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The Space Shuttle Era

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Based on the popular print Collector's Edition Space Shuttle 1981-2011, this digital version includes bonus interactive features, extra photographs, and multiple videos.

Editors' Picks

When Celebrity Jeopardy Comes to the National Mall

This weekend, "Jeopardy" filmed its "Power Players" week shows in DC, pitting journalists, pundits and newsmakers against each other

The Monocled World War II Interrogator

Robin "Tin Eye" Stephens became known for "breaking" captured German spies without laying a hand on them

The 20 Best Small Towns in America

From the Berkshires to the Cascades, we've crunched the numbers and pulled a list some of the most interesting spots around the country

In The Magazine

  1. Tasmania's New Devil
  2. Sympathy for the Devil
  3. The 10 Best Small Towns in America
  4. A Man and His Islands
  5. There Is No Wind in Oslo

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Games

WordSmith

Test your knowledge on Smithsonian.com's crossword puzzle

Daily Sudoku

Play the addictive number placement puzzle

Off the Road Blog

Truffle Trouble in Europe: The Invader Without Flavor

If it looks like a black truffle, and if it cost you $1,500 a pound like a black truffle---it may actually be a worthless Chinese truffle
May 15, 2012 | By Alastair Bland

Surprising Science Blog

If the Interstate System Were Designed by a Slime Mold

How a brainless, single-celled organism created a startlingly efficient route map for U.S. highways
May 15, 2012 | By Joseph Stromberg

Dinosaur Tracking Blog

Dear Media, Leave My Dinosaurs Alone

Lazy journalists and unscrupulous documentary creators have demonstrated that they just can't play nice with Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops and kin
May 15, 2012 | By Brian Switek

Food and Think Blog

Eating Invasive Species to Stop Them?

The "if you can't beat 'em, eat 'em" strategy for controlling exotic species could backfire, a new analysis warns
May 15, 2012 | By Peter Smith

Julia Child

History & Archaeology

Julia Child's Recipe for a Thoroughly Modern Marriage

Food writer Ruth Reichl looks at the impact of the famous chef's partnership with her husband Paul
June 2012 Issue | By Ruth Reichl

Design Decoded Blog

Designing Democracy Around a Ditch

How a ditch irrigation system in the arid Southwest became the backbone of local democracy.
May 14, 2012 | By Sarah C. Rich

Gumbo

Arts & Culture

Best. Gumbo. Ever.

He ate far and wide, but the author found only one true version of the New Orleans dish—Mom's
June 2012 Issue | By Lolis Eric Elie

Hominid Hunting Blog

Why Some Orangutans Never Want to Grow Up

Some males take decades to fully mature; this arrested development can improve their odds of mating success
May 14, 2012 | By Erin Wayman

Milky Way

Science & Nature

Top Ten Mysteries of the Universe

What are those burning questions about the cosmos that still baffle astronomers today?
May 08, 2012 | By Joseph Stromberg

Egyptians embalming a corpse

History & Archaeology

The Gruesome History of Eating Corpses as Medicine

The question was not “Should you eat human flesh?” says one historian, but, “What sort of flesh should you eat?”
May 07, 2012 | By Maria Dolan

Innovations Blog

Is Facebook Good For TV?

It wouldn't seem to be. But social TV, where people interact with their friends on a second screen while they're watching a show, may be boosting ratings
May 14, 2012 | By Randy Rieland

History & Archaeology

Howard Carter: Famous Archaeologist, Not-So-Famous Painter

Didn’t know he was an artist too? "Tut tut!"
May 09, 2012 | By K. Annabelle Smith

Moral Origins by Christopher Boehm

Science & Nature

How Humans Became Moral Beings

In a new book, anthropologist Christopher Boehm traces the steps our species went through to attain a conscience
May 04, 2012 | By Megan Gambino

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AT THE SMITHSONIAN
Scenes and Sightings from the Museums

  • Around the Mall
  • Visitor's Guide

How a Fallout Shelter Ended up at the American History Museum

Curator Larry Bird tells of the adventure—from Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Washington, D.C.
By Megan Gambino

Events May 15-17: Words, Earth and Aloha, merengue and méringue, and ZooFari

This week, watch a documentary about Hawaiian music, enjoy a performance of Dominican merengue and H...
By Aviva Shen

Transforming War and Trauma Experiences Through the Arts

As a part of the Arts, Military + Healing: A Collaborative Initiative, this week-long event brings v...
By Kelly Smith




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