The Presidential Portrait That Was the “Ugliest Thing” LBJ Ever Saw
Lyndon Johnson’s cantankerous nature carried over to even the more engaging parts of being Commander in Chief
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In the Future, Will We Be Growing Fruit in Home Bioreactors?
A team of molecular biologists wants you to forget about strawberries and, instead, take “cell jam” for a whirl
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Weaving Games and Puzzles Into the Fabric of a City
To encourage playful learning, Urban Thinkspace and other projects put miniature playgrounds along the paths kids travel
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Women Were Better Represented in Victorian Novels Than Modern Ones
Big data shows that women used to be omnipresent in fiction. Then men got in the way
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The Obamas’ Official Portraits Break New Ground With Their Boldness
A picture-perfect reveal ceremony was by turns heartfelt and humorous
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For Mark Twain, It Was Love At First Sight
The aspiring author knew Olivia Langdon was the one when he first laid eyes on a photograph of her
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How the “Heart Balm Racket” Convinced America That Women Were Up to No Good
Being engaged carried some legal consequences until the news media got a hold of a sensational story
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Artists Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald Capture the Unflinching Gaze of the President and First Lady
The nation’s first African-American presidency is marked by two prominent African-American portraitists
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A Brief History of Bulgogi, Korea’s Most Delicious Export (Recipe)
And how you can get some of the tender, marinated beef stateside
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Will the New Redesign of the Hirshhorn Lobby Do the Building Justice?
The Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto, known for his pensive images, is taking on the role of architect and designer
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Hirshhorn’s Redesigned Lobby Sheds New Light on a Classic Washington D.C. Building
The Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto, known for his pensive images, is taking on the role of architect and designer
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How Physics Keeps Figure Skaters Gracefully Aloft
Every twist, turn and jump relies on a mastery of complex physical forces
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Next Week, a Powerful, Three-Story Video Installation Will Transform the Hirshhorn
The giant projection by Polish artist Kryzstof Wodiczko returns to the museum for the first time in 30 years
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A Powerful, Three-Story Video Installation Will Transform the Hirshhorn
The giant projection by Polish artist Kryzstof Wodiczko returns to the museum for the first time in 30 years
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A Brief History of Women’s Figure Skating
You might be surprised to learn that this sport where women now shine was initially seen as solely the purview of male athletes
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Norman Rockwell’s Four Freedoms Brought the Ideals of America to Life
This wartime painting series reminded Americans what they were fighting for
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The Cleveland Museum of Art Wants You To Play With Its Art
The digital-savvy museum is using more than a dozen interactive games to collect data on how visitors digest artwork
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What the First Radio Commercial Jingle Sounded Like
Wheaties was one of the first companies to recognize the enormous potential of radio as an advertising tool
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Why the Flamingo Signaled the Birth of Sin City
The Flamingo was the first luxury resort to capture the public’s imagination in Las Vegas
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These Musical Instruments Are All Made of Ice
Chill out at Norway’s Ice Music Festival this February
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The Ben Franklin-Inspired Super Bowl Recipes You Never Knew You Needed
We don’t know who Ben Franklin would root for, but we do know what he’d eat on Super Bowl Sunday
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The True Story of ‘Waco’ Is Still One of Contention
A new mini-series hopes to humanize those in and outside the doomed compound
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The Evolution of Petface
The same traits that make these dogs adorable threaten their health and well-being
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Wendell Castle, The Man Who Made Furniture Dance, Dead at 85
The haunting sculpture Ghost Clock is a favorite Smithsonian artwork and a powerful example of the artist’s skill and craft
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Smithsonian Leader Who Helped Launch the American Indian Museum Dies at 91
With a mission to create a diverse and dynamic Smithsonian, Robert McCormick Adams is remembered as an intense but humble leader
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After Claims of Animal Cruelty, Can the Circus Survive?
At the International Circus Festival in Monte Carlo, performers and managers weigh in on the 250-year-old tradition and its fate
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Five Whimsical Words of the Winter Olympics, from ‘Skeleton’ to ‘Salchow’
The sports are hard. The words are harder. We’re here to help
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Look at the High-Tech Gear Olympians Will Be Wearing
From jackets heated with electronic ink to personal airbags for skiers, these are some of the most innovative wearables you’ll be seeing in PyeongChang
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Your Brain Knows What Songs Are For, No Matter Where They Came From
Researchers find that people easily recognize lullabies and dance songs from around the world
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The Ugliest Sculpture Ever, Says the Portrait Gallery’s Director
A bizarre sculpture of a baby Hercules strangling two snakes set this art historian on a course of discovery
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Have Scientists Found a Greener Way To Make Blue Jeans?
