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Articles

Peregrine falcons are found on every continent except Antarctica

Super Bowl

Ten Fun Facts About Falcons, the Birds

As the Atlanta Falcons prepare to play in the Super Bowl, learn about the remarkable raptors behind the name

A view into Flint drinking water pipes, showing various types of iron corrosion and rust.

New Research

Scientists Now Know Exactly How Lead Got Into Flint’s Water

New report points blames corrosion and warns that fixing lead poisoning nationwide will require more work than we hoped

Detail from the stela of Mentuwoser, c. 1955 B.C., shows the steward preparing for a feast.

Atlas of Eating

For Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs, Life Was a Banquet, But the Afterlife Was the Greatest Feast of All

Life after death for the Ancient Egyptian elite included lots, and lots, of food

New England Patriots mascot Pat Patriot high-fives a minuteman after an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Oct. 16, 2014.

Super Bowl

Ten Fun Facts About the Original Patriots

The football team has only been around since 1960, but its mascot’s history stretches back to the country’s foundation

Emmett Till with his mother Mamie Till-Mobley, ca. 1950

What the Director of the African American History Museum Says About the New Emmett Till Revelations

Decades after his death, the wife of his murderer confesses she lied under oath

Researchers are gathering data on when head impacts happen most often.

How Much Should Youth Football Change to Reduce Concussions?

Drop kickoff returns? Cut the number of players? Shrink the field?

A post office converted into a food share station

How the U.S. Postal Service Could Tackle Food Insecurity

A team of Washington University students has a plan: use postal workers to pick up food, deliver it to food banks and even store it in post offices

Giethoorn is often called the "Venice of the Netherlands."

Get Lost in a Maze of Storybook Canals in this Dutch ‘Venice’

The picturesque village of Giethoorn is best navigated by boat (or ice skate)

Italian-Americans were placed under suspicion when the United States entered World War II.

During World War II, the U.S. Saw Italian-Americans as a Threat to Homeland Security

The executive order that forced Japanese-Americans from their homes also put immigrants from Italy under the watchful eye of the government

The lunch counter interactive at the National Museum of African American History and Culture explores key moments in the struggle for Civil Rights.

Commentary

What Death Threats Against My Parents Taught Me About Taking a Stand

Family stories are an ideal way to explore themes like “where have I come from?” and “where am I going?”

President Dwight Eisenhower at the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington on Feb. 2, 1956.

The History of the National Prayer Breakfast

The tradition began with President Eisenhower and has often been a place for the chief executive to talk about his faith

A new study on grey reef sharks turned up a few surprises.

New Research

Ocean Preserves Keep Fishing Boats Away from Grey Reef Sharks

Scientists tracked hundreds of reef sharks to find that massive marine refuges can work—with one caveat

A FVRx participant picks out produce at LA's Central Avenue Farmer's Market.

Take Three Zucchinis and Call Me in the Morning: The Power of Produce Prescriptions

Wholesome Wave’s fruit and vegetable prescription program meets mega-retail, as Target joins the cause

Demonstrators hold portraits of some of the victims of the Montréal Massacre during the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women rally on Parliament Hill in Ottawa December 6, 2011.

The Mass Shooting That Reshaped the Canadian Debate About Guns and Political Identity

The 1989 Montreal Massacre set the stage for discussions about insane killers and targeting women

The Zoo's female bobcat was found on the property of the Zoo.

Ollie the Bobcat Is Back at the Zoo and Off the Streets of Washington, D.C.

National Zoo bobcat ends her city sojourn

Gotcha! A frog's tongue can be five times faster than the blink of a human eye.

New Research

Inside Every Frog’s Mouth Is a Sticky, Grabby Bullet

Investigating frog tongues—and some human ones!—in the name of science

Many Chinese restaurant names with words like golden, fortune, luck and garden are chosen for their auspiciousness—out of the owners’ desire for success.

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Why Do Chinese Restaurants Have Such Similar Names?

Consistency and familiarity is the tradition

Chinese researchers have harnessed the power of deep learning to help doctors identify this rare disease.

New Research

Can Eagle-Eyed Artificial Intelligence Help Prevent Children From Going Blind?

Deep learning pinpoints cataracts more accurately than humans, and could help prevent this form of vision loss in children

The upcoming Museum of the American Revolution.

Nine New Must-See Museums Opening This Year

From the American Revolution to fashion design, these are the new museums to see in 2017

One of 50 rooms in the Colonial Revival mansion in Rochester, New York, where George Eastman lived for 27 years.

Visit the Homes of America’s Greatest Inventors

Within these walls, our nation’s most brilliant tinkerers once ate, slept and imagined

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