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There's a Limit to the Comfort Level of NASA Space Suits

The space suits used by the astronauts on Gemini 7, known as grasshopper suits, were designed for comfort. But after two weeks inside them, that was the last thing on the crew’s minds.




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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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MIT's New Water-Powered Artificial Muscles

Scientists have created thin polymer sheets that expand and contract when in contact with water




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The T-Rex's Journey to D.C

Follow the "Nation's T-Rex" as it travels from Montana to Washington




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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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Coming July 27: There's More to That from Smithsonian magazine and PRX

Smithsonian magazine covers history, science and culture in the way only it can — through a lens on the world that is insightful and grounded in richly reported stories. On There's More to That, meet the magazine's journalists and hear how they discover the forces behind the biggest issues of our time. 




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How Lizzie Borden Became the Main Suspect in Her Family's Murder

How did a god fearing church-goer like Lizzie Borden become a suspect in the gruesome crime of the century? Her inconsistent account, and an eerie nonchalance, immediately damaged her credibility with investigators.




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Indiana's Secret Parties and Perfect Popcorn

A large portion of Indiana's economy relies on an invaluable crop: corn. Popcorn plants like Pop Weaver have perfected the production of our favorite movie snack down to a science.




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How a 'Non-Hazardous' NASA Mission Turned Deadly

In 1967, a horrific fire broke out during a routine pre-launch test for the Apollo 1 mission at Cape Kennedy, Florida. It would claim the lives of three NASA astronauts




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Did the Spanish Flu Impact America's Ability to Fight in WWI?

By late September 1918, in a bid to contain the spread of the flu, the U.S. had made the decision to cancel the draft. It was too little, too late—in October alone, over 200,000 Americans were killed by the disease.




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Jim Anderson's Quest to Solve Climate Change

The American Ingenuity Award winner warns that no place on Earth is safe from the dangers of global warming




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Thomas Cromwell: Henry VIII's Partner in Crime

In 1536, Thomas Cromwell spotted an opportunity to enrich his master, Henry VIII, and further increase his own standing: the dissolution of the monasteries and claiming their wealth for the Crown.




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One of the Strangest, Stealthiest Turtles You've Ever Seen

A mata mata turtle can go 15 minutes between breaths--it's another one of the Smithsonian's National Zoo's many unique animals. Join the Zoo's experts for an inside look at some of its 2,000 rare and extraordinary creatures.




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Discovering Titanoboa, the World's Largest Snake

Fossils found in Colombia indicate that a giant snake may have roamed the earth 60 million years ago




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Matt Mahurin's Vision of the Star-Spangled Banner




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Historian Speaks to Lincoln's Legacy

Author Harold Holzer discusses Abraham Lincoln's presidency and the President's lasting impact on modern American politics and nostalgia (Meredith Bragg). Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/life-of-lincoln.html




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The National Air and Space Museum Lowers Charles Lindbergh's “Spirit of St. Louis” to the Ground

The first plane to fly nonstop from New York to Paris will reside on the ground level of the National Air and Space Museum for the next five months as it undergoes preservation (Courtesy of the National Air and Space Museum)




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John Lewis' Journey to the March on Washington

At age 23, the former chairman of SNCC stepped up to the podium to deliver a powerful speech to thousands on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.




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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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Ask Smithsonian: What Does the World Look Like When You're Color Blind?

Learn more about color blindness: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/ask-smithsonian-how-does-world-look-the-color-blind-180960415/ Have a question in mind? It's your turn to Ask Smithsonian: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/ask-smithsonian/ask-form/




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People Aren't All Bad




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Is Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin the Future of Space Exploration?

Jeff Bezos | Smithsonian Magazine’s 2016 American Ingenuity Award Winner for Technology The Princeton-educated Amazon founder, Washington Post owner and new-economy pioneer also helms an innovative spaceflight company, Blue Origin, which he founded in 2000. This year it became the first aerospace manufacturer to launch, land and relaunch a rocket into space—an essential leap toward our extraterrestrial future. Bezos aims to revolutionize travel and work in space by making spaceflight so inexpensive that entrepreneurs will rush to create new businesses that have not even been imagined yet. Blue Origin’s achievement has been described as comparable to the shift from the sail to the steam engine. Read more about Bezos’ work: http://smithmag.co/GICDO2 | #IngenuityAwards And more about the American Ingenuity Awards: http://smithmag.co/77xPqy




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Andy Warhol's Headlines

Ever the media gadfly himself, the pop artist was fascinated by newspapers, especially the tabloids, as explored in a new exhibit at the National Gallery of Art. Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/Bringing-Andy-Warhols-Shadows-to-the-Hirshhorn.html




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Music in One of the World's Most Violent Cities

Fifteen-year-old Esteban, a clarinetist from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, uses music to survive his chaotic environment Reporting by Dominic Bracco II / Prime and Susana Seijas




