SCIENCE

Why Do Chimpanzees Throw Poop?

Chimpanzees in captivity are known to throw their own poop at visitors. What's behind this crappy behavior?

The Reason Why Lobsters Turn Bright Red When You Boil Them

It isn't a result of burning them alive, in case the guilt was putting a damper on your delicious seafood feast.

Honey Bees Can Understand the Concept of Zero

Zero is an idea even young children struggle with, but bees are one of the few animal species that can figure it out.

Bees: Waugsberg via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0 / Thought balloon: Noto Project

Honeybees Go "Whoop!" When They Bump Into Each Other

They make the adorable sound with their wings when they're startled. You can listen to them for yourself.

15 Scientific Ways to Relax for National Relaxation Day

Today is National Relaxation Day, so you have a great excuse to take it easy. Here’s how science can help you have the most laid-back day of the year.

Shelter Dogs Are Being Trained to Protect Wildlife—by Sniffing Poop

With their amazing sense of smell and boundless energy, some shelter dogs are the perfect candidates for tracking and protecting endangered species.

William Jones-Warner/iStock via Getty Images

Honey Bees Can Get STDs, Too

Bees, like many animals, are polyandrous—meaning females partner with multiple mates. And they might need their own PSAs about the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases.

Are Left-Handed People Really More Creative?

We associate left-handedness with intelligence, out-of-the-box thinking, and artistic talent. But are these flattering generalizations backed up by science?

5 Fascinating Facts About Middle Children

Statistically speaking, if you want to be president, being a middle child is a great first step to get you there.

How Often Do People Find Wild Animals In Their Salads? More Often Than You Want to Know

Have you ever found a frog in your prepackaged salad? If you answered "yes," you’re (unfortunately) not alone.

A Laugh Track Can Make Bad Jokes Seem Funnier, Study Finds

“Who is the best kung-fu vegetable? Brocco-Lee!” “What’s the best day to cook? Fry-day!” “What state has the smallest drinks? Mini-soda!”

5 Rules for the Paleo Diet from Actual Paleolithic Humans

The paleo diet recommends eating low-carb foods like our ancient ancestors if we want to reach optimum health. But it turns out that early humans in the Paleolithic era dined on more than just meat.

Harrison Duran with a partial Triceratops skull.

College Student Finds a 65-Million-Year-Old Triceratops Skull During Paleontology Dig in North Dakota

Harrison Duran, a dinosaur fanatic since childhood, discovered the partial triceratops skull on a dig in the Badlands of North Dakota.

Want to Reduce Your Stress In 10 Minutes? Pet a Cat or Dog

A new study shows that those puppy-playtime programs colleges host during finals season can actually be effective in just a few minutes.

England Is Being Invaded By a Swarm of Flying Ants That Can Be Seen From Space

The radar picked up some rain showers on England’s southern coast. But it was actually billions of flying ants.

Chimpanzees Bond by Watching Movies Together, Too

A new study shows that we’re less special than we thought: Apes can connect with each other by watching movies just like us.

Astronaut Eugene A. Cernan mans a Lunar Roving Vehicle during the Apollo 17 mission.

Get The Details On All 21 Successful Moon Landings With This Interactive Map

Apollo 11’s 50th anniversary is a great opportunity to explore the history of Moon landings with Smithsonian.com’s handy map.

Margaret Hamilton, lead Apollo flight software engineer, in the Apollo Command Module.

Meet Margaret Hamilton: The Woman Behind the Apollo Project

When Neil Armstrong stepped foot on the surface of the Moon in July of 1969, software was a relatively new development. In fact, the Moon mission was one of the first times this kind of engineering was used in such a fundamental way. History was being wri

11 Things You Might Not Know About Neil Armstrong

No matter where private or government space travel may take us in the future, Neil Armstrong will forever have a place as the first human to ever set foot on solid ground outside of our atmosphere.

Forget Lab-Grown Meat—You Can Now Buy Lab-Grown Ice Cream

Dairy-free ice cream doesn’t always capture the rich, creamy texture and taste we love so much. But this stuff just might.

DNA From a Shark Tooth Embedded in a Man's Foot for 25 Years Identifies the Culprit

Jeff Weakley was attacked by a shark in 1994. Now, a tooth embedded in his foot has revealed the shark's species.

warrengoldswain, iStock /Getty Images Plus

10 Scientific Benefits of Kissing

While there are plenty of obvious pleasures of smooching, there are also some remarkable health benefits, backed by science.

The World’s Eighth Lava Lake Was Just Discovered on a Remote Sub-Antarctic Island

See the satellite photo that just confirmed the existence of an extremely rare lava lake on a remote island.

See NASA’s Breathtaking Photo of a Volcanic Eruption From Space

A small island volcano that has been dormant since 1924 erupted this week. Astronauts photographed it from the International Space Station.

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