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Arts & Culture / Trends & Traditions

Whimsy runs riot at Harvey Ladew's Maryland estate, from a library with a shelf that swings open to reveal a secret entrance to the gardens to the topiary hedges, featuring a fat man walking a tiny dog, and a rider and hounds in hot pursuit of a fox.

Ladew Topiary Gardens

Clipped hedges and a house full of antiques are the main attractions for this museum north of Baltimore, Maryland

Brad Penka can't say enough about barbed wire's winning of the West.

The Kansas Barbed Wire Museum

With more than 2400 variations of barbed wire, this La Crosse, Kansas, museum has a lot to teach the non-farmers out there

Quack medicine? Inhaling the breath of a duck, according to the exhibit, was once used to cure children of thrush and other disorders of the mouth and throat.

The Museum of Jurassic Technology

A throwback to the private museums of earlier centuries, this Los Angeles spot has a true hodgepodge of natural history artifacts

The surf is always up at this "way cool" California museum, which celebrates the sport and its legends.

The California Surf Museum

Learn about the evolution of the surfboard from 1912 through 2008 in this small gallery in Oceanside, California

Visitors to the missile museum may touch a Titan II, which stands 103 feet tall.

Titan Missile Museum

In Sahuarita, Arizona, in the midst of a retirement community, tourists can touch a Titan II missile, still on its launch pad

The Voodoo Museum "is an entry point for people who are curious, who want to see what's behind this stuff," says anthropologist Martha Ward.

The New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum

Wooden masks, portraits and the occasional human skull mark the collections of this small museum near the French Quarter

A dozen roses from a suitor may be flattering, but they can't compare to the tacit admission that we are in the same league.

The Newlywed Games

“You compete me”

"Drippings are the real secret to the unique flavor of grilled food," Nathan Myhrvold insists. His passion for cross-section photographs led to many a flameout.

Food Like You’ve Never Seen Before

Molecular gastronomist Nathan Myhrvold creates culinary oddities and explores food science in his groundbreaking new anthology

A parent hopes an authentic Roman banquet will bring the Latin language alive for their son.

Ad Nauseam

Recreating a Roman banquet seemed like a good idea

With the rise of information theory, ideas were seen as behaving like organisms, replicating by leaping from brain to brain, interacting to form new ideas and evolving in what the scientist Roger Sperry called "a burstwise advance."

Ask Smithsonian 2017

What Defines a Meme?

Our world is a place where information can behave like human genes and ideas can replicate, mutate and evolve

The rabbit reminded the author of chicken, but more flavorful and tender.

Recipes for Rabbit Fricasse and Raspberry Fool

Learn how to make two dishes from 17th century English cookbooks

The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C. features a collection of recipe books offering a fascinating window into life during Shakespeare's era.

Food From the Age of Shakespeare

By using cookbooks from the 17th century, one intrepid writer attempts to recreate dishes the Bard himself would have eaten

Chuck Norris became an Internet sensation when late night host Conan O'Brien featured clips from "Walker, Texas Ranger" on his show.

Ten Unforgettable Web Memes

Cats and failures highlight this list of the memes that have gone mainstream. Which ones did we miss?

Is the Internet rewiring our brains for the worse?

Turn on, Log in, Wise up

If the internet is dumbing us down, how come I’ve never felt smarter?

Many of the tracks A.F. Van Order frequented were built of wood and banked to enable riders to go faster.

The Early, Deadly Days of Motorcycle Racing

Photographer A.F. Van Order captured the thrills and spills of board-track motorcycle racing in the 1910s

In April of 1971, at the invitation of the Chinese government, a nine-person United States table tennis team visited China for a series of exhibition matches.

Connie Sweeris, Ping-Pong Diplomat

A 1971 table tennis competition between the U.S. and China laid the groundwork for a foreign relations breakthrough

The marriage of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer did not have an auspicious beginning: she laughed when he proposed.

Ten Royal Weddings to Remember

For centuries, British monarchs have had their marriages tested by war, infidelity, politics and diplomatic intrigue

Marquee languages definitely serve their purposes. But when you learn a minority language, like Romansh or Sioux, you become a member of a select group.

Spoken Like a Native

Learning a minority language opens doors—and hearts

More than eight billion, or 13 million pounds, of Sweetheart candies are sold in the six weeks leading up to Valentine's Day.

The History of Sweetheart Candies

For over a century, the Valentine’s Day treats, and the messages printed on them, have matched the tone and jargon of the times

Doris Day, Miles Davis and Devo all share the stage in the form of old vinyl LPs on the author's shelf.

Together, At Last

Doris Day, Miles Davis and Devo share the stage

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