Smart News

Pearls have been a symbol of extreme wealth for thousands of years.

Here's Why Pearls No Longer Cost a Fortune

Coming up with ways to lower the price of pearls—either through culturing or by out-right fakery—took centuries

An illustration of Washington's imagined deathbed scene, painted about 50 years after his death.

George Washington’s Hard Death Shows the Limits of Medicine in His Time

He’s one of the United States’s most revered figures, but his last hours were plagued by excruciating illness

New Research

99-Million-Year-Old Tick That Feasted on Dino Blood Found Trapped in Amber

Sorry, there's no DNA left. But the find does provide the first strong evidence that the parasites preyed on dinosaurs

Catalan Mossos d'Esquadra officers scuffle with demonstrators as they cordon off the area around Lleida museum in the west of Catalonia, Spain, on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017.

What to Know About the Removal of 44 Artworks from Catalan's Museum of Lleida

The fate of the works has become a point of contention in Catalonia’s bitter push for independence

"García Márquez is a towering figure of 20th-century Latin America and beyond, profoundly influential as a novelist and a key figure in journalism, politics, film and cultural production," said Charles Hale, director of LLILAS Benson Latin American Studies and Collections,in a statement about the new archive at the Ransom Center.

The Magical Mind of Gabriel García Márquez Shines Through His Newly Digitized Archive

The University of Texas has digitized some 27,000 documents from the collection of the acclaimed author

New Research

This Giant Penguin Was the Size of a Human

The ancient mega-penguins waddled around New Zealand some 60 million years ago

Middlebury College Archivist Danielle Rougeau holds a Christmas card sent by poet Robert Frost in 1962, shortly before his death.

Catch a Rare Viewing of Robert Frost's Cheery, Dreary, Dark Christmas Cards

The poet’s annual Christmas cards, made in compilation with printer Joe Blumenthal, were not necessarily traditional, but they were always beautiful

French wine became imperilled in the mid-1800s as twin pests from America swept through European agricultural regions.

How One Mycologist Saved France’s Wine (Among Other Things)

Bordeaux mixture saved many crops besides grapes from fungus

Egyptian excavation workers work on a mummy in a newly discovered tomb in Luxor, Egypt

Cool Finds

In Luxor, Two Tombs Dating Back 3,500 Years Unveil Their Secrets

They include hundreds of statues and one of the best-preserved wall paintings found in the area

What Lurks Below Jupiter’s Great Red Spot?

New results from the Juno spacecraft are helping to unlock the secrets of this centuries-old storm

The reproductive organs of Schlumbergera, known as the Holiday Cactus. This was heady stuff in Erasmus Darwin's time.

Charles Darwin’s Grandfather Was Famous for His Poems About Plant Sex

Erasmus Darwin’s poetics influenced his grandson’s vision of nature

Maria Telkes, known as the "Sun Queen" for her focus on solar energy.

Future of Energy

This 1940s Solar House Powered Innovation and Women in STEM

As far back as the 1940s, people were worried about running out of fuel. The sun seemed like a feasible alternative

Why Pantone's Color of the Year Is the Shade of Science

PANTONE 18-3838 Ultra Violet is a deep saturated purple, but it doesn't hold a candle to true ultraviolet

The tradition of decorative gingerbread dates back to the Middle Ages.

The Un-Christmassy Origin of Gingerbread Houses

This tradition dates back to the story of Hansel and Gretel

Millions of Migrating Red Crabs Are Coming to Google Street View

The crustaceans are making their brief annual appearance on Australia's Christmas Island

New Research

Earth's Mysterious Hum Recorded in the Deep Sea for the First Time

The discovery could help unlock the planet's deepest secrets

You Don't Have to Have Synesthesia to "Hear" This Silent Gif

How we perceive the world is the result of the complex intertwining of illusion, synesthesia, and suggestion

Sign the Stars Anywhere on Earth With the First International Astronomy Dictionary For Deaf Communities

The encyclopedic list includes more than 40 space terms ranging from the Moon to exoplanet

Sculptors Cave 3D Animation

Take a Virtual Tour of a Mysterious Pictish Cave in Scotland

Archaeologists have created a 3D model of the fascinating, but hard-to-access Sculptor's Cave

A Pizza Margherita served up by I Decumani, located on the Via dei Tribunali in Naples.

Mamma Mia!: Naples’ Pizza-Making Process Gets Unesco Heritage Status

The art of <i>pizzaiuolo</i>, as the craft is known, is a cherished tradition that is not easy as pie

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