The classic American tale of a woman who grew up poor, became queen of the stage and even owned the Hope Diamond

Prepare to be amazed.

How do spiders make such intricate webs? Don’t get too tangled up about it. In this one-minute video, our Ask Smithsonian host, Eric Schulze, weaves his way to the answer.

In this one-minute video, our Ask Smithsonian Host, Eric Schulze, weighs in on whether or not elephants can jump.

What is it about junk food that makes it so hard to resist? Find out how this empty-calorie food is designed to keep us wanting more in this one-minute video with Ask Smithsonian host, Eric Schulze.

Sally, a Labrador retriever, sniffs sock samples and then pauses on the sample worn by a child with malaria. (Durham University/Medical Detection Dogs/London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine)

Despite being just one minute long, this Ask Smithsonian video hosted by Eric Schulze is crammed full of strange things you never knew – but should – about Saturn’s rings. Prepare to be amazed.

How to build a museum tours app? Send the intern out to see if she can see it all in just three hours

Behind the scenes of Smithsonian magazine's iPad app. To learn more about the app, visit: http://www.smithsonian.com/app

How can something like a tiny, harmless spider or a clown make your heart race and your palms sweat? And for the love of all things science, how can you make these fears stop? Find out in this one-minute video, where Ask Smithsonian host Eric Schulze delves deep into the dark recesses of our minds to get at the facts behind our phobias.

Man’s best friend is also one of his oldest.

A close look reveals how the famed photographer altered his glass negatives, creating the popular image of Native Americans that still exists today

What fueled the frenzy that sent so many to their deaths in colonial America? And how did Americans reckon with the aftermath of the panic? --- For more videos from Smithsonian Magazine: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/ Digital Editorial Director: Brian Wolly Supervising Producer & Scriptwriter: Michelle Mehrtens Video Editor: Sierra Theobald

Did you ever think you’d hear the words "skunk," "anti-aircraft weaponry" and "nipple squirters" in the same sentence? Brace yourself and watch this one-minute video, where Ask Smithsonian host Eric Schulze sticks his nose into the science of skunk spray.

Think blockbuster movie and you’ve got an idea of how this story ends

Erosion, evaporation, and a leaky faucet, our host Eric Schulze breaks it all down.

Watch the famous chef make the classic French dish, but stay for her inventive use of a blowtorch

Experts may not agree on all the specifics, but here's what we do know.

Read more about the event here: http://j.mp/TyPfBO The world famous Chinese artist uses pyrotechnics to turn a 40-foot-tall pine tree into an optical illusion.

The science behind going belly up

See how researchers at Smithsonian's National Zoo are trying to glean insight into elephant foraging behavior and more.

See how geometric designs are inspiring new ways to make stretchy materials. (Video by Ahmad Rafsanjani and Damiano Pasini/McGill University)

Smithsonian Institution Secretary Dr. David Skorton joins some of the world’s leading thinkers in a spirited discussion about our ever changing planet

Watch Dr. Suzan Murray perform her morning rounds (Kenneth R. Fletcher)

It was no doubt a fantastical death, worthy of a pharaoh

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.

Many cultures have found ways to preserve the human body after death, but how? In this one-minute video, our Ask Smithsonian Host, Eric Schulze, wraps up the answer.

After reviewing more than 30,000 photos, the editors of Smithsonian magazine are proud to announce the winning submissions. Learn more about the finalists and winners of 2024 here: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/see-winners-21st-annual-smithsonian-magazine-photo-contest-180984001/. --- For more videos from Smithsonian Magazine: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/ Digital Editorial Director: Brian Wolly Supervising Producer & Scriptwriter: Michelle Mehrtens Video Editor: Sierra Theobald

Through her television shows, Julia Child shared her love for culinary arts with the world.

"OK Go made music videos relevant again." – Stephen Colbert OK Go​, Damian Kulash Jr. and Trish Sie​ won the Smithsonian magazine​ American Ingenuity Award for Visual Arts for pushing the music-video envelope with their zero-gravity video for "Upside Down & Inside Out." Read more about their work and see the video here: http://smithmag.co/HZ8vzr The Smithsonian has been celebrating innovation in American culture for more than 150 years, and following in this tradition, Smithsonian magazine presents the American Ingenuity Awards, honoring revolutionary breakthroughs in the arts and sciences, education and social progress. http://smithmag.co/R7hyRO

The story within Handels famous piece is what drives its enduring popularity, and it is also what keeps D.C.s Metropolitan Chorus excited for their annual performance. Read more at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-glorious-history-of-handels-messiah-148168540/

Read more about SONG 1: http://j.mp/GTZ0Ru & http://j.mp/GVlcMx Watch how artist Doug Aitken transforms the outside of the art museum into a panoramic movie screen

A modern medical mystery

Four hundred years ago, escaped slaves formed the village of Palenque. The town’s younger generations have reconnected with their African roots through cultural traditions handed down from their ancestors (Kenneth Fletcher/SmithsonianMag.com). Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/colombia-dispatches.html

The sweet science behind our sense of taste

Obviously it's a bad idea to go out into space without a trusty spacesuit, but what exactly happens?

Gasp! The answer will amaze you. Still Image Credit: MaFelipe / iStock

Not to worry—shut-eye comes easily to these aquatic mammals

Have you ever wondered how a simple shot can keep you from dying a horrible death? In this one-minute video, Ask Smithsonian’s host, Eric Schulze, unravels how vaccines boot-camp our bodies into shape, getting us ready to fight off deadly diseases.

The legendary Stan Lee, creator of the Avengers, Spiderman and Iron Man, has partnered with the Smithsonian National Museum of American History to launch the first global online course about superheroes to fans around the world. Register now: smithsonian.com/edx/superheroes

Take a guess - the answer might surprise you

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

You don’t actually see microwaves, you only see what they do to your food. So how, exactly, does it warm up your lunch?

Have you ever wondered why these birds strike this peculiar pose? Find out in this one-minute video, where Ask Smithsonian host Eric Schulze walks us through the reasons behind the majestic bird’s one-legged stance.

Christopher Nolan's epic new film "Oppenheimer" is no mere biopic… nor is it the first attempt to capture the father of the atomic bomb in fiction. We look at prior dramatizations of this very complicated man—including one wherein J. Robert Oppenheimer played himself!—and examine why they worked or didn't. In the episode: Physicist-turned-photographer Minesh Bacrania shares his experience photographing inside the top-secret labs at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where J. Robert Oppenheimer and other scientists created the first nuclear weapon. Next, with Christopher Nolan’s film Oppenheimer exceeding commercial expectations, Smithsonian magazine writer Andy Kifer discusses the complexities of Oppenheimer's genius and how prior attempts to depict him in film and television and on stage have fared. Read Andy Kifer’s “The Real Story Behind Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer” here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-real-history-behind-christopher-nolans-oppenheimer-180982529/) . See Minesh Bacrania’s photographs of Los Alamos and read Smithsonian senior editor Jennie Rothenberg Gritz’s text here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/exclusive-behind-scenes-look-los-alamos-lab-where-robert-oppenheimer-created-atomic-bomb-180982336/) or in the July/August 2023 issue of Smithsonian. 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.

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

Geese have known something for millions of years that humans have only recently figured out for themselves.