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Traditional knowledge and innovation in Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems

In this workshop, we will explore the role of innovation in supporting traditional practices that conserve agricultural heritage systems.  

Traditional agricultural practices, often rooted in the local communities and the knowledge [...]




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FAO GLOBEFISH Celebrates 40 years of impact on global fisheries and aquaculture trade

For the past four decades, FAO GLOBEFISH has been a cornerstone of global fisheries and aquaculture market analysis. Since its inception in 1984, the project has provided [...]




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Three new sites recognized as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS)

Indonesia and Sao Tome and Principe receive their first designations from FAO along with Austria’s second system




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Pioneering Video Artist Peter Campus Presents His Version of the Star-Spangled Banner




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Bobbing to the Backstreet Boys

Snowball the cockatoo bobs his head and lifts his leg to the beats of the Backstreet Boys' "Everbody"




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Aerial Acrobatics of the Praying Mantis

High-speed video captures the unique ability of a leaping praying mantis to control its spin in mid-air and precisely land on a target.




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The Architect of Notre Dame's Astounding Football Success

Under exuberant coach, Knute Rockne, Notre Dame set the standards for football excellence. But off the field, the Fighting Irish was a PR sensation, capturing the hearts of a riveted nation.




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Charles Babbage's Difference Machine No. 2

The first computer is thought to be the invention of a 19th century mathematician




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This Bandit-Faced Dino Hid From Predators Using Multiple Types of Camouflage

Credit: David Marshall, University of Bristol




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Sebastian Thrun on the Future of Learning

Why the American Ingenuity Award winner believes higher education should be a basic human right




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Matt Mahurin's Vision of the Star-Spangled Banner




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Seeing Baltimore Through Aubrey Bodine's Lens

A. Aubrey Bodine's daughter reflects on her father's trained eye toward capturing the people of Charm City. Read more at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/photographing-baltimores-working-class-9338157/




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Baby Talk From a Rhesus Macaque

Watch how a mother rhesus makes funny faces to her infant child to grab its attention




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People Aren't All Bad




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SmartNews: Making Gasoline from Bacteria

Researchers from South Korea have discovered a unconventional way to produce gasoline.




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Saving a Nest of Baby Rabbits Mauled by a Dog

After a dog digs up a rabbit's nest and leaves a litter exposed, the team at the Toronto Wildlife Center must rehabilitate the malnourished babies before they can be released back into the wild.




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Hooverball

Credit: Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum




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Ask Smithsonian: What’s a Stone Baby?

Prepare to be amazed.




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Flipping Out Over Pinball

David Silverman has collected more than 800 pinball machines to preserve their history and create a national pinball museum.




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To the Moon and Back: Apollo 11 Celebrates its 40th Anniversary

Sending a man to the moon required an overhaul of the entire space program, involving more powerful rockets and new spacecraft (Video: Lauren Hogan, Beth Py-Lieberman, Brian Wolly)




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Baker Family Films: Austria, Family and Hitler




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Civil War Ballooning

The story of how Thaddeus Lowe reinvented reconnaissance at the encouragement of President Lincoln.




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Watch Humpback Whales Fish With Bubble Nets

Courtesy of GoPro




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Underwater Archaeology in Pensacola Bay

Researchers from the University of West Florida are slowly uncovering the remains of a 16th-century shipwreck of a Spanish galleon in the shallow, murky waters near Pensacola




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Ask Smithsonian: Why Do Bugs Die on Their Backs?

The science behind going belly up




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Bavaria's Beer Gardens

Some people may relax and read a newspaper with a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, but in south Germany, they do it with a beer.




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The Battle of the Greasy Grass

Each year, the Lakota of the Great Plains commemorate their victory over the United States army at the Battle of the Greasy Grass, better known in American history as the Battle of Little Bighorn Photographs by Aaron Huey Directed and Edited by Kristin Moore




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Rare Baby Crocs Born at the National Zoo

More on the crocs at Smithsonian.com: http://j.mp/SWhbxZ The two Cuban crocodiles are the first for the zoo since 1988.




