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National Museum of Natural History

Smithsonian Voices

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To Understand How Species Evolve, Scientists Flock to Where Charismatic Birds Intermingle

For decades, researchers have explored a region in Panama that serves as a “manakin melting pot”

Jack Tamisiea | November 21, 2024
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Scientists at the National Museum of Natural History Discover Two Squirrel Species Long Obscured by Mistaken Identities

Using a variety of techniques, the researchers realized that two subspecies of squirrels from Southeast Asia were actually unique species in their own right

Jack Tamisiea | November 13, 2024
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The Murder Mystery Linking a Bird Specimen at the National Museum of Natural History to the Mysterious Death of an Arctic Explorer

In 1871, a naturalist aboard the U.S.S. Polaris collected scientific specimens — and possibly poisoned the ship’s captain

Chihiro Kai | October 31, 2024
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Meet the Scientist Decoding Human History in South America Through Giant Ground Sloth Fossils

Thaís Pansani examines the marks humans left on megafauna bones to determine when people arrived in South America and how they interacted with giant mammals

Chihiro Kai | October 29, 2024
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The Name Game: A 'Celebrity' Cephalopod Specimen Correctly Identified More Than 80 Years After Discovery

Collected by the iconic American writer John Steinbeck, the octopus has received a number of scientific monikers

Chihiro Kai | October 22, 2024
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Our Planet On the Big Screen: New Museum Exhibition Explores Ever-Changing Earth from Space and on the Ground

The Smithsonian partners with NASA to present the Earth Information Center, a larger-than-life display that visualizes interconnected changes on the planet

Jack Tamisiea | October 17, 2024
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Fearsome Flies: Meet the Scientist Studying the Top Predators in the Insect World

Entomologist Torsten Dikow, a leading expert on assassin flies, is working to connect a global community of researchers through the democratization of insect science

Emma Saaty | September 30, 2024
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Pawpaw-Palooza: The Inside Scoop on North America’s Taste of the Tropics

The strange plant is ingrained in American history and well-represented in the museum’s herbarium and gardens

Jack Tamisiea | September 26, 2024
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Fetching Fossils and Unwrapping Mannequins: Here’s What Happens When a Museum Exhibition Closes

In the wrap-up of “Objects of Wonder,” hundreds of the museum’s most treasured specimens are returning to the collection

Jack Tamisiea | September 19, 2024
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Across the Smithsonian, Researchers are Working Together to Save Virginia’s Birds

This National Virginia Day, learn how Smithsonian scientists are using historic collections and current conservation practices to bring back declining populations of grassland birds

Emma Saaty | September 13, 2024
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Searching for Earth's Oldest Rocks: Follow a Smithsonian Expedition to the Remote Northwest Territories

High in the Canadian wilderness, Smithsonian scientists search for ancient minerals that could explain the origins of the continents, oceans and life on Earth

Emma Saaty | September 12, 2024
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This Fall at the Museum: Fossils, Fossils and More Fossils!

There are also events about mushrooms, bats and much more at the National Museum of Natural History in September and October

Jack Tamisiea | August 29, 2024
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Check Out These Wondrous Objects on Display Before They Return to the Museum’s Collection

From whale earwax to a shimmering ammonite shell, the “Objects of Wonder” exhibition spotlights some of the museum’s most intriguing specimens

Jack Tamisiea | August 6, 2024
A slab of multicolored, sedimentary rock is pictured with vibrant trees and water surrounding it.

Meet the Scientist Venturing to Remote Canada in Search of the Earth’s Oldest Rocks

Smithsonian researcher Wriju Chowdhury is part of an expedition searching for 4-billion-year-old crystals that could uncover the secrets behind Earth’s early history

Emma Saaty | August 1, 2024
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Inclusive Innovations: An Accessible Natural History Experience

To celebrate the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, discover four creative museum experiences that enhance accessibility for all visitors

Emma Saaty | July 30, 2024
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Through the Fossil Grapevine: Museum Scientist Helps Untangle How the Fruit Thrived in the Aftermath of Extinction

The batch of newly-described fossils includes a species named after Smithsonian botanist Jun Wen

Jack Tamisiea | July 23, 2024
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Tiny Tornado Chasers: Why Rare Songbirds Rely on Destructive Winds

A new Smithsonian paper posits that Swainson’s warblers have tornadoes to thank for ideal habitats

Jack Tamisiea | July 11, 2024
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How the Structure of a Mammoth Meteorite Reveals the Rough and Tumble Nature of the Asteroid Belt

The Old Woman Meteorite is still revealing insights into outer space decades after its discovery

Emily Driehaus | July 2, 2024
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The ‘Ultimate Honor’: Why a Colorful Mineral Honors the Smithsonian‘s Namesake

Smithsonite honors the scientific legacy of mineralogist James Smithson

Jack Tamisiea | June 18, 2024
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Meet the Museum Scientist Who Sails the Ocean and Sifts Through Seafood Markets to Identify Fishes

From field sites in Vietnam and the coast of West Africa to her laboratory in Washington, D.C., Kate Bemis applies her knowledge of fish diversity to support sustainable fisheries

Naomi Greenberg | June 10, 2024
Categories
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  • Anthropology (56)
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  • Earth BioGenome Project (1)
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  • Entomology (42)
  • Exhibitions (40)
  • Invertebrate Zoology (51)
  • Laboratories of Analytical Biology (2)
  • Mineral Sciences (52)
  • Office of the Director (4)
  • Paleobiology (77)
  • Smithsonian Marine Station - Fort Pierce (10)
  • Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (1)
  • Specimen Spotlight (13)
  • Vertebrate Zoology (86)
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