Description: Many of us read, write and send emails every day, but when did it all start at the Smithsonian? In 1980 Smithsonian staff had typewriters and telephones on their desk, with one or two FAX machines per office. The Smithsonian operated a single general purpose computer, the Honeywell mainframe, for all Smithsonian data processing applications and which did not include an email
Description: As a remarkable auction of artifacts of a bygone aristocratic world takes place, we look at a surprising connection between Mary, Duchess of Roxburghe and the Smithsonian’s founding benefactor, James Smithson
Description: The story of the damage context and advanced treatment of a Stivenson Magloire painting broken into fragments by the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
Description: Behind the archivists, technicians, and specialists of the museum field are an abundance of organizations that network ideas, connect professionals, and present new strategies to broaden the impact of museums (American Alliance of Museums, Society of American Archivists, etc.). Many associations focus on specific aspects of this dynamic field and help to push museum practice
Description: Revamping our online postcard exhibit poses the challenge of dating unused postcards. Here’s how I have hunted down clues to solve the mystery!
Description: A look at the unique journey to discovery of father-son Nobel Laureates William Henry and William Lawrence Bragg. The Braggs won the Nobel Prize in Physics 100 years ago.
Description: Long ago and far away, before gray hairs and creaky knees, before history became my passion, I was an undergraduate physics major. Physics seemed fascinating and beautiful, if difficult. Later, after career paths led into history and science policy, I learned that physics, however elegant, did not reside in a cultural vacuum. Its people and discoveries coexisted with
Description: This coming weekend muggles from around the world will be participating in the International Quidditch Association’s World Cup; but did you know that this growing sport may have a Smithsonian connection?
Description: In 1982, the Smithsonian Institution paid homage to the birth of the 32nd president of the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, born January 30, 1882, through six new exhibits.
Description: When curators at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History looked at seven radiometers in storage, they learned the instruments had been at the Smithsonian for nearly one hundred fifty years.