Smart News Arts & Culture

Crayola Has At Least 16 Different Names For What Most of Us Would Call ‘Orange’

Crayola is the master of colors. Sort of. In fact, what they're actually the master of is color naming, and renaming

Bystanders Intervene in One-Third of Bar Room Brawls

If you're at a bar and somebody starts a fight, what do you do? Root them on? Step in? Join the fight?

Popocatépetl eruption on July 8, 2013

Keep an Eye on Popocatépetl, the Volcano Erupting Just Outside Mexico City

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This Butterfly Metamorphosis Film Was Shot With an iPhone Camera

The morphing of a butterfly into a caterpillar has fascinated humans since we discovered the curious strategy

2001: A Space Odyssey’s HAL 9000 Was Originally a Female

Who knows, perhaps if HAL had been a lady, we'd all be scared of disembodied female voices and Siri would be a man's voice

People Who Subconsciously Dwell on Death Write Funnier New Yorker Cartoon Captions

People who are deliberately thinking about death, on the other hand, produce the least funny cartoon captions

The Catholic Church Is Getting Less Strict About Miracles

Both John Paul II and John XXIII will be made saints at the end of the year, suggesting a shift from traditions

The Bikini’s Inventor Guessed How Much It Would Horrify the Public

The modern bikini, named after Bikini Atoll where the atomic bomb was tested, was first unleashed on the world more than 75 years ago

Which Barbie would you buy?

Barbie Gets a Real-World Makeover

Artist Nickolay Lamm created a 3D doll-sized model of a healthy, average 19-year-old American woman, then made her up like Barbie

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Yoga a “Distinctly American Cultural Phenomenon,” California Judge Decrees

Though its roots are in India, American yoga is a whole different thing

Museum to Preserve Lonesome George, in All His Lonesomeness, Forever

There are no other Pinta Island tortoises preserved anywhere else in the world, so George will be alone forever

A Museum in New York City Is Exhibiting Fragments of a Melting Glacier

After the exhibition concludes, the ice will be relinquished to its original fate - a melted puddle

First Death During Cirque du Soleil Performance

For 29 years, Cirque du Soleil had defied death, never seeing a performer die on the job. Until this past weekend

A 1963 ad featuring the Postal Service’s Mr. Zip.

Happy 50th Birthday, ZIP Codes

Half a century ago today the U.S. Post Office introduced the ZIP Code

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What Do America’s Gay Families Get Now That DOMA Is Dead?

What does the repeal of DOMA mean for American's legally married gay couples?

Millennials Still Like Print Books!

Even in an age of smartphones, tablets and laptops, young folks (ages 16-29) are reading. A lot.

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To Understand How the Supreme Court Changed Voting Rights Today, Just Look at This Map

Today the Supreme Court of the United States decided 5 to 4 that one major section of the Voting Rights Act was unconstitutional

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NSA Leaker Edward Snowden’s Not in Russia. Technically.

Hairy Stockings and Other Pervert-Deterring Fashion Accessories

Most conversations gloss over the root of these creative accessories: sexual harassment

Tourists inadvertently torture a dolphin.

Chinese Beach-goers Accidentally Killed a Dolphin with Misplaced Enthusiasm

Judgement from other Chinese social media users was swift and condemning

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