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With "Master of None," Aziz Ansari Has Created a True American Original

Aziz Ansari | Smithsonian Magazine’s 2016 American Ingenuity Award Winner for Performing Arts The actor, comedian and author is being honored for his starring role as Dev Shah in “Master of None,” the Netflix series that he created with Alan Yang. Like the character he plays, Ansari is the son of Indian immigrant parents, and his smart, surprising take on life, love, technology and cultural identity in the United States has helped make the show “the year’s best comedy straight out of the gate,” as the New York Times put it. Among Ansari’s other accomplishments are his unforgettable portrayal of the loopy Tom Haverford on NBC’s “Parks and Recreation,” his best-selling book about dating in the internet age, Modern Romance (co-authored with Eric Klinenberg), and his blockbuster stand-up act that sold out Madison Square Garden. Read more about Ansari’s work: http://smithmag.co/jvdAaL | #IngenuityAwards And more about the American Ingenuity Awards: http://smithmag.co/77xPqy




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Art's Bold New Direction with Richard Koshalek

The Director of the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum predicts what the museum's collections will hold in the next 40 years Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/specialsections/40th-anniversary/Arts-Bold-New-Direction.html




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The World's First "Yoga" Film

Thomas Edison's 1902 trick film, "Hindoo Fakir," depicts an Indian fakir-yogi performing a magic act.




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What Happened to Henry VIII's Six Wives?

From tumultuous love affairs to violent betrayals, the six wives of Henry VIII all left marks on the Tudor dynasty – and shaped the course of history. READ MORE about these women here: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-true-history-behind-six-the-musical-about-henry-viiis-wives-180978781/ --- 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




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Henri Cartier-Bresson's With the Abraham Lincoln Brigade in Spain

Filmed by the famous photographer during the Spanish Civil War, this clip debuted at the 2010 Orphan Film Symposium




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National Treasure: The Hirshhorn Is Brutalism's Boldest Donut

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is renowned for its striking architecture and impressive collection of contemporary art. Whether you're an art enthusiast, a history buff, or simply curious about that concrete donut on the National Mall, learn more about its Brutalist background in this new episode of National Treasure. --------- To find out more about the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, read below: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/hirshhorn-museum-building-went-from-iconoclast-icon-180984914/ Digital Editorial Director: Brian Wolly Director of Programming: Nicki Marko Supervising Producer & Scriptwriter: Michelle Mehrtens Producer & Editor: Sierra Theobald Motion Designer: Ricardo Jaimes




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Scientists Didn't Know Much About Earthquakes Before 1933

On March 10, 1933, a major earthquake caught the Los Angeles area by surprise. The devastation was of sufficient scale to spur scientific interest in earthquakes—and how to predict them.




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John F. Kennedy's Campaign for President

The curators at the American History museum delve into the archives to show artifacts from the 1960 election.




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Is Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin the Future of Space Exploration?

No one had ever launched, landed and relaunched a rocket into space until the company's historic achievement.




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Richard Saul Wurman, Creator of TED Conference: "I Hate Being Spoken To"

Richard Saul Wurman, the founder of the popular speaker series, shares his ideas for how to make learning more interesting




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NASA's First Chimp in Space

As part of Project Mercury, NASA prepared to send a chimpanzee, Ham, into space to test the effects of space on a living creature.




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Palladio: America's Architectural Grandfather

The grand buildings of Washington, D.C. would look quite different were it not for the work of Palladio. Read more at Smithsonian.com




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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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Those Orcas Aren't Doing What You Think

It’s not the most urgent news story that’s gripped the world since 2020, but it might be the weirdest: The last three years have seen more 400 “encounters”— many reports have used the word “attacks”—between orca whales and boats in the Strait of Gibraltar. Because the orcas are particularly fond of tearing the propellers off of yachts, the temptation to characterize these six-ton, pack-hunting, demonstrably intelligent mammals as class warriors fighting back against the 1 percent is strong, and the memes have been fun (https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/orca-wars-killer-whales-attacking-boats) . But trying to understand animal behavior in human terms is a mistake. In this episode, we speak with Carlyn Kranking (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/author/carlyn-kranking/) , Smithsonian’s assistant digital science editor, about why stories about animal behavior are so popular with our readers, and how she decides which ones deserve more scrutiny. Then, I speak with Lori Marino, a biopsychologist with a specific focus on whale and dolphin intelligence, about what’s really happening between the orcas and the yacht set. Dr. Marino invites you to learn more about The Whale Sanctuary Project at their site (https://whalesanctuaryproject.org/about-the-whale-sanctuary-project/) . You can also see Dr. Marino in the documentary films Blackfish (2013), Unlocking the Cage (2016), and Long Gone Wild (2019). Find prior episodes of our show here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/podcast/) . And read the transcript of this episode here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/are-wild-animals-really-just-like-us-180982939/) . There’s More to That (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/podcast) 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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How the Osage Changed Martin Scorsese’s Mind About "Killers of the Flower Moon"

