Description: Recently I was asked "What are some of the challenges you face in your work as an archivist?" One of the first things that came to mind is the challenge of effectively communicating the Archives’ needs and procedures with the people I serve at the Smithsonian. At the Archives we collect, preserve, and make accessible the records that document the history of the Smithsonian. To
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: On October 27, 2016,12 p.m. EST, we will host a Facebook Live with our archives conservator, Nora Lockshin, and digitization specialist, Kira Sobers. They will give you a peek at the process of taking a historic diary from conservation, to digitization, to transcription by our volunteers on the Transcription Center! We'll keep which diary a secret until the day of, but it just
Description: The Smithsonian Institution Archives has a lot of diaries. And they offer researchers a glimpse into the daily lives of scientists doing their work in the field and sometimes the joy and tragedy of family life.
Description: Did you know that before the Smithsonian existed, there were two other institutions created for the promotion of science and diffusion of knowledge? Exploring the fate of the National Institute for the Promotion of Science.
Description: [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Marey Wheel Photographs of Unidentified Model, with Eadweard Muybridge Notations, by Thomas Eakins, 1884, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden."][/caption] Please be aware that some of the photographs included in links within this post may contain graphic and emotionally disturbing material. Which are more powerful,
Description: Audiovisual archivists come together at the annual meeting of the Association of Moving Image Archivists to create tools for audiovisual conservation.
Description: Each week, the Archives features a woman who has been a groundbreaker at the Smithsonian, past or present, in a series titled Wonderful Women Wednesday.