Curator Larry Bird takes you inside the history of the Bradford dollhouse

"They have given mankind a completely new way of looking at the universe." – Stephen Hawking, congratulates Kip Thorne, Rainer Weiss, Barry Barish and Ronald Drever, the first scientists to detect gravitational waves. | Smithsonian magazine #IngenuityAwards 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.

Home to the worlds largest shell collection, the Smithsonian catalogues and studies shells both large and small, spiky and smooth (Brendan McCabe).

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. Taught by "The Dark Knight" producer Michael Uslan, students will go into the vaults of the Smithsonian collection and hear from industry experts. Register now (http://bit.ly/1DsdJ3W) and beginning May 5, 2015, you can become a certified expert on superheroes. Sign up for the verified certificate to earn an original piece of artwork from top artist Phil Jimenez (Wonder Woman, New X-Men) with Phil's, Stan Lee’s, and Michael Uslan’s signatures.

Smithsonian magazine commissioned Drew Gardner for a project that connects Black Americans today to their lost ancestry. Read about Gardner’s project and process, as well as more details about the subjects of this incredible series here: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/descendants-black-civil-war-heroes-wear-heritage-pride-180983397/ Video produced by Sierra Theobald. Special thanks to Drew Gardner Additional credits: Emma MacBeath, WikiTree US Black Heritage project; Ottawa Goodman, research and coordinator; Sam Dole, Penumbra Foundation; Elizabeth Zuck, set design; Calvin Osbourne, props and costume; Angela Huff, hair and make up; Diego Huerta, Lexia Krebs, behind-the-scenes filming; background prints by Fujifilm USA

Humans have been modifying plants since the beginning of agriculture, but now, globalization and new technologies have given us more control and more power over our food than ever before.

Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/Savoring-Puebla.html The streets of Puebla are filled with the sound of Mariachis who sing at most traditional Mexican ceremony.

Read more at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/Hazel-Scotts-Lifetime-of-High-Notes.html In a performance filmed for World War II soldiers, Hazel Scott begins with a section from Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2" and ends with a jazzy tune (Army / Navy Screen Magazine).

“Superman isn’t coming. It is a moment in our time when we must look to ourselves, and not take for granted or wait for something from the top to come down, but rather…pick up the torch, carry the torch, to find information and the truth…” – Erin Brockovich applauds Marc Edwards and LeeAnne Walters for their work exposing the Flint water crisis | Smithsonian Magazine American #IngenuityAwards Read more about Edwards and Walters’ work: http://smithmag.co/D4dIHy 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

Some researchers initially dismissed the remains of Palaeopascichnus lineari as teeny turds from a bygone era

New DNA analysis adds to growing research indicating the famous Pacific island did not collapse from overuse of resources before the arrival of Europeans

Investigators discovered that the original print of "The Roaring Lion" had been sold to a buyer in Italy

A melting glacier caused a mountain in Greenland to collapse into a narrow fjord, setting off an oscillating wave that rattled seismic detectors around the world

Officials launched an investigation and recovered the $360,000 print less than a week after it vanished from Grove Gallery. Two men have been charged for the crime

A new paper analyzes three decades of fatalities around the world and predicts how "superbugs" will affect human health in the future

Archaeologists unearthed a series of mudbrick rooms filled with religious tributes, soldiers' personal effects, engraved weaponry and animal bones

The vertical sign stretched across three stories of the Manhattan hotel, which once welcomed the likes of Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Andy Warhol and Janis Joplin

A new study identified the tiny pollutants in the olfactory bulbs of eight cadavers, suggesting microplastics can travel through the nose to the brain

The Horned Serpent Panel from southern Africa predates the first Western scientific description of the dicynodont, a large mammal ancestor with tusks, by at least a decade

Researchers say that the iconic painting's swirling sky lines up with Kolmogorov's theory of turbulence, suggesting that the artist was a careful observer of the world around him

If the structures look familiar, it's probably because nature has been using them for a long time in places like nautilus shells, zebra stripes and onions

An A.I.-assisted study identified 303 previously unknown geoglyphs in the Peruvian desert. The art features surprising figures, like orcas holding knives

On this day in 1690, "Publick Occurrences Both Forreign and Domestick" attracted colonial officials' ire by repeating a scandalous rumor and condemning a British alliance with the Mohawk

Researchers analyzed tiny fossils embedded in the limestone to determine the age and origins of the grave maker, which marked the final resting place of a prominent Jamestown colonist

An acoustic survey in 2018 and new analysis with A.I. suggest the sounds are vocalizations from the elusive Bryde’s whale

Researchers recently identified James Fitzjames, a captain on the ill-fated HMS Erebus that went looking for the Northwest Passage in 1845

A new exhibition in New York City uses more than 200 texts and artifacts to contemplate Lincoln's rise to the nation's highest office

Researchers studying the ancient site of Fregellae reveal the consequences of challenging the Roman army

The small town of Spruce Pine, North Carolina, is one of the only sources of high-purity quartz on Earth, but it has been left battered by the storm's heavy rains

For years, the owner's son had wondered about the artwork, which features the Spanish painter's signature. Now, some experts think it's the real deal

Orbiting Barnard's star, the nearest solo star to Earth, the world is too hot to be habitable—a scorching 257 degrees Fahrenheit

Lizzy, the avatar based on the novel’s Elizabeth Bennet, will hold period-accurate conversations with visitors at Jane Austen’s cottage home

A new analysis suggests that the piece was created by several artists working in the Italian Renaissance painter's studio—and that Botticelli himself may have worked on important details

Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun discovered microRNA, tiny molecules that play a crucial role in how cells develop, paving the way for new treatments for diseases

Home to more than 300 artists, the neighborhood was submerged under the record-high waters of the French Broad River

John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton shared the award for their work on artificial neural networks and machine learning

No one was injured in the blast, and authorities are investigating why the ordnance detonated after so many years underground

The 4,000-year-old burial chamber featured hieroglyphs referring to the woman, known as Idi, as the "lady of the house"

David Baker, Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper revealed how amino acids shape protein structure, a finding that could aid in drug discovery

The grassroots organization, Nihon Hidankyo, was lauded for "demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again"

A Dutch museum famous for displaying art in unconventional locations had placed a pair of painted beer cans in a glass elevator shaft

The two artifacts donated by Blue Origin achieved record-breaking feats and will extend the museum's story of trailblazing space travel into the present

"Transforming Energy," the artist's first museum show in China, focuses on "artworks and objects that actively engage the audience"

A pair of 3-year-old giant pandas—a male named Bao Li and a female called Qing Bao—have officially arrived at the Zoo, where they will first acclimate to their new home

Scientists aren't sure how the circular indentations some 450 feet below the surface formed, but they hope to investigate further

Experts added a carbon fiber pole to help anchor the "Apollo Belvedere," which had developed cracks along the legs and knees. Now, the looming Roman sculpture is finally back on display

The final 3D atlas of the sky will help scientists study dark matter and dark energy, which make up 96 percent of the universe but remain mysterious

Each of the 11 dolphins sampled exhaled at least one suspected particle of microplastic, which researchers say “highlights how extensive environmental microplastic pollution is”

Winners of the Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition captured insects, cancer cells, cat claws and more