Smithsonian curator Larry Bird shows off convention artifacts and other campaign memorabilia from the collection of the National Museum of American History (Smithsonian.com). Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Inauguration-2009.html

Megan Leftwich, an engineering professor at George Washington University, is building a robotic flipper based on her observations of sea lions

In this time-lapse video, watch how workers built a visitor’s center in South Africa using ancient Roman techniques such as the arched ceiling, or vault

Interpretive exhibits coordinator Steven Madewells demonstrates a few experiments at Spark!Lab, an interactive exhibit at the National Museum of American History. Read more at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/theres-nothing-like-a-sparklab-to-ignite-the-imagination-1-180949007/

Director of the African American History and Culture Museum Lonnie Bunch looks at the forces that brought about the January 1, 1863 order.

The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP28, begins this week in Dubai. A new topic on the agenda this year is how wildfires are emerging as a serious health risk not just to those in their immediate vicinity, but even to people thousands of miles away. Last summer, smoke from Canadian wildfires drifted not only as far south as the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, but even across the Atlantic Ocean. We speak with John Vaillant, whose book Fire Weather: A True Story from a Hotter World recounts a 2016 wildfire in Fort McMurray, Canada that dislocated tens of thousands of people and caused billions of dollars in damage. That natural disaster seemed like a terrifying outlier when Vaillant began his reporting, but 2023’s unprecedented fire activity suggest that Fort McMurray was merely the shape of things to come. John explains how climate change is making wildfires hotter and harder to contain. Next, we’re joined by photojournalist Andria Hautamaki, who observed a “prescribed burn” in Plumas County, California. Andria shares how these kinds of carefully planned, intentionally set fires can be a useful tool for preventing more destructive blazes. Read an excerpt from John’s book Fire Weather: A True Story From a Hotter World here (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-worlds-first-wildfire-tornado-blazed-a-path-of-destruction-through-australia-180982309/) , and learn more about John and his other books here (https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/58679/john-vaillant/) . Andria’s reporting for her wildfires story (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/fighting-fire-with-fire-california-180981810/) y from the April/May 2023 issue of Smithsonian was supported by the Institute for Journalism and Natural Resources (https://www.ijnr.org/) . You can learn more about Andria and her work at her website (https://ahowdyphoto.com/About/1) . Andria recommends these resources for anyone seeking more information about prescribed burns: • Your state’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/conservation-basics/conservation-by-state) • The Coalition of Prescribed Fire Councils (https://www.prescribedfire.net/) • The Great Plains Fire Science Exchange (https://gpfirescience.org/) , which can help you find Prescribed Burn Associations in your area • The National Fire Protection Association, aka Firewise USA (https://www.nfpa.org/) • The Cooperative Extension of any universities in your region 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.

Watch Masai Mara hyenas in their natural habitat

Saber toothed cats, temperature and things that go bump in the night, Eric Schulze explains

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

To find out, we need to get down to the basics. Eric Schulze explains

The octopus places the arm in its mouth, treating it like food.

Hours after the Titanic sank, news organizations latched onto a telegraph message that seemed to say that the ship and all its passengers had been rescued. It would turn out to be a tragic case of fake news.

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)

It's 1933 and Mae West is just arriving at Grauman's Chinese Theater for the premiere of I'm No Angel. It draws fans from all over the country—as well as an organized protest from conservative religious groups.

The newly discovered Lllacme plenipes has up to 750 legs, more than any other known creature

The director of the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation explores how personality and environment help creativity flourish

This time-lapse video shows researchers collecting samples inside a South African gold mine. (by Gaetan Borgonie)

A slowed-down recording, made as part of a scientific study, shows one dog quickly mimicking another canine's expression during playtime in a park in Palermo. (Video courtesy Elisabetta Palagi)

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.

The Smithsonian National Zoos Snore & Roar program gives visitors a behind the scenes look (Video and Reporting by Megan Gambino and Ryan Reese). Read more at http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2008/09/sleep-over-party-at-the-zoo/

Take an animated tour of the future Giant Magellan Telescope

Watch a course video excerpt from Rise of the Superheroes: 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.

Five categories (People, Arts, Nature, Travel and Mobile) and a grand prize of $2,000.

Two of the preeminent researchers of gene therapy hope to improve their patients' sight in an experimental operation (Stephen Voss/WPN)

Hear audio of mouse lemurs and pied babblers (Note: Lemur calls have been slowed down to one-tenth their speed so that scientists can analyze their differences.)

Our giant of a host, Eric Schulze, explains why size mattered in prehistory.

Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Inauguration-2009.html Two curators from the American History Museum show the highlights of the archives of inauguration relics.

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/

Around the Mall bloggers sit down and talk with a few old friends from Sesame Street (Narration and Video by Megan Gambino / Anika Gupta as Intrepid Reporter / Beth Py-Lieberman as the voice of Big Bird / Script by Jesse Rhodes / Jesse Rhodes as the voice of Cookie Monster and Oscar). Read more at http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2008/10/sesame-street-redux/

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/

The first coffin Marcus Daly built was for his own child. Now, he has mastered the art of creating a final resting place for so many

New technologies helped marine archaeologists recover the H.L. Hunley, a Civil War submarine

Credit: Carlos Jaramillo, German Bayona and Edward Duarte, using Gplates and VideoPad by NCHsoftware

Yacouba Sawadogo, a farmer from Burkina Faso, has become a pioneer in the fight against desertification – succeeding where many international agencies have failed

We asked visitors to the National Mall what they thought should be in the Smithsonian collections in 2050. The consensus? Lady Gaga and much more...

Selected by Reza for our special issue, this up-and-coming photographer discusses her work

http://j.mp/196BLpQ From her salon in Maryland, Camille Reed sees more black women embracing natural hair

Have you ever wondered if the Leaning Tower of Pisa is a catastrophe waiting to happen? In this one-minute video, Ask Smithsonian host Eric Schulze explains how architects and engineers spent the last eight hundred years or so making things go from bad to worse, bringing the gravity-defying tower to the brink of disaster

Vice president of engineering and chief evangelist at Google on the connected world in 2050. Read more at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/vinton-cerf-on-where-the-internet-will-take-us-1128826/

After arriving at the zoo obese, Nikki the Bear was put on a strict diet by the zoo nutritionists with great results (Video by: Ryan R. Reed). Read more at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/nikki-the-bear-lost-110-pounds-on-the-national-zoo-diet-46145236/

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

What makes human and orangutan brains different? Researchers at the National Zoo hope to find out by playing customized computer games with the savvy primates.

Historically feared by humans, brown bears were once aggressively hunted in the contiguous U.S. Because of this, 95% of these majestic creatures live in Alaska.

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

DC chef Erik Bruner-Yang interviews Jill-of-all-trades Kaitlyn Hova about her plan to infuse STEM education with open source, 3D printable instruments.

Credit: Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum