant to deter attackers.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Wooden Spikes Described by Julius Caesar

Until recently, no traces of the military technology had ever been found

Snapping shrimp create an air bubble in the water when they clamp their claws shut.

These Young Shrimp Can Snap Their Claws as Fast as a Speeding Bullet

Juvenile snapping shrimp can achieve the fastest acceleration of any repeatable, underwater motion by a living thing, per a new study

Ukraine has released stamps featuring a Banksy mural, which depicts a child defeating a Putin-like figure in a judo match.

Ukraine Releases Banksy Postage Stamp on War's One-Year Anniversary

The street artist painted the image on a demolished wall during his secret trip to the country last fall

Sharpshooters use an appendage called an anal stylus to catapult droplets of pee.

These Tiny Bugs Urinate by Flinging Droplets of Pee

Sharpshooters are the first example of “superpropulsion” in a living organism, according to new research

Salvador Dalí in 1939

Did Salvador Dalí Paint This Enigmatic Artwork?

After two curators began doubting the painting's authenticity, they made an unexpected discovery about its origins

Some scientists think that Earth's inner core is actually made up of two similar but distinct layers.

Scientists Find Evidence of Another Core Within Earth's Center

The newly proposed layer might have a different structure from the rest of the inner core

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