Description: Janet Douglas, Head of Technical Studies at the Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute, studies works of art and archaeology especially inorganic materials such as stone, jade, and metal. #Groundbreaker
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Bus Seats, by Adam Gerard, Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic License"][/caption] I took a stroll at lunch today since it’s that time of year again when the magnolia trees bloom in the Smithsonian Castle’s Enid Haupt Garden. It’s important to catch it before a rain or a big breeze snatches
Description: [caption id="attachment_9678" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="View of the Archives Fair setup, October 22, 2010."][/caption] We are going to be live blogging from the Smithsonian Archives Fair this morning and profiling all of the activities that will be going on today. Stay tuned throughout the day to see what's going on. [caption id="attachment_9680"
Description: Sure, you’ve heard of famed composer John Philip Sousa. But did you know that Sousa composed a march just for the Smithsonian?On November 6, 1854, the “March King” John Philip Sousa was born in Washington, D.C. With roots in Southeast Washington near the Marine Barracks, where his father played trombone in the United States Marine Band, it should have been of no surprise to
Description: The Hirshhorn and neighboring areas are enveloped in polka dots, and we love it. [via Washington Post]A new African American history treasure trove; digitized post-Civil War 'wanted ads' searching for love ones separated by slavery. [via NPR]11 African American inventors (including the Smithsonian's own Regent, Dr. Shirley Jackson) who changed the world. [via Mental Floss]The
Description: [caption id="" align="alignright" width="192" caption="A shot of Leafsnap, a free tree field guide app from the Smithsonian, University of Maryland, and Columbia University."][/caption] Columbia University, the University of Maryland, and the Smithsonian Institution have tapped their experts to help create the world’s first plant identification mobile app using visual search:
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="A visitor to the National Portrait Gallery takes a picture of a friend next to the newly-installed, temporary portrait of comedian Stephen Colbert, by Andrew Deci, Creative Commons: Attribution 2.0."][/caption] To judge from a walk I just took across the Smithsonian Mall, visitors to our Nation’s capitol are doing nothing
Description: The Smithsonian Institution Archives recently acquired the papers of Ursula Marvin, a Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory geologist who has studied meteorites and lunar samples.