Megan Gambino

Megan Gambino

 

Megan Gambino is a senior web editor for Smithsonian magazine.

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Collage of Arts and Sciences: Now In Session

Our newest blog explores the fertile ground where art and science meet

Studying animals can help greatly with the advancement of human medicine.

How Looking to Animals Can Improve Human Medicine

In a new book, UCLA cardiologist Barbara Natterson-Horowitz reminds us that humans are animals too. Now, if only other doctors could think that way

The King himself, promoting “Jailhouse Rock”

Elvis Died 35 Years Ago and the Fans Still Can’t Help Falling in Love With Him

The King is dead. Long live the King

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Want to Get Rich? Win an Olympic Medal for Azerbaijan

How does the United States stand up against other countries in rewarding our Olympic athletes? Not well

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How Would You Rank the Greatest Presidents?

In a new book, political junkie Robert W. Merry shares his three-part test

In 1916, a great white shark attacked five people near the Jersey Shore.

The Shark Attacks That Were the Inspiration for Jaws

One rogue shark. Five victims. A mysterious threat. And the era of the killer great white was born

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Document Deep Dive: A Peek at the 1948 Games in London

Records at the National Archives in London show how organizers cobbled together the 1948 "Austerity" Games

In his new book, Wait: The Art and Science of Delay, Frank Partnoy claims that when faced with a decision, we should assess how long we have to make it, and then wait until the last possible moment to do so.

Why Procrastination is Good for You

In a new book, University of San Diego professor Frank Partnoy argues that the key to success is waiting for the last possible moment to make a decision

According to one evolutionary biologist, the modern family might look very different had some scrawny male hominids not found a clever workaround to having to physically compete against strong alpha males for mates.

Nerd Love and Why It's Better For Everyone

In a new study, evolutionary biologist Sergey Gavrilets makes a fascinating claim for how monogamy took root several million years ago

Michael Pupa is the only living person featured in an exhibit at the National Archives that tells the stories of the men, women and children who struggled to both enter and exit the U.S. from 1880 to the 1950s.

Document Deep Dive: A Holocaust Survivor Finds Hope in America

Michael Pupa's story, from orphan of Nazi Europe to American citizen, is a testament to the freedoms America offers

We Owe Allegiance to No Crown, by John Archibald Woodside. c. 1814

“1812: A Nation Emerges” Opens at the National Portrait Gallery

To commemorate the bicentennial of the War of 1812, the museum debuts a curated collection of portraits and artifacts

Some historians and curators suspect that the empire-style gown, which Dolley Madison owned until her death in 1849, may have been made from the curtains she salvaged from the White House in 1814.

The Legend of Dolley Madison’s Red Velvet Dress

Before the burning of the White House, the First Lady saved some red draperies. Could she have made a dress from them?

The Star Spangled Banner. 1814. Manuscript by Francis Scott Key.

Document Deep Dive: The Musical History of "The Star-Spangled Banner"

Was the national anthem really set to the melody of a drinking tune? Take a closer look at the original manuscript of Francis Scott Key's song

Dr. Leale's bloodstained cuff

Lincoln’s Assassination, From a Doctor’s Perspective

The ocean sunfish is the heaviest bony fish in the world; it can grow more than 10 feet long and pack on a whopping 5,000 pounds, and yet its flat body has no real tail to speak of.

Unraveling the Mysteries of the Ocean Sunfish

Marine biologist Tierney Thys and researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium are learning more about one of the largest jellyfish eaters in the sea

Actress Betty White holds a lemur leaf frog during her tour today at the National Zoo

UPDATE: Betty White Visits the National Zoo

It its collection, the National Museum of American History has a fallout shelter, exhumed from a yard in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

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.

Betty White’s new book details her life of loving animals and working with zoos to help endangered species around the world.

Betty White on Her Love for Animals

Everyone knows the "Golden Girls" actress for her long television career, but she is just as proud of her work with zoos

In his new book, Moral Origins, evolutionary anthropologist Christopher Boehm speculates that human morality emerged along with big game hunting.

How Humans Became Moral Beings

In a new book, anthropologist Christopher Boehm traces the steps our species went through to attain a conscience

The Bureau of Air Commerce's inquiry board was tasked with investigating the cause of the accident.

Document Deep Dive: A Firsthand Account of the Hindenburg Disaster

Frank Ward was a 17-year-old crewman when he saw the infamous disaster, but his memories of that day are still strong, 75 years later

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