A true-life saga involving organized crime, racial prejudice, and evolving American identity, David Grann’s 2017 nonfiction book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the F.B.I. seemed at first glance like a perfect fit for Martin Scorsese, the beloved filmmaker whose dozens of critically adored movies include Taxi Driver, GoodFellas, and The Departed. But when Jim Gray, a former chief of the Osage Nation, and other Osage leaders invited the filmmaker to Oklahoma to hear their concerns about his new project, Scorsese came. Scorsese listened. And then he rewrote and reconfigured Killers of the Flower Moon from soup to nuts, with a result that has earned a rapturous response from Native viewers like Gray and journalist Sandra Hale Schulman, and from the broader critical community, too. The movie opens in theatres tomorrow and will appear on the Apple+ streaming service before the end of the year. In this episode, Schulman walks me through a brief history of how Native Americans have been depicted in a century’s worth of movies. Then, Chief Gray tells me about his personal connection to Killers of the Flower Moon, the pattern of Native American erasure from national discourse, and how he and his colleagues persuaded Scorsese to rethink the new movie. A transcript of this episode can be found here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonianmag/how-the-osage-changed-martin-scorseses-mind-180983094smithsonianmag.com/smithsonianmag/how-the-osage-changed-martin-scorseses-mind-180983094) . Sandra’s Smithsonian story about Native representation in cinema is here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-native-representation-in-film-180983043/) . You can learn more about Sandra and her work at her site (http://www.sandraschulman.com/) . Dennis McAuliffe Jr.’s The Deaths of Sybil Bolton: An American History, which Chief Gray cites as formative in this episode, is here (https://www.amazon.com/Deaths-Sybil-Bolton-American-History/dp/081292150X) . 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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Former Poet Laureate Billy Collins Reads "The Unfortunate Traveler"

Smithsonian magazine's poetry consultant recites his poem commissioned for a special photography issue




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This Object in History: Elmo's Rise to Stardom

With his bright red coat, big orange nose, and wide eyes, Elmo is arguably the most famous of the Sesame Street muppets–but he didn’t always have it this good. Elmo began as an "Anything Muppet"—an extra, if you will, until Kevin Clash refashioned his character into the one we know—and kids love–today. Throughout the '80s his star continued to shine, eventually becoming an international icon and best-selling Christmas toy. Forty years later, he’s still going strong, enshrined in a popular exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.




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Jack Andraka's Pancreatic Cancer Breakthrough

What was the motivation behind the American Ingenuity Award winner's medical breakthrough that will save thousands of lives




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The Man Behind "Manhunt"

Before it was even published in 2006, historian James Swanson’s book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer attracted the notice of Hollywood. After several prior attempts to adapt the nonfiction thriller for the screen, the first two episodes of the seven-part Apple TV+ miniseries Manhunt finally premiered on March 15, with the subsequent five arriving weekly. Meet Swanson — a self-described Lincoln obsessive — and hear about what moved him to write the book, what his role in its long-gestating adaptation was, and how he came to be so obsessed with our most-admired president in the first place. Smithsonian magazine related articles: The real history behind the events dramatized in “Manhunt,” (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-real-history-behind-apple-tvs-manhunt-and-the-search-for-abraham-lincolns-killer-180983943/)   James Swanson’s favorite Lincoln artifacts (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-blood-relics-from-the-lincoln-assassination-180954331/) . 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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Three Years After "We Will Bury You," Nikita Khrushchev Tours America

Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Nikita-in-Hollywood.html As part of a diplomatic mission, Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev traveled across the United States, meeting Americans from New York to Iowa to California.




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Inside Photographer Robert Frank's The Americans

The National Gallery of Art organized a comprehensive exhibit of Robert Frank's work (Images courtesy of: National Gallery of Art; Produced by: Diane Bolz and Brian Wolly)




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What's a Kolache Doing in Brooklyn?

Czech immigrants brought the pastry to Texas; Autumn Stanford brought them to New York




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Dave Shealy's 2000 Skunk Ape Footage

From Smithsonian.com's story on Dave Shealy, Florida's self-proclaimed skunk ape expert: www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/trail-floridas-bigfoot-skunk-ape-180949981/




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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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The Perfect Game Heard 'Round the World

Watch newsreel footage of Angel Macias' astonishing performance at the Little League World Series.




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This Woman Manages America's Oldest Lighthouse

Boston’s iconic lighthouse, the Boston Light, is managed by a single person: Sally Snowman. She is the 70th keeper of the lighthouse since it was built over 300 years ago.