American History
Even More Evidence That Football Causes Brain Injury
A new study found football players were nearly four times more likely to have died from Alzheimer's disease or Lou Gehrig's disease
September 06, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Happy 100th Birthday to John Cage, Who Made a Lot of People Angry
Sixty years ago, John Cage put on a performance of a piece called 4'33" or "four minutes, thirty-three seconds." Today would have been his birthday
September 05, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Cold War–Era Science Shows Beer Will Survive a Nuclear Apocalypse
In 1955, scientists dropped nukes on beer and soda to see how they held up
September 05, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
Slept Through Physics? Maybe It Doesn’t Matter
Does sleeping through physics - or math class for that matter - really make a difference to your life?
September 05, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Crazy Lies Haters Threw at Rachel Carson
Silent Spring turns 50 this month, but Rachel Carson's ecological game-changer was not always the beloved green bible it is today
September 04, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Events September 4-6: Quilting Guilds, John Cage at 100 and Stitch Sessions
This week, learn from a quilting guild, celebrate composer John Cage's avant-garde legacy and stitch a little
September 04, 2012 |
By Leah Binkovitz
Labor Day’s Secret Society Connections
Add Labor Day to the vaulted hall of things concocted by secret societies, alongside Madonna's Superbowl performance and Pancho Villa's stolen skull
September 03, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Tracking Walmart’s Breakneck Expansion Across the U.S.
From humble beginnings in 1962, today the Walmart empire includes 8,500 stores in 15 countries, with 3,898 proudly hosted on U.S. soil
August 31, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Thomas Edison a.k.a. The Movie Mogul Who Started LOLcats
Lightbulbs are nice, but it was Edison's kinetoscope 115 years ago today that brought us Hollywood and boxing cats
August 31, 2012 |
By Leah Binkovitz
The Long History of Americans Debating Empty Chairs
The history of debating empty chairs stretches back to at least 1924
August 31, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
What Do American History Museum Curators Collect at the Republican National Convention?
Follow the Smithsonian experts as they gather memorabilia in Tampa
August 30, 2012 |
By Tom Frail
50-Year Mystery Surrounding Death of Two Sisters Solved
Doctors discover the genetic cause of an extremely rare, almost always fatal condition called Winchester syndrome
August 30, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Neil Armstrong’s Previously Unheard Speech, Recorded One Year Ago
Recorded surreptitiously, the 43 minute-long speech captures Armstrong's presentation one year prior to his passing
August 30, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
Watch This Decades-Old WWII Bomb Go Boom
A World War II bomb was discovered by workers the on the site of an old bar that was being demolished, and then blown up the next day
August 30, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Here’s How Hurricane Naming Works
Who gets to chose hurricane names, and how do they do it?
August 29, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Playing Video Games At Home Turns 40
The Magnavox Odyssey went on sale 40 years ago, sparking the home video game revolution
August 29, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
PHOTOS: Paraphernalia from the Political Campaigns of Yore
The great American pastime of politics and posturing has deep roots, but have we become more or less civil?
August 28, 2012 |
By Jeanie Riess
Relive the 1940s Through These Old Color Photographs
The Library of Congress has more than 1600 color photos of WWII-era America
August 28, 2012 |
By Colin Schultz
Five Epic Patent Wars That Don’t Involve Apple
The recent Apple patent decision was a big one, but here are some historical patent wars you might not have heard of
August 27, 2012 |
By Rose Eveleth
Cadillacs, 110 Years and Going…Biking?
A staple in the collections, Cadillac marks its 110-year anniversary today as the company looks to branch out and go biking
August 22, 2012 |
By Leah Binkovitz
