Business

Levi's 501 blue jeans were granted a patent 150 years ago.

After 150 Years, Levi's 501 Blue Jeans Are Still Kicking

The iconic garment began as a practical piece of clothing for miners to wear during long, difficult shifts

The Luxury Picnic Company in London launched in April 2020 to a rush of orders over social media, and the enthusiasm for the luxury picnic continued to rise.

Picnics Are Back

Gen-Z is spurning restaurants to enjoy hot dates outdoors—echoing the picnic's racy beginnings

Packages of DVDs await shipment at the Netflix headquarters in San Jose, California, in 2002.

After 25 Years, Netflix Ends DVD Rentals

As users move to online streaming, the company will mail its last disc in September

Driver-optional e-tractors promise to increase efficiency while cutting emissions.

Planet Positive

Could Electric Tractors Revolutionize Farming?

The vehicles may change the agricultural landscape by scaling sustainability and increasing efficiency

This Andy Warhol portrait of Marilyn Monroe, which brought in $195 million, was one of many high-profile sales last year. 

The Art Market Is Rebounding—but Only at the Top

Sales increased in 2022, but growth was concentrated largely at the high end of the market

In partnership with the Choctaw Nation, country music star Reba McEntire has opened a dining and entertainment venue in Atoka, Oklahoma, hoping to revitalize the town's economy.

Country Star Reba McEntire Wants to Revitalize a Small Town in Oklahoma

Atoka is now home to Reba's Place, a restaurant that has already attracted half a million guests

A portrait of Minerva Parker Nichols

Women Who Shaped History

History Forgot Minerva Parker Nichols, the Country's First Solo Woman Architect

A new exhibition celebrates the pioneering designer, who opened her own practice in the late 1880s

While Crystal Pepsi and New Coke failed, both PepsiCo and Coca-Cola are still thriving.

The Museum of Failure Celebrates Some of the World's Biggest Flops

Now on view in New York City, the traveling exhibition presents failure as a critical learning opportunity

Metallica band members Robert Trujillo, James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and Kirk Hammett performing in Los Angeles last year

Metallica Just Bought Its Own Vinyl Record Factory

As demand spikes, the heavy metal band has purchased Furnace Record Pressing in Virginia

Vinyl record sales have growing for the past 15 years.

Vinyl Records Outsell CDs for First Time Since 1987

Music lovers in the United States bought 41 million vinyl albums and 33 million CDs in 2022

AMC's announcement comes amid ongoing concerns about movie theaters' financial future.

AMC Theaters Will Start Charging Based on Where You Sit

Coveted spots in the middle of the theater will cost more than front-row seats

Fall/Winter Sears catalog from 1957

Before Folding 30 Years Ago, the Sears Catalog Sold Some Surprising Products

The retail giant’s mail-order business reigned supreme for more than a century, offering everything from quack cures to ready-to-build homes

L to R: Andrew Carnegie, Elizabeth I, Henry VIII and Henry Ford

The Tudor Roots of Modern Billionaires' Philanthropy

The debate over how to manage the wealthy's fortunes after their deaths traces its roots to Henry VIII and Elizabeth I

This year's titles include I Was Better Last Night, Accidental Ecosystem and Winslow Homer: American Passage.

The Best Books of 2022

Smithsonian Scholars Pick Their Favorite Books of 2022

This wide-ranging list offers context for our rapidly changing world

Benjamin J. Burton was a trailblazing entrepreneur once thought to be the wealthiest Black businessman in Rhode Island. His killing on October 6, 1885, polarized the Newport community.

A Gilded Age Tale of Murder and Money

The 1885 death of Black entrepreneur Benjamin J. Burton divided the close-knit community of Newport, Rhode Island

Cotton fields

It's Time for the Fashion Industry to Launch a Farm-to-Closet Movement

For fiber and textile producers, the path to growing sustainable cotton, hemp and flax is complicated

As the North Carolina farmed oyster industry grows, advocates hope to fuel consumer demand and build the industry’s profile with a tourism “trail.”

North Carolina's Oyster Trail Aims to Give the Farmed Shellfish Industry a Boost

In the tradition of wine and ale trails, the state’s new tourism offering highlights restaurants, farms, festivals and markets

An alkaline hydrolysis machine at White Rose Aqua Cremation in Escondido, California

Could Water Cremation Become the New American Way of Death?

A sustainable option for what to do with our remains is trickling into popular consciousness

A family-owned coffee farm in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, Hacienda Tres Ángeles teaches visitors about the coffee making process from “crop-to-cup.”

How Puerto Rico Became One of the Caribbean's Top Agritourism Destinations

Across the island, certified sites invite both travelers and local residents to experience farming practices and traditions firsthand

Royal kombu (aka sugar kelp) harvested from the Netherlands’ first organic seaweed farm enriches and flavors the Dutch Weed Burger’s soy-chip-based patty.

Innovation for Good

Is Seaweed the Next Big Alternative to Meat?

From kelp burgers to bacon of the sea, sustainable food entrepreneurs are innovating to charm hungry omnivores

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