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Arts & Culture
Ten Out-of-the-Ordinary Valentine’s Day Customs
From the festivals of ancient Rome to modern public awareness campaigns, the holiday hasn’t always been about roses and candy
By Mark Strauss
Science & Nature
Henrietta Lacks’ ‘Immortal’ Cells
Journalist Rebecca Skloot’s new book investigates how a poor black tobacco farmer had a groundbreaking impact on modern medicine
By Sarah Zielinski
Science & Nature
Ten Plants That Put Meat on Their Plates
In addition to the well-known Venus flytrap, many other plant species feed on bugs or crustaceans
By Sarah Zielinski
History & Archaeology
Can Auschwitz Be Saved?
Liberated 65 years ago, the Nazi concentration camp is one of Eastern Europe's most visited sites—and most fragile
By Andrew Curry
Arts & Culture
A Dinosaur Graveyard in the Smithsonian's Backyard
At a new dinosaur park in Maryland, children and paleontologists alike have found fossils for a new Smithsonian exhibit
By Abby Callard
People & Places
The Scurlock Studio: Picture of Prosperity
For more than half a century the Scurlock Studio chronicled the rise of Washington's black middle class
By David Zax
Arts & Culture
Renoir's Controversial Second Act
Late in life, the French impressionist's career took an unexpected turn. A new exhibition showcases his radical move toward tradition
By Richard Covington
People & Places
Out of the Guatemalan Gang Culture, an Artist
Carlos Perez could have been an artist or a gangster. Photographer Donna DeCesare helped him choose
By Patti McCracken
Travel
Behind the Scenes in Monument Valley
The vast Navajo tribal park on the border of Utah and New Mexico stars in Hollywood movies but remains largely hidden to visitors
By Tony Perrottet
Travel
Sticking Around Lafayette, Indiana
She didn't plan on staying, but more than 20 years later novelist Patricia Henley embraces her adopted community
By Patricia Henley
History & Archaeology
Radio Activity: The 100th Anniversary of Public Broadcasting
Since its inception, public radio has had a crucial role in broadcasting history - from FDR's "Fireside Chats" to the Internet Age
By Marina Koestler Ruben
History & Archaeology
Uncovering Secrets of the Sphinx
After decades of research, American archaeologist Mark Lehner has some answers about the mysteries of the Egyptian colossus
By Evan Hadingham
Arts & Culture
Courage at the Greensboro Lunch Counter
Fifty years ago, four college students sat down to request lunch service at a North Carolina Woolworth's and ignited a struggle
By Owen Edwards
Science & Nature
Wild Things:
Life as We Know It
Octopuses, Dinosaurs, Pandas and More...
By Abby Callard, T.A. Frail, Megain Gambino, Abigail Tucker, Sarah Zielinski
History & Archaeology
The Changing Definition of African-American
How the great influx of people from Africa and the Caribbean since 1965 is challenging what it means to be African-American
By Ira Berlin
Think Fast
What is the largest island in the world?
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Smithsonian Videos
Farewell, Tai Shan
Visitors to the National Zoo have enjoyed watching their baby panda grow up over the last four years
Poaching the Venus Flytrap
Researchers are able to track Venus flytrap plants that were stolen from protected areas
Remembering the Horrors of Auschwitz
From the moment they arrived at the concentration camp, Jews and other Holocaust victims were treated like animals, and only a lucky group survived the experience
Renoir Through the Years
The timeline of Pierre-Auguste Renoir spans 80 years
Hiding in a Coconut
Scientists filmed octopuses near Indonesia using coconut shells as a tool, a first for invertebrates
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In The Magazine
February 2010
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Treasures of Angkor Wat and VietnamExpert local historians enhance your journey to Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam (Multiple departures in 2010) |
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6th Annual Smithsonian Photo Contest Winners
Out of more than 17,000 entries contributed from around the world, Smithsonian and its readers select the year's best
Celebrating American Indian Heritage
Sitting Bull's legacy, Native American languages, a national list of events and more
15 Must-See Endangered Cultural Sites
Some of the world's most precious and historic sites can be visited today—but might be gone tomorrow
Black History Heritage Month
The son of former slaves, Woodson created the first Negro History Week in 1926 to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln
The Great Destinations of the World
From Rome to Cape Town to Vancouver, this guide to our favorite places explores ancient cultures, geologic marvels and urban meccas
The Magellanic Penguins of Punta Tombo
On a tiny peninsula in southern Argentina, nearly 400,000 penguins gather to breed and usher in a new generation of their species
What Is Your Dream Travel Destination?
Six extraordinary writers picked their dream travel assignments. Where would you go if you could travel anywhere in the world?
Your Kind of Town
What makes your city, suburb or small town special? Share a favorite memory or anecdote about your hometown
Object at Hand: Smithsonian.com's Favorite Things
As the magazine's Object at Hand column turns 20, we look back on some of the treasures inside the Smithsonian Institution
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