Articles

Why Does the Nile Flow North and More Questions From Our Readers

Your questions answered by our experts

In 1794, President Washington commissioned a wampum belt for the Canandaigua Treaty

Illuminating the Treaties That Have Governed U.S.-Indian Relationships

These documents were both a cause and a salve for the fraught relations between the United States and Indian Nations

Butcher shop owner Sajad Saleh sells his wares at the Al Tayebat Meat Market.

Amid the Heated Debates, Iraqi Immigrants Struggle to Make a Living in Arizona

Familiar fare—qeema, biryani, dolma—offers comfort to the thousands of refugees starting life over in Phoenix

Rooms: At the Cooper Hewitt, once Andrew Carnegie’s mansion, Kalman’s selections will be displayed in the Music Room.

Famed Illustrator Maira Kalman Takes on the Cooper Hewitt’s Collections

In her latest book, the noted artist juxtaposes treasured personal objects with items from the Smithsonian design museum

“We had ears open to all the influences that were around us,” Debbie Harry recently told Interview magazine.

What New Wave Brought to Rock ‘n’ Roll

There will always be a new music craze out to getcha, getcha, getcha

What Lies Beneath Stonehenge?

A new Smithsonian Channel show reveals groundbreaking research that may explain what really went on there

Switching testing scenarios used to take 20 minutes. Rolling waters can now be calmed in just 30 seconds.

The Navy Tests Its Ships in This Indoor Ocean

New technology can precisely recreate eight open-water conditions

The Invention of the “Snapshot” Changed the Way We Viewed the World

A century before drones cruised the skies, American camera hounds made photography a personal art

An undated wash drawing depicts the burning of Washington, DC, in August of 1814.

Your Guide to the Three Weeks of 1814 That We Today Call the War of 1812

From the burning of Washington to the siege of Baltimore, what happened in those late summer days?

If there had been Academy Awards in the mid-1920s, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s The Big Parade produced by Irving Thalberg, directed by King Vidor, and starring John Gilbert and Renée Adorée, would have swept the prizes.

World War I: 100 Years Later

The Blockbuster World War I Film that Brought Home the Traumatic Impact of War

The blockbuster silent film <em>The Big Parade</em> is among the first to explore the psychological trauma of war

Celebrate Bao Bao's Birthday With a Party and This Recap of Her First Year

Hot off her recent win in the Smithsonian Summer Showdown, D.C.'s favorite panda celebrates her first birthday on August 23

An urban spider hangs out in downtown Los Angeles.

New Research

Friendly Neighborhood Spiders Get Bigger in Cities

A study of orb-weaving spiders in Australia shows a correlation between urbanization and fatter arachnids

Scientists observed the view down the borehole via a computer at the surface as they drilled into the Antarctic ice to reach Lake Whillans.

New Research

Thousands of Microbe Species Live in This Buried Antarctic Lake

Drilling through half a mile of ice let scientists uncover the first solid evidence of life in a subglacial lake

Jessica Rath sculpts paragon and roma tomatoes from life.

Art Meets Science

These Sculptures of Giant Tomatoes Are Ripe For the Picking

What physical traits do humans find desirable? Artist Jessica Rath looks in her grocery store's produce section for answers

The creators of "Will & Grace" donated the pilot script and other items from the show to the National Museum of American History.

A Proud Day at American History Museum as LGBT Artifacts Enter the Collections

The creators of "Will & Grace" and others donated objects related to gay history

Tennis player Renée Richards recently donated her tennis racket, along with a trophy, a dress and a number of other items to the Smithsonian.

Pioneering Tennis Player Renée Richards Recalls the Glory Days of Wooden Rackets

After winning the New York State men's title in 1964, Richard Raskind became Renée Richards and a civil rights icon

Qnovo claims its technology will let you plug your phone in for 15 minutes at lunch and get an extra six hours of use time.

Tech Watch

Your Next Smartphone Could Charge Six Times Faster

A California startup is implementing faster, smarter charging for next year’s mobile devices

Changila, a male elephant who was later killed by poachers near Samburu National Reserve in Kenya.

New Research

Surprise! Science Shows That Elephant Poaching Is Unsustainable

For the first time, scientists have made a comprehensive tally of illegal killing rates across Africa

Shama, a red panda at the National Zoo, died August 16.

Shama, the Red Panda, Has Died

Shama, a red panda at the National Zoo, died on Saturday

Ginger chicken donburi from Ivan Ramen at Gotham West Market tastes as delicious as it looks.

How Dinner at a Food Court Has Become Something Exciting, not Excruciating

A new trend across America’s urban centers has reinvigorated the nation’s taste buds

Page 552 of 1280