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Civil War (Joan Baez), With Dance Performance By Djassi Johnson and Kevin Boseman

Part of the visual album of Joan Baez' "Whistle Down the Wind," this cover of Joe Henry's "Civil War" was directed by New York University's Deborah Willis




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The Inaugural House Band

The Marine Band, having played at nearly every presidential swearing-in ceremony since Thomas Jefferson's in 1801, readies for Barack Obama's inauguration (Meredith Bragg). Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Inauguration-2009.html




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A Brief History of Book Banning in America

Book-banning might seem like a relic of less enlightened times, but the practice is back in a big way. The American Library Association reports (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/american-library-association-names-2022s-most-banned-books-180982048/) that 2022 saw more attempts to have books removed from public libraries than in any prior year this century — indeed, it documented more than twice as many attempted bans in 2022 than in 2021. In schools, attempts to keep certain books out of the hands of students have been even more aggressive and draconian. What’s new about these efforts is the subject that binds the most-challenged titles: Most of them address themes of LGBT+ identity or gender expression. In this episode, we talk with journalist Colleen Connolly about Thomas Morton’s New English Canaan, the first book ever to be suppressed in North America. What did the Puritans find so threatening about it, and how has this book echoed through subsequent centuries? Then we’re joined by Dr. Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress, for a wide-ranging conversation about the history of book bans in the United States, how a resurgent wave of book bans in many states differs from those of prior eras, and why organized attempts to prevent specific people from reading specific books usually fail. A transcript of this episode can be found here (http://smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-banned-books-in-america-180983011) . Read Colleen’s Smithsonian story about New English Canaan here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-americas-first-banned-book-survived-and-became-an-anti-authoritarian-icon-180982971/) . Find prior episodes of our show here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/podcast/) . There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions. From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly. From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Terence Bernardo, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales. Fact-checking by Stephanie Abramson. Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz. Music by APM Music.




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The Girl Who Struck Out Babe Ruth

On April 2, 1931, 17-year-old Jackie Mitchell struck out the New York Yankees slugger.




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Thiebaud on Being a Pop Artist

The artist discusses where his work fits among the many genres of painting




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Rare Footage of Duke Ellington Playing Baseball

[Harry Carney Home Movies], Ruth Ellington Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History




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The Rhythms of Bali Gamelan Music

Read more at http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2008/12/music-of-the-tropics-balinese-drum-troupe-performs-at-the-sackler/ Bells and gongs are the sounds behind Gamelan music, which has different variants from one Indonesian island to the next.




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America's Backyard

Take a tour of the National Mall, past and present (Kenneth R. Fletcher). Read more at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/a-brief-history-of-pierre-lenfant-and-washington-dc-39487784/




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Ask Smithsonian: Do Cannibals Still Exist?

Hungry for an answer? Host, Eric Schulze, dishes one up in less than a minute.




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Before Beyoncé and Taylor Swift Ran the World, There Was Joan Baez

Taylor Swift and Beyoncé have achieved a degree of power in the music industry that singer/songwriters of earlier eras like Joan Baez—as the folk icon tells us—never even contemplated. Six decades ago, Baez was part of a folk revival that regarded music not merely as entertainment but as a vessel for political engagement and social change. In the documentary Joan Baez: I Am a Noise, the now-83-year-old musician and activist reflects on her career and legacy. Smithsonian senior editor Jennie Rothenberg Gritz interviewed Baez about the film and about the shifting intersection of art and activism. We present excerpts from that conversation in this episode. Then, veteran music critic Evelyn McDonnell discusses how the political dimensions of pop music have changed since Baez’s era, and what it means that many fans now look Beyoncé and Taylor Swift not just for great music, but for comment on the state of the world. Clips from Joan Baez: I Am a Noise in this episode are used with permission from Magnolia Pictures & Mead Street Films. Learn more about that film here (https://www.magpictures.com/joanbaez/) . Evelyn McDonnell’s latest book is The World According to Joan Didion (https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-world-according-to-joan-didion-evelyn-mcdonnell?variant=41001679487010) . You can learn more about Evelyn and her work at her site, Populism (https://populismblog.wordpress.com/about-2/) . Find prior episodes of our show here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/podcast/) . There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions. From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly. From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Rye Dorsey, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales. Fact-checking by Stephanie Abramson. Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz. Music by APM Music.




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Bringing Back the Olympia Oysters

Oysters were Mark Twain's favorite food: http://j.mp/LCWpx8 What the tiny shellfish lacks in size, it makes up for in taste. Meet the farmers who are counting on the Olympia's success




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Meet the WWII Battalion of Black Women That Inspired an Army Base’s New Name

The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion was the only unit comprised entirely of Black women to have been deployed overseas during World War II, and it had served a critical function: clearing the backlog of mail that marked the only line of communication between American soldiers in Europe and their loved ones back home. In this episode, we speak with retired Army Colonel Edna Cummings, who made it her business to get the 6888 their belated recognition, and with Smithsonian magazine senior writer Jennie Rothenberg Gritz, who wrote about Col. Cummings' quest (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-all-black-female-WWII-unit-saved-morale-battlefield-180981540/) for the March 2023 issue of Smithsonian. NOTE: In the interval since we recorded our interview with Col. Cummings, another veteran from the 6888 has died. With the passing of Crescencia J. Garcia last month at the age of 103, there are now five women who served in the 6888 during World War II who remain alive. Learn more about the women of the 6888th Central Postal Battalion at the Women of the 6888th site (https://www.womenofthe6888th.org/) . Find prior episodes of our show here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/podcast/) . There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions. From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly. From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Terence Bernardo, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales. Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz. Music by APM Music.




