Around the Mall

Reusable water bottles, like those above, are good for the environment. Instead of throwing away your disposable plastic bottles, bring them to the Anacostia Community Museum on Wednesday to turn them into art.

Events March 26-28: Student Sit-Ins, Environmental Art and Female Historical Perspectives

This week, re-enact an event that encouraged civil rights, turn water bottles into art and see American history through women's eyes

None

PHOTOS: Portrait Gallery Announces Winners of its Outwin Boochever Competition

Winners of the triennial National Portrait Gallery competition used everything from rice to glitter to thread to capture themselves and the people around them

A team of scientists has recovered pieces of a rocket engine that launched Apollo astronauts to outer space.

Apollo Rocket Engines Pulled From Sea — But Where Will They Land?

Scientists retrieved pieces of rocket engines that may have launched the first man to the moon. Will any of them end up at the Air and Space Museum?

Delicious Peace, out April 9, features 16 tracks that cover a range of Uganda’s musical styles. The songs all have the same message, though: spread peace.

Give the World a Cup of Joe and Teach It Harmony

Musicians in a fair trade coffee cooperative hope to change the world through song and coffee

The Garrison Dam, whose construction displaced the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in the 1950s. See a documentary on the dam’s effects on American Indians on Saturday.

Events March 22-24: Flying Lessons, the Garrison Dam and Dream Folk-Rock

This weekend, have your kids learn the science of flight, hear the history of a displaced North Dakota tribe and listen to local folk-rockers Kindlewood

None

What Is It Really Like to Work at the NCIS?

A division chief and special agent talk about the challenges and rewards of fighting crime across the world

A scrapbook documenting the history of the Auxiliary includes several pages of past Auxiliary presidents. All images courtesy of the Women’s Auxiliary, National Association of Plumbing, Heating and Cooling Contractors (collection 1304).

How Did A Group of Plumbers’ Wives Change American History?

Initially a social club, the Women's Auxiliary grew to become one of the nation's most influential organizations in the country

None

Warmer Temperatures Speed Tropical Plant Growth

New research challenges key assumptions about plant growth at increased temperatures

None

VIDEO: Herons Crash the Zoo

Black-crowned night herons have been using the Zoo's grounds for breeding for more than a century and the tradition continues

Orville Wright (above) and his brother Wilbur are credited with having conducted the first sustained, controlled, heavier-than-air flight.

Air and Space Curator: The Wright Brothers Were Most Definitely the First in Flight

Aeronautics curator Tom Crouch says yes, despite claims that a German immigrant named Gustave Whitehead may have beat them

Nam June Paik’s “Electronic Superhighway” (he coined the phrase). See a curated selection of short films by the video artists on Wednesday at the American Art Museum.

Events March 19-21: Poetry Lessons, Nam June Paik Films and a Native Ballet

This week, unlock your inner poet, see films by the first video artist and take in the history of the Osage people performed in dance

Shanti the Asian elephant plays with a tire in the National Zoo’s new Elephant Community Center, which opens on Saturday, March 23.

Look Out! Look Out! Elephants Get New Digs

The Elephant Community Center, the newest addition to the National Zoo's "Elephant Trails" habitat, opens on Saturday, March 23

Celidh Band from town of Keady, County Armagh

Beyond Riverdance: Enjoy Classic Celtic Music for St. Patrick’s Day

A new release from Smithsonian Folkways showcases the best of Celtic classics

None

Surfer Kelly Slater Searches for the Perfect Wave in New 3-D Film

Mixing science and surfing, "The Ultimate Wave Tahiti" joins the world champion in the hunt

None

Why We Should All Celebrate Save a Spider Day

Insect keeper Dan Babbitt of the Natural History Museum explains what makes spiders so cool

Chahārshanbe-Sūri, Iran’s Festival of Fire, falls on the Wednesday before the Persian New Year. Join in celebrating Iran’s unique New Year traditions this Saturday at the Freer and Sackler Galleries.

Events March 15-17: Three Movies, the Persian New Year and Native Story Time

This week, see free films, celebrate the Persian New Year by jumping over fire and hear children's stories from different Native communities

To boldly go where only a few men (and women) have gone before: “Moving Beyond Earth,” a permanent exhibit at the Air and Space Museum, has a replica of the waste collection system used aboard NASA’s space shuttles. This may be the fanciest toilet you will ever see.

How Do Astronauts Go to the Bathroom in Space?

A look at the space shuttle toilet and "the deepest, darkest secret about space flight"

None

Why the Department Store Brought Freedom for the Turn of the Century Woman

Harry Selfridge, a London department store owner, may have opened the doors to more than just his retail store when he gave women a chance to power shop

Marianne Moore

Poetry Matters: Women’s Work: Toward a New Poetic Language

For Women's History month, curator David C. Ward considers the steady ascendency of poets from Emily Dickinson to today's Eavan Boland

A golden ticket from the 2005 film, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” is part of the donation of 30 objects from Warner Bros.

A Batarang, A Golden Ticket and a Green Gremlin: Treasures from Warner Bros.

Warner Brothers added to its collection of donated items with more than 30 new items to the American History Museum

Page 11 of 111