Smithsonian Magazine18h
How Henry VIII’s Armies Defeated a Much Larger Scottish Force, Humiliating His Nephew, the King of Scotland
On this day in 1542, the Battle of Solway Moss left James V enfeebled and ill, clearing the way for his young daughter, Mary, ...
Smithsonian Magazine2d
The Real Story Behind Apple TV+’s ‘Blitz,’ a New Steve McQueen Movie About Britain’s Everyday World War II Heroes
Starring Saoirse Ronan as a young mother, the film celebrates Londoners' resilience in the face of an eight-month Nazi aerial ...
Smithsonian Magazine2d
This New, Yellow Powder Quickly Pulls Carbon Dioxide From the Air, and Researchers Say ‘There’s Nothing Like It’
Scientists say just 200 grams of the material could capture 44 pounds of the greenhouse gas per year—the same as a large tree ...
Smithsonian Magazine2d
A Little Girl Dropped a Message in a Bottle Into a Lake. Her Daughter’s Classmate Found It 26 Years Later
Makenzie Van Eyk wrote the letter as part of a class project in 1998, when she was in fourth grade. Recently, the note was ...
Smithsonian Magazine2d
After 50 Years, Scientists Still Love Lucy
Paleoanthropologists have learned a lot about Lucy, the world’s most famous hominin fossil, since she was discovered in 1974.
Smithsonian Magazine3d
The Real History Behind Ridley Scott’s ‘Gladiator II’ and Life as a Fighter in the Ancient Roman Arena
The "Gladiator" sequel centers on Lucius Verus, the secret son of Russell Crowe's character from the 2000 film. Both men ...
Smithsonian Magazine2d
Archaeologists Say These Mysterious Markings Could Be the World’s Oldest Known Alphabetic Writing
Found etched into clay cylinders in Syria, the strange symbols date to around 2400 B.C.E.—500 years before other known ...
Smithsonian Magazine3d
That Viral Banana Duct-Taped to a Wall? It Just Sold for $6.2 Million
Maurizio Cattelan’s perishable piece soared above the pre-auction estimate of $1.5 million and was the subject of an intense ...
Smithsonian Magazine5d
The Hidden History of Bermuda Is Reshaping the Way We Think About Colonial America
New archaeological finds on the islands have revealed secrets about one of Britain’s first settlements in the Americas—and ...
Smithsonian Magazine4d
Fat Cells Retain a ‘Memory’ of Obesity, Making It Hard to Lose Weight and Keep It Off, Study Suggests
Obesity leads to DNA alterations that affect gene activity and linger after weight loss, a finding that researchers say could ...
Smithsonian Magazine2d
Meet the Eastern Red-Backed Salamander, A Tiny Environmental Hero
Next time you’re walking through fallen leaves in a forest, keep an eye out for the Eastern red-backed salamander—a small ...
Smithsonian Magazine3d
To Understand How Species Evolve, Scientists Flock to Where Charismatic Birds Intermingle
Despite only weighing as much as a AA battery, these birds have charisma to spare and are amazing avian acrobats. Nearly 60 ...