Description: Happy National Trivia Day! January 4th is the perfect day to break out all those endless bits of knowledge stored in your noggin and share them with others. As for the history of National Trivia Day, it's thought that the creation of the game Trivial Pursuit in 1979 sparked the beginning of our fascination with trivia, and everythinge else is history, as they say. To feed our
Description: Travel with us to the Galapagos and the Marshall Islands as we launch some warm-weather scientific field books, diaries, and correspondence. While it’s not very wintery in Washington D.C., we’re hoping this will offer an escape to those entering the long remaining months of snow, sleet, and ice. And if you’re avoiding the cold, what a better way to spend your time than helping
Description: Reminiscences of Frank A. Taylor, founding director of the National Museum of American History which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.
Description: While digitizing the collection of Smithsonian entomologist Doris Holmes Blake, I discovered a treasure trove of correspondence that sheds light about growing up as a young woman in the mid-20th century and the story of an intimate mother-daughter relationship.
Description: In August 1996, the Smithsonian marked its 150th anniversary with a huge birthday celebration on the National Mall. For its sesquicentennial, a term which this author constantly forgets no matter how many times she looks it up, the Institution threw itself a two-day birthday party, sprinkled with special exhibit tents, concerts, nineteen birthday cakes, a special website, and
Description: Continuing our series on introducing new staff, I'd like to welcome our new Program Assistant for our Institution History Division, Lisa Fthenakis.
Description: Paul Hamilton Allen, botanist, writes in his field book about testing different varieties of corn to determine which is the best for popcorn.