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Before Meditation Apps, Listeners Were Hooked on Whale Songs, Rain Sounds and the ‘Scream of the Southern Leopard Frog’

We’ve been listening to the great outdoors from the comfort of our homes since the invention of the portable tape recorder. Can nature sounds drown out the cacophony of modern life?

In 1893, a Spanish princess paid $2,500 (roughly $90,000 today) for a replica of this spun-glass gown.

How Do You Wear a Gown Made of Glass? Marvel at the Eye-Catching History of This Unlikely Fashion Trend

In the 20th century, actresses and royals alike donned delicate dresses woven with spun-glass threads. More recently, celebrities have sported impractically fragile handbags on the red carpet

Christa McAuliffe in her NASA uniform

Christa McAuliffe’s Life Ended in Tragedy on the ‘Challenger’ Shuttle. Here’s How the High School Teacher Was Chosen for the Ill-Fated Flight

NASA’s “Teacher in Space” added joy to many Americans’ lives and increased excitement for the future of spaceflight, though she never reached her destination

Scientists sequenced ancient proteins in a tooth from a prehistoric rhino relative that had been preserved in Canada's High Arctic for up to 24 million years.

Scientists Recover Ancient Proteins From Animal Teeth Up to 24 Million Years Old, Opening Doors to Learning About the Past

Two new papers analyze fossils found in Canada and Kenya, respectively—vastly different environments for the preservation of genetic material

The Smithsonian’s own Etch A Sketch, acquired in 2011, is displayed as a cultural artifact—a symbol of a toy that has shaped generations.

How the Etch A Sketch Etched Itself Into Pop Culture

Sixty-five years after it first hit store shelves, the iconic, red-framed drawing toy continues to enchant kids, artists, and collectors alike

"Mysteries From the Deep: Exploring Underwater Archaeology" features interactive experiences, 3D models and excavated artifacts.

How Underwater Archaeology Brings Secrets to the Surface, From Lost Shipwrecks to Submerged Cities

An immersive new exhibition at the Intrepid Museum in New York City spotlights the science and technology behind the discipline

Guimard's Place de la Bastille Métro entrance was demolished in the 1960s.

The Architect Who Designed the Iconic Entrances to the Paris Métro Is Finally Getting the Attention He Deserves

When Hector Guimard’s subway designs were unveiled in the early 1900s, the public rejected his Art Nouveau style. Soon, a new museum devoted to his work will open in the city

The comet 3I/ATLAS moves against a backdrop of stars. The ATLAS survey telescope in Rio Hurtado, Chile, was the first to report that the object came from interstellar space.

A Rare Interstellar Object Is Blazing Through Our Solar System, Marking Only the Third Cosmic Visitor on Record

The comet follows just two other deep space objects documented by astronomers in 2017 and 2019

Daniela Chávez holds her violin during a mariachi performance

At This Year’s Folklife Festival, the Kids Are All Right

Cultural traditions such as mariachi and hula are being shepherded by a new generation

A 99-million-year-old fly encased in amber shows infection with a prehistoric zombifying fungus.

Rare Amber Fossils Capture ‘Zombie’ Fungus Infecting Insects During a Time When Dinosaurs Still Walked the Earth

An ant and fly from the Cretaceous period offer insights into the history of Ophiocordyceps, the fungal parasite made popular by HBO’s “The Last of Us”

Built in 1855 in the Gothic Revival style, the Smithsonian Castle is undergoing its first major renovation since the late 1960s.

Bricks From a Historic Atlantic City Church Are Getting a Second Life at the Smithsonian Castle

The First Presbyterian Church’s rare sandstone bricks will be transported to Washington, D.C., where they’ll be used to restore a 170-year-old Smithsonian building on the National Mall

The Dragon Man skull, described as Homo longi in 2021, belongs to a Denisovan, according to new research.

Iconic ‘Dragon Man’ Skull Offers First Glimpse of What a Denisovan’s Face Looked Like, New Genetic Studies Suggest

The mysterious ancient humans were only known from fossil fragments. Now, two papers argue a skull uncovered in China belongs to this group, after examining preserved DNA and proteins

John C. Calhoun, Mathew Brady Studio, whole-plate daguerreotype

Take a Look at the ‘Extraordinary’ 19th-Century Portraits Made With Some of the Earliest Methods of Photography

A new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery traces three different 1800s forms of photo-making: daguerreotypes, ambrotypes and tintypes

Bolg amondol raids an oviraptorosaur dinosaur nest in an artistic reconstruction of how the species may have looked and behaved.

A Jar of Fossil Bones Long Stored at a Museum Led Scientists to Discover a Goblin-Like Lizard From 76 Million Years Ago

Fossils described in a new study speak to a previously unknown large-bodied lizard diversity that existed alongside dinosaurs

A long-billed curlew flies over the Great Plains. New research suggests the birds react to danger more quickly when they hear prairie dog alarm calls.

Nesting Birds Eavesdrop on Prairie Dog Alarm Calls to Keep Their Eggs Safe From Grassland Predators

New research suggests long-billed curlews keep an ear out for warnings from prairie dogs in order to hide from predators and protect their nests

Tony Schwartz recording audio outdoors

When Midcentury New York Spoke, This Sound Archivist Listened—and Recorded Every Word

Armed with a tape recorder and open ears, Tony Schwartz turned everyday noise into lasting art. Now, his recordings live on at Smithsonian Folkways, where they continue to inspire new ways of listening to, remembering and understanding the world

An ancient wooden falcon decorated with Egyptian blue alongside one of the newly developed pigments

New Research

Archaeologists Are Recreating the Long-Lost Recipe for Egyptian Blue, the World’s Oldest Known Synthetic Pigment

Created 5,000 years ago, the mysterious color has been found on artworks and artifacts throughout the ancient world. But the pigment’s recipe was eventually lost to history

Scientists determined the most effective method of halting the disease was covering a coral colony with a weighted plastic bag, then injecting a seawater solution that contains the probiotic. They left the colony covered for two hours to allow the probiotic bacteria to colonize the coral.

A Deadly Disease Is Eating Away at Caribbean Corals and Wreaking Havoc on Reefs. Could Probiotics Be the Solution?

New research suggests the probiotic McH1-7 could help stop the spread of stony coral tissue loss disease among wild corals near Fort Lauderdale, Florida

D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson; Charles Thomas Lewis, Alma Thomas' grandnephew; D.C. Councilmember Brooke Pinto; and Susan Talley, founder of Friends of Alma Thomas

Women Who Shaped History

The D.C. Street Where Pioneering Abstract Artist Alma Thomas Lived for 70 Years Has Been Renamed in Her Honor

Thomas worked as an art teacher at the city’s public schools for 35 years before dedicating herself to painting full-time when she was in her 60s

Sarah Grandmother’s Knife, Apsáalooke (Crow), age 10, wearing an elk-tooth dress and sticking out her tongue playfully in Montana, 1910

See the Stunning Archival Photographs That Tell the Stories of Everyday Native Life and Communities

The Archive Center at the National Museum of the American Indian presents a new exhibition that can help “interrupt the romanticized, stereotypical images often shared of Native peoples throughout history”

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