Muhammad Ali, Abraham Lincoln, and Georgia O'Keeffe are among the Americans listed

Meet the 100 Most Significant Americans of All Time

A new, special issue of Smithsonian magazine attempts the impossible: to list out the most significant people in United States history

Window at Chartres Cathedral.

Why Colors You See in an Art Museum Can’t Be Replicated Today

A look into the history of the pigments used in spectacular art

The Innovative Spirit - OLD

Designing for Seniors and Soldiers, Toward a “Silver” Architecture

Going green is good, but could architects be doing more for two segments of our population?

John Chapman, known as Johnny Appleseed, planted orchards across the frontier.

The Real Johnny Appleseed Brought Apples—and Booze—to the American Frontier

The apples John Chapman brought to the frontier were very different than today’s apples—and they weren’t meant to be eaten

An East German family watches and waits to cross into West Berlin. This photo, like so many others here, I found in a reject box, after many years

Amazing, Rare Photographs of the Berlin Wall Coming Down

Photojournalist Alexandra Avakian traveled to Berlin based on rumor, and she ended up becoming a witness to history

The few remaining scientists at NASA are hard at work on Earth trying to "solve gravity."

Think Big

Would Astronauts Survive an Interstellar Trip Through a Wormhole?

Well, it depends on your definition of “wormhole” …

Matthew McConaughey on a stark landscape. The real star of the film, says Lewis, are the panoramic vistas.

Why “Interstellar” Belongs in the Pantheon of the Best “Realistic” Science Fiction Films

The film follows a well-trodden path, says Smithsonian space historian Cathleen Lewis, who gives it a thumbs up

Bill Nye enthusiastically greets students and faculty at Cal State Fullerton in California earlier this year.

Bill Nye on the Risks of Not Debating With Creationists

Bill Nye the Science Guy has a book out on evolution. Here’s what he has to say

Fred Tomaselli, Migrant Fruit Thugs, 2006.

Art Meets Science

The Threatened Birds in These Artworks Might One Day Go the Way of the Dodo

The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s exhibition explores mankind’s relationship to birds and the natural world

Rub the label to see if the food inside is still good to eat.

A Label You Rub To See If Food Has Expired and Other Finalists for the Dyson Award

There’s also a pen that lets you know when you should reapply your sunscreen and a device called Luke Stairwalker

Karo warriors, Omo Valley, Ethiopia. "Five warriors show off their gorgeous body painting and the ostrich plumes sticking out of their headplates, distinguishing adornments of their culture."

“I’ve Lived the Life of 500 People”: The Photography of Art Wolfe

Earth Is My Witness chronicles Wolfe’s 40-year career as a photographer

Edgar Degas' Study in the Nude of Little Dancer Aged Fourteen (Nude Little Dancer), c. 1878-1881 is the subject of a new show at the Kennedy Center starring Tiler Peck.

The True Story of the Little Ballerina Who Influenced Degas’ “Little Dancer”

The artist’s famous sculpture is both on view and the subject of a new theatrical performance

A hermit thrush perches on a branch in the Pennsylvania woods. Its songs have long been compared to human musical scales.

This Bird’s Songs Share Mathematical Hallmarks With Human Music

The hermit thrush prefers to sing in harmonic series, a fundamental component of human music

A pixelated design by the architecture firm Snøhetta will soon grace Norway's money.

Architects and Designers Make Money for Norway

Literally, that is. Two firms have been selected to design Norway’s new currency.

The installation, "A Room of Her Own: An Altar for My Mother," is on view through January 2015.

Halloween

An Awe-Inspiring Altar Remembers One Latino Artist’s Guiding Spirit

At the American History Museum, an installation reimagines the life story of a Latina artist and writer

Halloween party in Bristol.

Halloween

How Halloween Has Taken Over England

The British have long celebrated Guy Fawkes Day on November 5, but now the October 31 holiday is a lot more appealing.

J.K. Rowling isn't the only author who can't seem to get away from their most famous characters.

Authors Who Couldn’t Quit the Characters That Made Them Famous

Here is a list of famous writers, including J.K. Rowling, who couldn’t resist reconnecting with their creations.

Turn of the century thespians play their roles wearing Roman togas.

Halloween

No Costume? Grab A Sheet And Rock a Toga

Costume designer Mariah Hale explains how to wrap the perfect last-minute toga

A yellow fever epidemic may have planted the seeds of inspiration for Washington Irving's iconic tale of the a headless horseman.

Halloween

What “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” Tells Us About Contagion, Fear and Epidemics

Washington Irving fled New York because of a yellow fever epidemic. Twenty-two years later, his classic story spoke to the chaos of his youth

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Halloween

This Grave Atlas Shows Where to Find the Distinguished Deceased

We know where the bodies are buried … take a virtual tour of world cemeteries that host famous artists and rogues

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