Smart News

Participants likely used wooden bowls known as braziers to burn cannabis and release its mind-altering vapors

Cool Finds

The First Evidence of Smoking Pot Was Found in a 2,500-Year-Old Pot

A new study suggests ancient humans used cannabis to commune with nature, spirits or even the dead

Fledgling tree finches may be infested in the nest.

Parasites Are Ruining the Love Songs of Darwin’s Finches

The larvae of an invasive fly warp the birds’ nostrils, which in turn impacts their ability to stay in tune

Speech2Face has its limitations, including a gender bias that led it to associate higher-pitched voices with women and lower-pitched ones with men

Artificial Intelligence Generates Humans’ Faces Based on Their Voices

In trials, the algorithm successfully pinpointed speakers’ gender, race and age

Future of Space Exploration

Astronomers Make Massive Discovery on the Far Side of the Moon

The heavy core of a giant asteroid may be buried beneath the moon's South Pole-Aitken basin

Future of Space Exploration

The International Space Station Is Open for Business—and Tourists

NASA is relaxing its restrictions on commercial activities on the ISS as part of an effort to free up funding for other projects

Some of the charred Cheerios.

Cool Finds

Ancient, Inedible 'Cheerios' Found in Austrian Archaeological Site

Made from wheat and barley, researchers believe the dough rings were likely ritual objects, not breakfast cereal

Otto Frank pictured holding a copy of "The Diary of Anne Frank"

Letters Written by Anne Frank’s Father, Otto, Will Be Digitized to Mark Diarist’s 90th Birthday

The notes stem from a 1970s pen pal correspondence between Otto and a young artist named Ryan Cooper

An activist holds up a rainbow flag inside Botswana's High Court to celebrate Tuesday's landmark ruling.

In Landmark Ruling, Botswana Strikes Down Colonial-Era Law Criminalizing Homosexuality

‘A democratic society is one that embraces tolerance, diversity and open-mindedness,’ Justice Michael Leburu said of the ruling

Firefighters work to stop the blaze that broke out the backlot at Universal in 2008.

Hitting the High Notes: A Smithsonian Year of Music

Universal Music Group Claimed No Master Recording Burned in 2008 Blaze. New Report Estimates Hundreds of Thousands Did

Explosive allegations in <i>The New York Times Magazine</i> claim 500,000 one-of-a-kind master recordings were destroyed in Universal Fire

A woman looks at wreckage of trucks in the ghost city of Pripyat during a tour in the Chernobyl exclusion zone on June 7, 2019.

HBO’s ‘Chernobyl’ Miniseries Is Driving Tourists to the Nuclear Disaster Site

Chernobyl tourist agencies have reportedly experienced a 30 to 40 percent jump in bookings since the show’s premiere

The Chilean crocus, "Tecophilaea cyanocrocus," was thought to be extinct until it was rediscovered in 2001. It's been considered "critically endangered" under ICUN guidelines ever since.

Plant Species Have Been Disappearing 500 Times Faster Than Normal, Thanks to Humans

Researchers call the results "frightening" because it's likely "gross underestimate” and the problem is probably much worse

A field photo showing the impact deposit containing deformed pink sandstone.

An Ancient Asteroid Crater May Be Hiding Off Scotland’s Coast

Scientists think they have honed in on the spot where the collision occurred 1.2 billion years ago

An individual who opts for chicken over beef every day for a year could lower their emissions by roughly the same amount released by driving a car for 3,700 miles

Choose Chicken Over Beef to Dramatically Cut Carbon Footprint, Study Shows

By swapping beef for a poultry-based product just once a day, an individual can reduce their dietary carbon footprint by around 48 percent

Detail of the roof in the central nave of la Sagrada Familia. The columns are designed to invoke trees and branches.

137 Years After Construction Began, La Sagrada Familia Receives Building Permit

The church's trustees hope to complete construction by 2026, the centenary of architect Antoni Gaudi's death

All you'll need to see Jupiter is a pair of binoculars

Tonight Is the Best Time of the Year to See Jupiter and Its Many Moons

Jupiter will reach opposition the night of June 10, forming a straight line with Earth and the sun

Another newly described species, "Litoria vivissimia," has a similarly pointed nose

New Research

Meet the Newly Described Long-Nosed Pinocchio Frog

The tree frog’s nose alternately sticks out straight or droops downward—much like a certain fictional wooden puppet

When you're sad, it makes your dog sad.

Keep Calm and Don’t Stress Out the Dog

When humans feel anxious, their dogs do too, according to new study

A German Circus Uses Stunning Holograms Instead of Live Animal Performers

Circus Roncalli is preserving the tradition of animal acts while eliminating concerns of animal cruelty

Researchers extracted paint and canvas fiber samples from a known forgery supposedly dating to 1886 but actually created during the 1980s.

Art Meets Science

Cold War Nuclear Bomb Tests Are Helping Researchers Identify Art Forgeries

Traces of carbon-14 isotopes released by nuclear testing enable scientists to date paintings created post-World War II

Megachile rotunda

Found: A Bees' Nest Built Entirely of Plastic Waste

It could be a sign of bees’ adaptability to a changing environment—but the habit might also be causing them harm

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