Smithsonian Voices

From the Smithsonian Museums

Meet the Athletes Who Became Champion Inventors

Frustrated on the sporting field, they became “user innovators” when they used their ingenuity to improve the game

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Soldiers in Fur Coats and 'Doggles'

Pocket sundial

How Did a 17th-Century French Sundial End Up Buried in a Field in Indiana?

Robert Abbe's hourglass (NMAH)

Curing Cancer with a Single Gram of Radium

This glass tube, part of the museum’s collection, once contained a sample of helium. Its paper label reads, “HELIUM / SIR W. RAMSAY, K.C.B., LL.D., F.R.S. / THOMAS TRYER & CO., Ltd. / STRATFORD, LONDON, ENGLAND.”

The History of Holding Helium