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At the Smithsonian

Batang, a female orangutan at the National Zoo, snacks on a pumpkin.

How to Cook Meals for the 2,000 Animals at the National Zoo

Secretary Clough explains how the Zoo’s chefs prepare food for 400 different species

Nitrogen-cooled tissue samples will represent half the life on earth.

Cracking the Code of the Human Genome

What Genomic Research Can Tell Us About the Earth’s Biodiversity

Smithsonian scientists are gathering wildlife tissue samples from around the world to build the largest museum-based repository

As part of the Star Songs project, X-ray emissions from the EX Hydrae system (above, near center)—in which one star pulls matter from its partner—are converted into music.

How to Convert X-Rays From A Distant Star into Blues, Jazz and Classical Music

A vision-impaired scientist, her coworker, and a composer team up to transform light bursts from stars into rhythms and melodies

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The Best Way to See the Smithsonian? On a Segway, of course

The staff tries its hand at Segway-ing…and never wants to stop

Artist Andy Paiko spins glass into a variety of shapes and objects. Hear him speak about his process and see glass spinning in action on Sunday at the Renwick Gallery.

Events May 31-June 2: Tunes and Brews, A Day in Space and Glass Art

This weekend, listen to local bands, meet Buzz Aldrin and learn about the art of glass sculpture

Auguste Bert Vaslav Nijinsky as the Golden Slave from Scheherazade, 1910 gelatin silver print V&A

Bringing the Dazzle Back to the Blockbuster Exhibit

Casting aside today’s fondness for the understated, a curator ponders the importance of “the wow factor”

Your Ticket to the Universe, a new book by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory’s Kimberly Arcane and Megan Watzke, features arresting images of the cosmos captured by the Hubble, Chandra and Spitzer space telescopes.

Look Up! Venus, Jupiter and Mercury Conjoin this Evening

Kimberly Arcand and Megan Watzke, authors of “Your Ticket to the Universe,” point out a few wonders of the cosmos

Painter Thomas Dewing (1851 to 1938) was best known for his tonalist style, which blurred images to create a dream-like effect. See his work in “Sylvan Sounds: Freer, Dewing and Japan,” which opens at the Freer Gallery on Tuesday.

Events May 28-30: Sylvan Sounds, Trivia Night and Joseph Henry

This week, see the art that launched the Freer Gallery, test your knowledge of DC celebrities and meet the Smithsonian’s first secretary

While stationed in the Pacific Theater in the 1940s, Jack Fogarty wrote letters to his best friend’s wife in Queens, NY, and illustrated the envelopes.

A Memorial Day Memory: Love From the Pacific Theater

A 92-year-old WWII vet who recently donated his wartime letters to the National Postal Museum reflects on a friendship that lasted a lifetime

Hirshhorn Board Divided on Future of the Bubble Project; Director Resigns

The split vote by the trustees of the contemporary art museum leads to the resignation of Richard Koshalek

Who is this guy exactly? Find out at Friday’s gallery talk at the Hirshhorn.

Events May 24-26: Jeff Koons, Hawaiian Staycation and Navy Jazz

This weekend, learn more about an iconic piece of art, celebrate the Pacific island and take in some tunes, courtesy the U.S. Navy jazz band

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Say Hello to Bozie, the National Zoo’s New Elephant

She arrives at the National Zoo today from Baton Rouge

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Sixty Years Ago, Edmund Hillary Reached the Top of the World. Hear Him Describe It

Take a look back at an interview with Sir Edmund Hillary 60 years after he became the first man to summit Mount Everest

Despite a recent slump from the economic crisis, Harlem brownstones prices are on the rise again.

How Harlem Put Itself Back on the Map

Historian John Reddick looks at the people behind the neighborhood’s recent reemergence as a thriving destination in the public eye

Ride aboard Space Shuttle Challenger in 1983

How Astronaut Sally Ride Opened Science’s Doors to Women

A panel discusses the first American woman in space’s lasting legacy and the challenges still to be overcome for gender equality in the sciences

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The Design Future of New York as Seen by Urbanist Michael Sorkin

A theorist who can’t stop planning has big ideas for his hometown on sustainability, equity and the right to the city

Learn the history of the Mississippi River and our influence on it in the documentary Troubled Waters: Mississippi River Story, on view at the Anacostia Community Museum this Thursday.

Events May 21-23: A WWII Fighter Pilot’s Tale, Asian Pacific American Culture and the Mississippi River

Attend a talk by a decorated WWII fighter pilot, explore a new American History Museum exhibition and learn how you can help the Mississippi River

“If TIME had a beguiling woman that was going to make the cover, it often went to Boris Chaliapan,” says curator Jim Barber. Marilyn Monroe by Boris Chaliapan. 1956.

Ali, Marilyn, Jackie and Mr. Time: The Cover Artist Who Helped Define a Magazine

Originally from Russia, Boris Chaliapan’s more than 400 covers for the weekly captured the news of the day

Landscape designer Margie Ruddick’s “Urban Green Room,” the first permanent living indoor installation, helped her win a National Design Award last week.

Landscape Designer Margie Ruddick Brings a New Meaning to Green Design

Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award winner Margie Ruddick talks about blending ecology, architecture in first-ever permanent living indoor installation

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Sheila E. On Her Glamorous Life, Upcoming Album and Future Collaborations

The diva on the drums, Sheila E. says she has no plans to slow down as she works on a solo album and autobiography

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