Extinct Prehistoric Reptile That Lived Among Dinosaurs Discovered by Smithsonian Researchers
Discovery sheds light on the tuatara, the last living member of a once-diverse group of reptiles that has almost entirely been supplanted by lizards. A…
Smithsonian News
World’s Largest Whales Eat 3x More Than Previously Thought, Amplifying Their Role As Global Ecosystem Engineers
Recovery of baleen whales to pre-whaling levels could restore lost ocean function and may help curb climate change. New research co-authored by Nicholas Pyenson, curator of…
Ancient Zircons Date Onset of Plate Tectonics to 3.6 Billion Years Ago – Event Crucial to Making Earth Hospitable to Life
Earth’s Oldest Minerals Date Onset of Plate Tectonics to 3.6 Billion Years Ago Ancient zircons from the jack hills of western Australia hone date of…
Higher Elevation Himalayan Songbirds Sport Thicker Down “Jackets” to Survive the Cold
Study of Himalayan songbirds in museum collections is first step toward using feathers to predict the effects of climate change for birds in extreme environments….
Ancient DNA Continues to Rewrite the 9,000-Year Society-Shaping History of Corn
Three 2,000-year-old cobs in Honduras show that people brought corn varieties back to Mesoamerica, possibly sparking productivity and shaping civilization. Some 9,000 years ago, corn…
Defining Moment in Human Evolution: Turbulent Era Sparked Leap in Human Behavior, Technology 320,000 Years Ago
New drill core shows a boom-bust landscape in the east African rift valley at a defining moment in human evolution, technology and culture. For hundreds…
Scientists Learn Secrets From Ultra-Black Skin That Allows Deep-Sea Fish to Lurk Unseen
Packed pigment granules help them blend in without blowing their cover. If there were a stagehand of the sea, wearing black to disappear into the…
How Deep-Sea, Ultra-Black Fish Disappear – Science Behind Skin That Absorbs More Than 99.5% of Light
Ultra-black fish skin absorbs more than 99.5% of light in a new, extremely efficient way, a discovery that may advance high-tech optical and camouflage technology….
Stinging Water Mystery Solved – “Mucus Grenades”
Jellyfish Can Sting Swimmers, Prey With “Mucus Grenades” Interdisciplinary research team discovers, describes new free-floating jellyfish stinging structures. In warm coastal waters around the world,…
Recordings by Alexander Graham Bell Restored 130 Years Later
We can now listen to audio recordings made by Alexander Graham Bell 130 years ago. These audio recordings were stored at the Smithsonian Institution for…
Tiny Spider Brains Overflow Into the Body and Legs
According to Smithsonian researchers, the brains of tiny spiders are so large that they fill their body cavities and even overflow into their legs. They…
