Smithsonian Voices

From the Smithsonian Museums

Saba Ali, right, and Contemporary Muslim Fashions on view at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

How Contemporary Muslim Fashions are Having Their Day in the Sun

The neotropical rattlesnake, Crotalus durissus, inhabits at least 11 South American countries. This species of viper is widespread and thrives in dry climates. (Carla da Silva Guimarães)

National Museum of Natural History

Viper’s DNA Reveals Ancient Map of South America

A black-tailed prairie dog stands near its burrow.

National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Ecologists Dig Prairie Dogs, And You Should Too

A US flag flies over the captured U-858 as it receives a K-ship escort to Lewes, Delaware. (Official US Navy photograph via National Archives and Records Administration.)

National Air and Space Museum

K-Ships vs. U-Boats

Group of red, yellow, orange, green peppers. (Biomuseo)

Smithsonian Affiliations

How A Plant from the Americas Conquered the World

65 Squadron received eight new Spitfires through the sponsorship of the East India Fund in July 1940. These new Spitfires featured de Havilland constant-speed propellers.

National Air and Space Museum

Better Propellers for “The Few”: Desmond Cooke’s Legacy in the Battle of Britain

Gallery view of the Heard Museum exhibition,

Smithsonian Affiliations

Reunited And It Feels So Good

Staff from the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative lead a workshop in Nebraska. (Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative)

Smithsonian Affiliations

How Unprecedented Flooding Brought a Community Together

Navy pilot Edward Lewis “Whitey” Feightner (National Air and Space Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution)

National Air and Space Museum

Remembering Edward Lewis “Whitey” Feightner

People protest against the name of the Washington, D.C., NFL team before a game between Washington and the Minnesota Vikings. Minneapolis, November 2, 2014. (John McDonnell/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

National Museum of the American Indian

Ending the Use of Racist Mascots and Images

Krystal Quiles, “Girlhood (It’s complicated).” Image courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

Office of Academic Appointments and Internships

The Zine Teens Take on Girlhood

The Chaco Canyon chocolate-drinking jars have a distinct shape, with connections to similarly shaped Mayan vessels. After testing distinguishable jar fragments from an excavated trash pile in in the canyon, archaeologists determined all of the drinking jars were used to consume cacao. (A336494, A336499, A336493, James Di Loreto, Smithsonian)

National Museum of Natural History

What Chocolate-Drinking Jars Tell Indigenous Potters Now

Normee Ekoomiak (Inuit, 1948–2009).

National Museum of the American Indian

A Curator’s Fourth of July Message on the Long, Shared Work of Creating a Better America

Smithsonian Geologist Liz Cottrell answers your questions in the National Museum of Natural History’s YouTube series, “The Doctor Is In.” (Smithsonian Institution)

National Museum of Natural History

How Much Pressure is at Earth’s Center and Other Questions From Our Readers

Members of the Kiowa Gourd Clan Ceremony stand as the flag of Spencer “Corky” Sahmaunt is raised. Carnegie, Oklahoma; July 4, 2019. Mr. Sahmaunt served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and was a member of the Kiowa Black Leggings Warrior Society, as well as the Kiowa Gourd Clan.The Kiowa Flag Song, analogous to the Star Spangled Banner, accompanied the flag-raising. (Photo courtesy of Mari Frances Sahmaunt, used with permission)

National Museum of the American Indian

Do American Indians Celebrate the 4th of July?

Staring into the mouth of flooded cave passages on the islands of the Turks and Caicos. Hidden cave pools are illuminated by dive lights and photo flash. (Joost Daniels, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

National Museum of Natural History

Scientists Brave One of the Darkest Places on Earth for Rare Predatory Worm

Photograph of Grayce Uyehara at the Ten Women in Leadership Conference, 1987 (AC1480-0000001, Grayce Uyehara Papers, Archives Center, National Museum of American History)

Office of Academic Appointments and Internships

Because of Grayce Uyehara’s Story: Accessing Asian American Activism in the Archives

Girl, Simone Leigh, Chitra Ganesh,

Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery

Identity and Visibility

One of the entrances to the underground tunnels of the Mittelwerk, as photographed by the U.S. Army after the liberation in April 1945.

National Air and Space Museum

“Wonder Weapons” and Slave Labor

researcher Tremie Gregory climbs high up a tree in Peruvian Amazon rainforest to set up a camera trap

National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

How Scientists Are Uncovering the Secrets of Life in the Rainforest Canopy