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Science / Video

Preview thumbnail for The Platypus

The Platypus

The bizarre-looking Australian native takes a swim. (Still Image: JohnCarnemolla/iStock)

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Termites as the Ultimate Fighting Machines

New research indicates that termites can strike their enemies at 230 feet per second, a record

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Growing Into a New Shell

After molting (note the discarded shell in the background), a black-backed land crab struggles to move its flimsy new exoskeleton

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Feeding the Leopards

Caretakers feed the new baby clouded leopards at the Zoo’s research facility in Virginia

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The Directed Scratch

An example of wild chimpanzees using ‘directed scratches’ to request grooming of specific body areas. (Still Image: Megan Lorenz/iStock)

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Erebus Erupts

Mount Erebus in Antarctica erupts

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Lizards Pop Wheelies

Australian lizards adapt to rapid acceleration

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Velocity

Student Tiffany Riesenberg measures the velocity of a stream’s flow

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Coral Reefs and Creatures

In the remote Pacific, the Phoenix Islands provide an unspoiled center for marine science

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Trap-Jaw Ant “Bouncing”

An example of the trap-jaw ant bouncing by snapping its mandibles against a hard surface to “bounce” a few inches into the air

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Trap-Jaw Ant Manidble Close-Up

A close-up of the trap-jaw ant mandible in action

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The View From Above

Now on view at the National Air and Space Museum, See Dragon eye, the five-pound unmanned aerial vehicle, in flight

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Saving Luna

Watch a trailer for Suzanne Chisholm and Michael Parfit’s documentary

Preview thumbnail for The Colorful Lionfish Under the Sea

The Colorful Lionfish Under the Sea

Two lionfish in Papua New Guinea swim gracefully

Preview thumbnail for Spotted Owls Endangered by the Encroaching Barred Owl

Spotted Owls Endangered by the Encroaching Barred Owl

Learn about the spotted owls new nemesis, the barred owl, in a video produced by Assignment Earth

Preview thumbnail for The Mosquitos High-Pitched Love Duet

The Mosquitos High-Pitched Love Duet

When two mosquitoes of opposite sex approach each other, they synchronize the beating of their wings to create a unique love song.

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Wolves Return to the Rockies

Ranchers and wildlife advocates are at odds over how to handle the gray wolf’s return to the Rockies

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Dead Zone

Take a video tour of the dead zone off the Pacific Northwest coast

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Biodiversity Decline

Fifty years ago, the Amazon comprised 14 percent of the Earth’s surface. Now, it covers just 6 percent.

Preview thumbnail for Charles Babbage's Difference Machine No. 2

Charles Babbage’s Difference Machine No. 2

The first computer is thought to be the invention of a 19th century mathematician

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Underwater Volcano

A remote camera captures the first-ever video of an erupting underwater volcano

Preview thumbnail for Face to Face With Ants

Face to Face With Ants

Using new technologies, Smithsonian entomologists are using detailed photo of ant faces to understand the differences among the 12,000 species

Preview thumbnail for Deploying the Wave Energy Buoy

Deploying the Wave Energy Buoy

See a prototype of a wave energy buoy bob up and down on the waters surface as researchers from Oregon State University study its efficacy

Preview thumbnail for Discovering Titanoboa, the World's Largest Snake

Discovering Titanoboa, the World’s Largest Snake

Fossils found in Colombia indicate that a giant snake may have roamed the earth 60 million years ago

Preview thumbnail for Zooming in on Ants

Zooming in on Ants

Biologist and videographer Mark Moffett’s footage of ants gets up close and personal with the leaf-cutter species of the insect

Preview thumbnail for The Endangered Gorillas of the Congo

The Endangered Gorillas of the Congo

In the Virunga National Forest, the mountain gorilla population sits in the middle of a war zone in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as forest rangers track and keep …

Preview thumbnail for How Hummingbirds and Moths Fly

How Hummingbirds and Moths Fly

Researchers reveal how birds and flying insects flap their wings differently to control a turn

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Albert Einstein Lives On

Through the science of robotics, researchers in California have created a lifelike bust of Albert Einstein to teach others, and themselves, about the breakthroughs made with robots

Preview thumbnail for An Egg Hatches

An Egg Hatches

A chick in the process of hatching as the female adult looks on

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Ready to Fledge

The biological urge is too strong to resist for penguin chicks as they fledge and dive into the water for the first time.

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Fallow Groan

Fallow deer are the first species outside of primates to be able to make auditory discernment of social dominance

Preview thumbnail for Feeding the Newborn Penguin

Feeding the Newborn Penguin

An adult penguin, recently back from a foraging trip, responds to the cheeping of its two-week-old chick and feeds it

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