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The Shorebirds of Delaware Bay

Staff writer Abigail Tucker recounts the scene of a beach littered with horseshoe crabs and a sky filled with red knots. Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Return-of-the-Sandpiper.html




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He's (Not) Just Ken: The True History of Barbie’s Beau

He is (K)enough… or is he? With filmmaker Greta Gerwig's Barbie breaking box-office records—and devoting much of its story to Ken's existential crisis—we wondered if there's any more to Barbie's perennial plus-one. Journalist and lifelong Barbie fan Emily Tamkin talks us through Ken’s development, or lack thereof, over the decades. Read Emily’s “A Cultural History of Barbie,” and Chris’s brief Ken history “Not Your Average Beau,” here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/cultural-history-barbie-180982115/) or in the June 2023 issue of Smithsonian. Emily is the author of The Influence of Soros: Politics, Power, and the Struggle for an Open Society and Bad Jews: A History of American Jewish Politics and Identities. Learn more about Emily and her work here (https://www.emilytamkin.com/) , or subscribe to her Substack newsletter (https://emilyctamkin.substack.com/) . There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions. From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly. From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Genevieve Sponsler, Adriana Rozas Rivera, Terence Bernardo, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales. Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz. Music by APM Music.




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The Wild Story of What Happened to Pablo Escobar’s Hungry, Hungry Hippos

Four decades ago, Pablo Escobar brought to his Medellín hideaway four hippopotamuses, the centerpieces of a menagerie that included llamas, cheetahs, lions, tigers, ostriches and other exotic fauna. After Colombian police shot Escobar dead in December 1993, veterinarians removed the animals—except the hippos, which were deemed too dangerous to approach. The hippos fled to the nearby Magdalena River and multiplied.  Today, the descendants of Escobar’s hippos are believed to number nearly 200. Their uncontrolled growth threatens the region’s fragile waterways. Smithsonian contributor Joshua Hammer joins us to recount this strange history and explain why Colombian conservationists have embarked upon an unusual program to sterilize these hippos in the wild via “invasive surgical castration,” a procedure that is, as he has written (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/pablo-escobar-abandoned-hippos-wreaking-havoc-colombian-jungle-180984494/) for Smithsonian magazine, “medically complicated, expensive and sometimes dangerous for hippos as well as for the people performing it.” Then, ecologist Rebecca Lewison tells us how her long-term study of hippo populations in Africa offers hints of how these creatures will continue to alter the Colombian ecosystem—and what authorities can do about it. Let us know what you think of our show, and how we can make it better, by completing our There's More to That listener survey here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfS90zjBZ2oGa9JxVa-R5affKcOHaR2-ib1_KZeWm3HDQXJIA/viewform) . Read Josh Hammer's Smithsonian story about Escobar's hippos and their descendants here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/pablo-escobar-abandoned-hippos-wreaking-havoc-colombian-jungle-180984494/) . Learn more about Rebecca Lewison and her work here (https://cmi.sdsu.edu/rebecca-lewison/) . Find prior episodes of our show here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/podcast/) . There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions. From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly. From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Rye Dorsey, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales. Fact-checking by Stephanie Abramson. Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz  Music by APM Music.




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3-D Scanning: Bringing History Back to Life

More on 3D scanning: http://j.mp/JM43KD Specialists are using new technology to unravel a mystery in the Smithsonian collections.




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Historic Newsreel Footage of the Cuban Missile Crisis

Tensions intensified between Cuba and the United States in October 1962 as they appear destined to plunge the planet in global war




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Ask Smithsonian: What’s the Difference Between Bacteria and Viruses?

The answer…and why you should care




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Remembering the Dark Days of the Cuban Missile Crisis

What did analysts find in the recon photographs from the Cuban Missile Crisis? http://j.mp/RwFMbj Former CIA analyst Dino Brugioni was one of the first to spot missiles in Cuba in October 1962.




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U.S. Marine Corps Archival Footage: 27th and 28th Marines Embarkation at Iwo Jima

Recently digitized footage showing Marines loading onto LST with supplies on equipment and waiting on the beach, among other things. (U.S. Marine Corps History Division and Moving Image Research Collections, University of South Carolina)




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A 1970s Visit to Bamiyan

As a part of a television broadcast, world travelers Hal and Halla Linker toured the Afghan countryside in 1973, years before the Soviets invaded and the Taliban took control of the Buddhist site




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SmartNews: Airbags for Skiers

But at speeds nearing 100 mph, there's a fine line between helping and hurting