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Harvard University's Peabody Museum was one of many museums that once used pesticides on Native American cultural objects.

repatriation

Museums Once Coated Native Cultural Objects in Toxic Pesticides

Before you can decolonize a museum collection, you may need to decontaminate it.

A balam-kab, a bee whose sole work is to guard and protect the hive's entrance from intruders.

disappearing world

The Protector of Mexico's Hidden Hives of Stingless Bees

Construction worker Efrain Cab comes from a long line of beekeepers.

A mockup of the ExoMars rover rolls off its landing platform at the Rover Operational Control Centre near Turin, Italy. The facility is designed to simulate what conditions will be like on Mars when the actual rover, named Rosalind Franklin, arrives in 2022.

mars

Europe's New Mars Yard Is Like a Playground for Planetary Engineers

Thanks, in part, to 150 tons of soil belched out by Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago.

Frederick Douglass first challenged the monument's merit more than a century ago.

abraham lincoln

Found: A Letter From Frederick Douglass, About the Need for Better Monuments

It was discovered "forensically," thanks to Douglass's distinctive usage of an unusual word.

In Montana, archaeology dog Dax sits beside a bear skull she has successfully found in a training session.

skeletons

Archaeology Dogs Can Help Scholars Sniff Out the Past

With proper training, dogs can follow their noses to human and animal remains from bygone centuries.

Community groups, or "delegations" to the Boston Tree Party, planted pairs of apple trees in public spaces around Boston.

urban foraging

400 Years After Its First Apple Farm, Boston Remains an Urban Orchard

Urban canners and tree-planting groups are maintaining an heirloom tradition.

Chinese cuisine is especially well-represented in the collection.

restaurants

Meet the College Student With 6,000 Takeout Menus

He's not quite sure what to do with them.

The 90-Year-Old Virtuoso Keeping Naxi Music Alive in China

disappearing world

The 90-Year-Old Virtuoso Keeping Naxi Music Alive in China

An underground musical tradition is under threat again.

Once the lights go on, colors emerge. Most of this bed of hard coral belongs to the genus Leptoseris, a group abundant in the deeper waters of Hawaiʻi, but observed here for the first time in the Coral Sea. The pink and reddish hues belong to photosynthetic algae pulling energy from the dim light.

octopus

Turning On the Lights in the Ocean's Twilight Zone

The surprising colors of Australia's Coral Sea Marine Park.

The Strangely Quiet Afterlife of a Brazilian Prison Town

tourism

The Strangely Quiet Afterlife of a Brazilian Prison Town

The tropical beauty of Dois Rios comes with an ugly history.

Towards the end of the burn, the fire can be spread simply by raking the burning straw.

organic

The Lost Art of Growing Blueberries With Fire

Using all four elements to grow the perfect berry.

The tiny village of Flateyri has 200 residents and no fewer than five museums.

paper

Why Doesn't Iceland Have a Museum of Napkins?

An investigation.

Performers Cote Deonath, Taylor Rodriguez, Ben Thompson and Jay Dupuis wait in a dressing room before performing at the Las Vegas Tribute Festival.

elvis

The Mississippi Town Where Elvis Tribute Artists Are Made

Tupelo, birthplace of The King, is the global hub for aspiring Jailhouse Rockers.

Fernando Padilla has designed all of Boudin's breads for the last 40 years.

food art

The Master Baker Giving San Francisco Sourdough a New Shape

For 40 years, Fernando Padilla has sculpted with dough.

It's a fine time to daydream about the open road, even if you're sticking close to home.

50 states of wonder

Welcome to Atlas Obscura's 50 States of Wonder

Curiosity from coast to coast.

Steven Raichlen has been around the world four times documenting the different ways people cook food over fire.

kitchen

How to Make Smoked Foods From Around the World on Your Stovetop

With advice and recipes from a renowned expert.

Ian Kurtz and Reese Salen (pictured) built the bookwheel with fellow RIT engineering students Matt Nygren and Maher Abdelkawi.

engineering

How Students Built a 16th-Century Engineer's Book-Reading Machine

The bookwheel helps readers browse eight texts at once. The only problem? It weighs 600 pounds.

Stephen Hawking's personal The Simpsons figurine.

einstein

For Sale: Proof That Legendary Scientists Were Real People, Too

Letters and trinkets show off the personal sides of Einstein, Hawking, and Schrödinger.