Results for "Science Service"
The Best-Laid Plans of Mice and Astronomers Often Go Awry: The 1901 Sumatra Eclipse Expedition
- Date: August 17, 2017
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: Astronomers travel far and wide to see solar eclipses but sometimes their best laid plans don’t work out..
"The whole Smithsonian was like one big family . . . "
- Date: March 12, 2013
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: For forty years, Miss Helena Weiss kept the Smithsonian running smoothly as a clerk, stenographer, director of the Office of Correspondence and Documents, and Registrar. When she retired, her position was divided into seven separate jobs.
- Blog Post
Diminutive but Determined: Mary Jane Rathbun
- Date: March 6, 2014
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: Mary Jane Rathbun, diminutive but determined, was the first full time female curator at the Smithsonian.
- Blog Post
Protecting Wildlife in Our National Parks: William Temple Hornaday and the American Bison
- Date: August 17, 2011
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: August is National Parks Month, a time to celebrate the resources that have been preserved across the country for the public. In August of 1916, the US Congress created the National Park Service which today provides access to unparalleled natural beauty and treasured sites in American history.
How did the Smithsonian Respond to the 1918 Pandemic?
- Date: June 11, 2020
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: Masks and endless sanitizing again? What has the Smithsonian done during past pandemics? We’ll look back to the public health emergency in 1918.
The Smithsonian Goes Telephonic in 1878!
- Date: June 28, 2018
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- 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
The Smithsonian Seismological Institute
- Date: August 26, 2014
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: The Smithsonian proposed creating a Seismological Institute after the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.
- Blog Post
Dependent on the Kindness of Strangers: Smithsonian Volunteers
- Date: April 19, 2018
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: [edan-image:id=siris_sic_12022,size=250,left]Volunteers have been an integral part of the Smithsonian since its earliest years. The Institution has always been “dependent on the kindness of strangers.” Volunteers make tremendous contributions to Smithsonian operations every day in virtually every corner of the globe. The Smithsonian's paid staff of some 6,000 employees is
“Muse of Scientific Literature”: Leila Forbes Clark
- Date: March 13, 2018
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: In honor of Women’s History Month and the 50th anniversary of Smithsonian Libraries, let’s learn about Leila Gay Forbes Clark (1887-1964), the second woman to direct the Smithsonian’s library. She was beloved by the researchers she worked with (really loved in one case….) and began the restructuring of the many small libraries across the Smithsonian.
- Blog Post
Folklife Festival 2011: Smithsonian-Peace Corps Environmental Program
- Date: July 7, 2011
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: The Smithsonian Folklife Festival will be held from June 30 to July 4 and July 7 to 11, 2011 on the National Mall. Read more about the history of the Folklife Festival here. At the Smithsonian Folklife Festival this year, the Peace Corps is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary. On March 1, 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed an Executive Order authorizing the Peace Corps to
- Blog Post
“Smithsonian Station”: The Metro Station that Almost Wasn’t
- Date: July 5, 2016
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: A station for the Metro, Washington DC’s subway system, was eliminated from early plans but protest by the Smithsonian ensured it would be built.
Happy 100th Birthday, S. Dillon Ripley
- Date: September 20, 2013
- Creator: Pamela M. Henson
- Description: Celebrate the life of the eighth Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley, who was born on September 20, 1913, 100 years ago today!