Articles tagged as US Government | Smithsonian Magazine

The rainbow at the top right in the window of the Lansdowne Portrait of George Washington (detail) was an 18th century symbol of God's blessings.

Why America Has a “President” Instead of an “Exalted Highness”

The title just used to mean someone who presided over a meeting

January 18, 2017

From people stealing baby bison and Yosemite trademarks to epic blooms in Death Valley, 2016 has been an eventful centennial year for the NPS

December 30, 2016

Harold Israel, left, and Homer Cummings, right, were linked for life.

The Suspect, the Prosecutor, and the Unlikely Bond They Forged

New evidence shows that Homer Cummings, who would later be FDR’s attorney general, rescued an innocent man accused of murder

January 2017

What is the agency weighing in on the incoming administrations potential conflicts of interest?

December 2, 2016

100 years ago, Jeannette Rankin became the first woman elected to Congress

November 7, 2016

Faithkeeper of the Turtle Clan of the Onondaga Nation of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy Oren Lyons, Ph.D., (right), and The Tadodaho of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy Chief Sidney Hill, examine a treaty at the National Museum of the American Indian

That adds to 95 cases the U.S. has settled with native groups since 2012

September 29, 2016

Image captured from the 1948 Republican National Convention.

Cool Finds

Watch Historic Footage of Seven Consequential (and Cringeworthy) Convention Moments

These tidbits of political theater past must be seen to be believed

July 18, 2016

The House of Representatives' rostrum has been the site of brawls, debates and sit-ins.

There’s more to the House floor than meets the eye

June 23, 2016

Andrew Brennen talks with a student, while on his tour of America with an organization called Student Voice.

Andrew Brennen Believes Education Reform Begins With a Simple Question

The UNC-Chapel Hill sophomore has been traveling the country asking students, “What would you change about your school?”

June 13, 2016

Christa McAuliffe received a preview of microgravity during a special flight aboard NASA's KC-135 "zero gravity" aircraft. She was to be the first in a series of civilians in space

The Challenger Disaster Put an End to NASA’s Plan to Send Civilians Into Space

On the 30th anniversary of the space shuttle tragedy, a look back at an ambitious plan to put the rest of us into orbit

January 27, 2016

Part of the Capitol Christmas Tree's splendor comes from marine debris collected along the Alaska coast.

Cool Finds

The Capitol’s Christmas Tree Is (Partially) Made of Trash

Marine debris bedecks a 74-foot tree from Alaska

December 17, 2015

Ask Smithsonian 2017

When Did the Vice Presidency Stop Going to the 2nd Place Winner and More Questions From Our Readers

Also up for discussion—why are oceans seawater and not freshwater?

December 2015

Cool Finds

How the U.S. Census Defines Race

The history of America’s racial identity, as told by 225 years of population data

November 9, 2015

A bowl done in a style first seen around A.D. 1100 has “acid blooms” on its interior—imperfections suggesting that someone used modern soaps to clean the bowl up, possibly to fetch a higher price on the black market.

An Exclusive Look at the Greatest Haul of Native American Artifacts, Ever

In a warehouse in Utah, federal agents are storing tens of thousands of looted objects recovered in a massive sting

November 2015

The black-footed ferret's tale of near-extinction is just one of many stories of endangered animals.

Age of Humans

How We Decide Which Animals Become Endangered

It wasn’t too long ago that the idea of “endangered animals” didn’t even exist.

October 14, 2015

Being officially dead because of a typo makes living life difficult

June 10, 2015

Peanut butter, known to the National Institute of Standards and Technology as SRM 2387.

Cool Finds

The Weird World of Standard Reference Materials, From Peanut Butter to Whale Blubber

Get the full story behind a $761 jar of peanut butter and other exorbitantly priced everyday objects used by scientists

February 24, 2015

When America Invested in Infrastructure, These Beautiful Landmarks Were the Result

Explore eight of the Works Progress Administration’s most impressive structures.

December 10, 2014

New funding is being suspended, and anyone who’s already been paid to do such work is being asked to stop.

October 20, 2014

Cool Finds

What Should the Price of Visiting Wilderness Be?

If passed, HR 5204 could introduce widespread fees for entering formerly free public lands

September 29, 2014