Articles

The Essentials: Charles Dickens

What are the must-read books written by and about the famed British author?

January 17, 2012

At Long Last, King Memorialized on the Mall

In honor of MLK day, the president of the Martin Luther King Memorial Foundation speaks about seeing the project to fruition

January 13, 2012

Dinosaurs of a Feather

Some researchers insist that birds are not dinosaurs, but do they have any evidence?

January 13, 2012

Money is in the Eye of the Beholder

A new study shows that our perceptions of wealth don’t always match up with reality

January 13, 2012

A Closer Look at What You Eat

A photographer uses a scanning electron microscope to zoom in on everyday foods—and makes art

January 13, 2012

Weekend Events January 13-15: Martin Luther King Jr’s Birthday, To the Mountaintop and Native Dance

January 13, 2012

Trade Your Trouble for a Bubble

Sightseeing across the country in an atomic-powered “pleasure ball”

January 13, 2012

Can This Invention Save Cameras?

With the Lytro camera, you no longer have to bother with focusing an image. Plus, your photos become interactive

January 12, 2012

The Dinosaurs That Never Were

If the non-avian dinosaurs hadn’t died out 65 million years ago, what would they look like today?

January 12, 2012

New Zealand and Other Travel Locales That Will Break the Bank

New Zealand is worth visiting, but I’m not sure how long I can keep traveling here while claiming to be “on the cheap”

January 12, 2012

When Did the Girl Scouts Start Selling Cookies?

What are your favorite varieties, and what do they say about you? And did you sell the cookies as a kid?

January 12, 2012

How the Ubermensch Got Into Harvard

Friedrich Nietzsche philosophizes on where luck and skill come into play

January 12, 2012

Coming Attractions for 2012: The Great Gatsby in 3D!!

Films both new and old that we look forward to in the coming year

January 12, 2012

Introducing Ask Smithsonian

Now, with ‘Ask Smithsonian,’ the magazine gives you the chance to ask your own questions—and have them answered by Smithsonian experts

January 12, 2012

Meet the Contenders for Earliest Modern Human

Scientists have several candidates for the title of earliest Homo sapiens

January 11, 2012

The Way of the Dinosaur

“Going the way of the dinosaur” is a popular phrase, but one drawn from bizarre 20th century ideas that dinosaurs were due for an extinction

January 11, 2012

A Q&A with Physicist and Author Lawrence Krauss

A renowned theoretical physicist comes to speak at the Natural History Museum

January 11, 2012

Tasting Shackleton’s Whisky

The replication of a historic whisky might reflect merely our fascination with artificial artifacts—-but the whisky yielded a surprise

January 11, 2012

Could the Death Star Destroy a Planet?

Students in England concluded that the Star Wars space station could easily have destroyed an Earth-like planet

January 11, 2012

Moving Sidewalks Before The Jetsons

The public’s fascination with the concept of “movable pavement” extends back more than 130 years

January 11, 2012