Articles

Hosts Emily Martin and Matt Shindell speak with Anisha Abraham and to her actor friend Jo Chim, who has written and directed a 30-minute film called “One Small Visit,” dramatizing a visit the Abraham family (above) enjoyed with the astronaut Neil Armstrong.

A New Neil Armstrong Film Makes One Giant Leap for Kindness

Smithsonian podcasts deliver doses of optimism this month, featuring Bill Nye and a story of a warm welcome from the astronaut’s family

Their shared German language helped Anne Frank, left, and Hannah Goslar forge a friendship as refugees in Amsterdam.

Anne Frank's Childhood Friend Recalls Their Years Before the Holocaust

After fleeing her native Germany, a young Jew found companionship and community as the Nazis approached

Many new digital psychiatry solutions have attracted funding in recent years, and experts have questions about how helpful or harmful they will be.

The Future of Mental Health

Can Digital Psychiatry Really Fill the Mental Health Care Gap?

Thousands of new tools with unproven results are entering the fold to help Americans in need

While river tubing is prominent from coast to coast, some spots stand out for their scenery.

Seven Perfect Summer Spots for Tubing in the United States

From Hawaii to Michigan, these waterways offer slow floats with loads of nature and scenery to take in along the way

The exhibition "Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures," (above, right: A scene from the 2014 Ghanian short film "Afronauts") is on view through March 24, 2024, at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History.

What Is Afrofuturism?

A new exhibition defines how artistry and activism over decades gave rise to the idea and promise of a future that could advance Black life

“I try not to claim that Washington definitely countenanced” the burning of New York City, says historian Benjamin L. Carp. “However, I do think the evidence is suggestive.”

Untold Stories of American History

Did George Washington Order Rebels to Burn New York City in 1776?

A new book points out that the general was happy when the city burned and expressed regret that more of it was not destroyed during the fire

Artist’s rendition of the Rosalind Franklin rover.

The Mission That Could Transform Our Understanding of Mars

A next-generation instrument on a delayed Martian rover may be the key to answering the question of life on the Red Planet

The sale is by far the largest, and certainly most significant, auction of Hawthorne papers in history.

You Could Own Nathaniel Hawthorne's Handwritten Notes on 'The Scarlet Letter'

Enjoy an exclusive preview of an auction of the novelist's papers, which feature rarely seen edits and atrocious penmanship

Farmer Paul Willard, 80, picking corn in his field. He shares the family farmhouse with his brother, Wendell, 74, a cabinetmaker who helps with farm chores, and Wendell’s wife, Elizabeth Cooper, 64, who grew up on a nearby orchard and writes beautiful poetry.

These Intimate Photos Capture a Family Farm’s Bittersweet Final Years

Photographer Ellen Harasimowicz has chronicled New England’s Willard Farm in its final harvests

Silver carp throw themselves into the air at the sound of passing boats.

Seven Wild Ways Scientists Are Trying to Stop Invasive Carp

Researchers and local officials are using unusual methods to keep invasive carp from intruding into the Great Lakes and other waterways

A generation told not to trust anyone over 30 nevertheless adored Vonnegut.

Kurt Vonnegut's Advice to College Graduates Is Still Relevant

To his adoring young fans in the 1960s and '70s, the anti-establishment novelist was the father they wished they had

In 1935, Josephine Herbst was, in the words of biographer Elinor Langer, “a leading lady” of the country’s radical left.

Women Who Shaped History

How Josephine Herbst, 'Leading Lady' of the Left, Chronicled the Rise of Fascism

During the interwar years, the American journalist reported on political unrest in Cuba, Germany and Spain

A Smithsonian staffer carries a horse from the carousel for transport to the restoration facility.

The Smithsonian’s Historic Carousel Undergoes Restoration

The artifact hails from a Baltimore community, where a young African American child became the face of desegregation when she took her ride in 1963

The Luxury Picnic Company in London launched in April 2020 to a rush of orders over social media, and the enthusiasm for the luxury picnic continued to rise.

Picnics Are Back

Gen-Z is spurning restaurants to enjoy hot dates outdoors—echoing the picnic's racy beginnings

In this page from Confessionario En lengua Castellana y Timuquana Con algunos consejos para animar al penitente (Confessions in the Castilian and Timucua Language, with some tips to encourage the penitent.), Spanish is at left and the translation of Timucua is at right.

With Their Knowledge Combined, Two Scholars Are Deciphering a Long-Lost Native Language

A historian and a linguist, working together, revealed new truths about the relationship between Spanish colonizers and the Timucua people

Georgina Schuyler’s campaign to include Emma Lazarus’ poem on the statue was a retort to nativism.

Women Who Shaped History

The Woman Who Saved the Statue of Liberty

Georgina Schuyler campaigned for Emma Lazarus' "The New Colossus" to be inscribed on a plaque in the monument's pedestal

Flint points from Grotte Mandrin in France and Ksar Akil in Lebanon

54,000 Years Ago, Humans and Neanderthals May Have Inhabited Europe Together

Similarities between artifacts found in Lebanon and France suggest Homo sapiens migrants brought tool traditions with them

The eruption of a volcano on Spain’s La Palma island took a toll on nearby fish.

The Gruesome Ways Volcanoes Kill Fish

Whether the eruption is underwater or on land, the creatures don’t have an easy time dealing with nature’s fury

Elizabeth II's 1953 coronation portrait

History of Now

A Not-So-Brief History of British Coronations

Ahead of Charles III’s ceremony, here's what you need to know about the origins and evolution of the centuries-old tradition

New mental health treatments employ psychedelics and virtual reality.

The Future of Mental Health

The Future of Mental Health

A renewed focus on our brain's ability to cope with trauma sparks a special series of stories about the latest advancements in treatments of mental illness

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