Description: A look at one of the many ways the Smithsonian’s mission to increase and diffuse knowledge brought scientific knowledge to aid the public good.
Description: In the Smithsonian Institution Archives, we each have our favorite stories that are told through materials in our collections. Several times a year we might give "treasures shows" for interns or special visitors, and we pluck items that highlight moments and people in the Institution's history. We pull out a draft of James Smithson's will, letters from the Wright brothers,
Description: [edan-image:id=siris_sic_12123,size=250,left]It is a simple answer really: We counted. From 1978 to 1983, the Smithsonian undertook a comprehensive inventory of its collections. It was the first time the Smithsonian had ever tried to count each object in its collections and it was a massive task. Over five years, staff from every museum and research center spent thousands of
Description: In July 2019, the Hungerfords, descendants of James Smithson’s mother’s family visited the Smithsonian and got to see a new Hungerford document.
Description: The first thing that I thought of when we started discussing our new call for entry, "seeing other worlds," was Google Earth. When Google Earth first came out in 2004, I remember the novelty of being able to zoom into my hometown to point out details to college friends, and having them pan across their own homes and favorite travel spots. We could travel across the globe
Description: To commemorate the Smithsonian’s 175th anniversary on August 10, 2021, the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives is launching a web exhibit that sheds new light on English chemist James Smithson’s gift to found the Smithsonian.