Description: Smithsonian Books is publishing a pocket-sized version of "Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours," a 19th-century guide to color for artists, scientists, naturalists, and anthropologists. [via Colossal]The boundary of our known universe has expanded; a population of planets was discovered outside the Milky Way. [via WAPO]The Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery's director, Kim
Description: Starting tomorrow through next week, we will be digging into the life of entomologist Harrison Gray Dyar (1866-1929). Dyar was honorary custodian of the Smithsonian's United States National Museum's collection of Lepidoptera (butterflies, moths, etc.) for more than thirty years. As a scientist, Dyar was noted for his work concerning mosquito-borne diseases. He also developed a
Description: An international community of researchers and practitioners are driving the professional practice of digital preservation towards greater maturity and opening doors to new levels of access.
Description: The Walt Disney designed--and General Electric sponsored--look at America’s figurative and literal electric future, Progressland, wowed visitors at the 1964 World’s Fair--and elements of it exist today in both Disneyland and Disney World theme parks.
Description: Cancer, James T. Patterson observed in The Dread Disease, serves as a powerful metaphor in American culture, where the malady mirrors the “manifestation of social, economic, and ideological divisions” in modern life. In the decades since publication of Patterson’s book, medical research has made great strides in methods of detection and treatment. But the challenge for science
Description: The Smithsonian Institution Archives YouTube channel has a new dedicated playlist for the Science Media Group Collection, which features videos from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory program that was active from 1989 to 2013.
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="424" caption="U.S. National Museum, May 3, 1917, seen from the National Mall, by Unknown photographer, Photographic print, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 45, Box 79, Folder: 10, Neg. SIA2009-2203."][/caption] As part of my work as the historian for the history of the Smithsonian, I’ve been working for the past year on
Description: [edan-image:id=siris_sic_9592,size=200,left]Did you know the Smithsonian was an early adopter of the telephone? In June of 1878, a system of electronic bells and telephones was installed throughout the Smithsonian Castle. The system connected several workrooms and offices to provide instant communications within the building. At that time, there were only 187 telephone lines