Smithsonian Magazine

⁣With a Few Tweaks, the Country’s Favorite Sports Went From Pastimes to Part of the Fabric of Our Culture Can you imagine a football game where there was never a passing play? The forward pass is just one of the innovations that made these contests into events https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/with-few-tweaks-countrys-favorite-sports-went-pastimes-part-fabric-culture-180988816/

⁣'Ugliest Shark on the Planet': See the Elusive Goblin Shark, Filmed for the First Time in Its Deep-Sea Habitat Scientists spotted the enigmatic creatures in 2019 and again in 2024, marking the first time they've been observed alive in the wild. The sightings drastically expand the animals' known geographic and depth range https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ugliest-shark-on-the-planet-see-the-elusive-goblin-shark-filmed-for-the-first-time-in-its-deep-sea-habitat-180988950/

⁣When Clarence Birdseye Tasted the Trout That Had Been Frozen by Inuit Fishermen, It Changed the Way We Buy Food The inventive entrepreneur concluded that the faster things were frozen, the less damage was done to the structure of the food. Once thawed, they were “exactly like fresh” https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/when-clarence-birdseye-tasted-trout-had-been-frozen-inuit-fisherman-changed-way-buy-food-180988815/

⁣When a Team of Meteorologists and Combat Pilots Set Out to Understand Thunderstorms, They Made Flying Safer for Everyone The sky was a very dangerous place in the early days of commercial aviation. By flying into storms to learn how they worked, these experts made air travel and weather forecasting much more predictable https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/when-team-meteorologists-combat-pilots-set-out-understand-thunderstorms-made-flying-safer-everyone-180988841/

⁣They Were Just Having a Back-to-School Party in an Apartment Rec Room. Little Did They Know They Were Creating Hip-Hop The music genre that became a global sensation started with some creative teens just getting together and riffing rhymes to DJ Kool Herc’s curated beats https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/they-were-just-having-back-school-party-apartment-rec-room-little-did-know-creating-hip-hip-180988814/

⁣Stay Up Late and Admire the Cosmos With This New ‘Stargazing Trail’ That Links Certified Dark Sky Destinations The initiative debuts as Colorado gears up to celebrate the 150th anniversary of its statehood https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stary-up-late-and-admire-the-cosmos-with-this-new-stargazing-trail-that-links-certified-dark-sky-destinations-180988953/

⁣When Claude Monet Planted Water Lilies, Inspiration Struck. An Upcoming Auction Will Test How Much Collectors Prize the Floral Masterpieces The marquee painting from Monet’s "Nymphéas" series is expected to fetch more than $40 million at auction later this month https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/when-claude-monet-planted-water-lilies-inspiration-struck-an-upcoming-auction-will-test-how-much-collectors-prize-the-floral-masterpieces-180988947/

⁣Construction in Germany Revealed the 'Princely Grave' of a Celtic Warrior Who Was Buried With Weapons and a Two-Wheeled Wagon Archaeologists say the find proves "the previously only assumed presence of a local Celtic elite." Grave goods also included gold jewelry and a jug imported from modern-day Tuscany https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/construction-in-germany-revealed-the-princely-grave-of-a-celtic-warrior-who-was-buried-with-weapons-and-a-two-wheeled-wagon-180988952/

⁣Working From Home Is Making People Lonelier and Worsening Mental Health, a Study Suggests The findings do not mean that in-office mandates are a fix, experts say. Instead, workplaces should have flexible policies that allow employees to choose where they’d like to work https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/working-from-home-is-making-people-lonelier-and-worsening-mental-health-a-study-suggests-180988938/

⁣Is Your Dog Right-Pawed or Left-Pawed? Here's How to Figure It Out, According to a New Study Researchers devised a series of tests to measure your furry friend's laterality, which can be associated with behavior, emotion and cognition https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/is-your-dog-right-pawed-or-left-pawed-heres-how-to-figure-it-out-according-to-a-new-study-180988941/

⁣With A.I.'s Help, a Family Realized Their Mysterious Thrift-Store Find Is a Portrait by a Great Scottish Painter The oil painting, the work of "Scottish Colorist" FCB Cadell, just sold at auction for more than $250,000 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/with-help-from-ai-a-family-realized-their-mysterious-thrift-store-find-is-a-portrait-by-a-great-scottish-painter-180988948/

⁣Researchers Accidentally Discover That Humans Prefer to Turn Counterclockwise. But They Still Have No Idea Why The effect transcends factors like culture, gender and handedness, causing the scientists, who were initially studying social distancing behavior, to scratch their heads https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-accidentally-discover-that-humans-prefer-to-turn-counterclockwise-180988939/

⁣See a Diamond Planet, an Exploding Star and a Black Hole Up Close in a New Immersive Virtual Reality Experience Informed by science from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and astronomers worldwide, this “documentary that you can walk through” visualizes the cosmos in a 3-D introduction to the universe https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/see-a-diamond-planet-an-exploding-star-and-a-black-hole-up-close-in-a-new-immersive-virtual-reality-experience-180988945/

⁣Scientists Discover the World's Largest, Deepest Whale Graveyard, Where Cetacean Remains Have Been Piling Up for Five Million Years The massive necropolis, located deep in the southeastern Indian Ocean, is teeming with marine life supported by the whale carcasses, including many suspected new species https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-discover-the-worlds-largest-deepest-whale-graveyard-where-cetacean-remains-have-been-piling-up-for-five-million-years-180988942/

⁣The Events That Took Place in This Selma, Alabama, Home Were Key to the Civil Rights Movement, and You Can Now Visit It The Jackson family opened their home to civil rights leaders planning the Selma-to-Montgomery march, which led to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The entire house was recently moved to Greenfield Village at The Henry Ford, in Dearborn, Michigan https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/the-events-that-took-place-in-this-selma-alabama-home-were-key-to-the-civil-rights-movement-and-you-can-now-visit-it-180988944/

⁣These 15 Stunning Photos Invite You to Take a Peek at the People, Places and Cultural Legacy of Picturesque Portugal With its vibrant hues, vast landscapes and a venerable history, there’s much to love about the coastal country https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/these-15-stunning-photos-invite-you-to-take-a-peek-at-the-people-places-and-cultural-legacy-of-picturesque-portugal-180988936/

⁣There Was No American Regional Cuisine Until One 'Virginia Housewife' Thought to Compile a Diverse Collection of Recipes Mary Randolph, an in-law of the Jefferson family who was influenced by enslaved cooks and traditions of European immigrants, didn’t change Southern cooking with her 1824 cookbook … she originated it https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/no-american-regional-cuisine-until-one-virginia-housewife-thought-compile-diverse-collection-recipes-180988811/

⁣How the Hashtag Became the Way to Instantly Invite Literally Everyone Into the Conversation In the nascent days of Twitter, users wanted a quick way to cluster posts about a single subject. Someone suggested using a pound sign, and #TheRestIsHistory https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-hashtag-became-way-instantly-invite-literally-everyone-into-conversation-180988813/

⁣See Stunning Photos of New National Park Land That Soon Will Be Accessible From America's Longest National Trail The 213 acres of land in far northern Wisconsin, along the southern shore of Lake Superior, include a waterfall https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-stunning-photos-of-new-national-park-land-that-soon-will-be-accessible-from-americas-longest-national-trail-180988943/

⁣Mule Deer Are Already Using California's First Wildlife Crossing—and It's Not Even Finished Yet Construction on the $20 million bridge in Siskiyou County began last year and is expected to be complete by this fall, with miles of eight-foot-high fencing along the highway to help funnel animals toward it https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mule-deer-are-already-using-californias-first-wildlife-crossing-and-its-not-even-finished-yet-180988933/