An engineered strain of E. coli bacteria can produce a precursor to synthetic indigo using fewer nasty chemicals than traditional methods
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Why Is Some Art So Bad That It’s Good?
Sometimes a work of art is characterized by a string of failures, but nonetheless ends up being a gorgeous freak accident of nature
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In 1968, When Nixon Said “Sock it To Me” on Laugh-In, TV Was Never Quite the Same Again
The show’s rollicking one-liners and bawdy routines paved the way for Saturday Night Live and other cutting-edge television satire
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Why Nancy Reagan’s Sense of Style Wasn’t Appreciated
Like Jackie and Dolley before her, Nancy Reagan brought her own unique style to the White House. But economic times were tough
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The TV Show ‘Black Lightning’ Gives the Superhero World a Jolt of Social Justice
For the protagonist of WB’s new comic book show, community and family come first
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The True Story of “The Assassination of Gianni Versace”
Did the designer meet his killer seven years earlier?
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What the Batmobile Tells Us About the American Dream
Fans of DC Comics will go batty for this new installation at the National Museum of American History
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How Women Broke Into the Male-Dominated World of Cartoons and Illustrations
A new exhibition at the Library of Congress highlights female artists and their contributions to comic strips, magazine covers and political cartoons
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How Graffiti Artists Used iPhones and Paint to Transform the Beatles’ Ashram
Miles Toland describes how he captured Indian street scenes on his phone and recreated them as giant murals that same day
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Three Architecture Projects That Will Build Community and Address Inequality This Year
These projects set to be completed this year are geared toward strengthening communities that have been left out of the economic recovery
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January Happenings At the Smithsonian
Blow away winter blues with our recommended list of film, lectures, concerts and more
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Rage Against the Machine
A short story reimagines the riots at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and the chaos that shocked the world
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America’s First “Food Spy” Traveled the World Hunting for Exotic Crops
A new book details the life of adventurer-botanist David Fairchild
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Teen Idol Frankie Lymon’s Tragic Rise and Fall Tells the Truth About 1950s America
The mirage of the singer’s soaring success echoes the mirage of post-war tranquility at home
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How Science is Peeling Back the Layers of Ancient Lacquer Sculptures
These rare Buddhist artworks were found to contain traces of bone and blood
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The Remarkable Influence of A Wrinkle in Time
How the Madeleine L’Engle novel liberated young adult literature
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The Ashram Where the Beatles Sought Enlightenment
Beach Boys singer Mike Love recalls what it was like to be at the Indian locale, which remains a destination for fans of music and meditation
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Thomas Edison’s Forgotten Sci-Fi Novel
By feeding his visions for the future to a well-regarded contemporary, the prolific inventor offered a peek into his brilliant mind
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It’s Still Christmas in Armenia
The holiday celebrations continue through January 13. Here’s what to cook to keep the festivities going.
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The Science of Silence in ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’
The soundless lightspeed attack that baffled some fans was actually the film’s most scientifically accurate moment
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Fifty Years Ago, Protesters Took on the Miss America Pageant and Electrified the Feminist Movement
The star-spangled event became a surprise battleground in the fight for women’s rights and racial equality
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How Mickalene Thomas Is Ushering in a New Wave of Contemporary Art
The celebrated portraitist’s glittering images of black women upend tradition
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‘Armenian Pizza’ Is the Comfort Food You Didn’t Know You Were Missing (Recipe)
What lahmacun may lack in cheese pulls it makes up for with juicy, spicy ground lamb
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Photos Celebrate the Lives of Gender Non-Conforming Spirit Mediums in Southeast Asia
The pioneering photographer’s latest book documents the welcoming community of transgender individuals who serve as spirit mediums in Burma and Thailand
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What The Post Gets Right (and Wrong) About Katharine Graham and the Pentagon Papers
A Smithsonian historian reminds us how Graham, a Washington socialite-turned-publisher, transformed the paper into what it is today
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Learn to Speak the Language of the Universe With This Mindblowing New Book
Magnitude helps you imagine the outer limits of time, speed and distance—without breaking your brain
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This 19th Century Illustrator Found Beauty in the Slimiest of Sea Creatures
A new book chronicles Ernst Haeckel’s life and his gorgeous renderings of wild things—scales, spikes, tentacles and all
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P.T. Barnum Isn’t the Hero the “Greatest Showman” Wants You To Think
His path to fame and notoriety began by exploiting an enslaved woman, in life and in death, as entertainment for the masses
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Smithsonian Magazine’s Most Powerful Photos of the Year
Our photography editors select their favorites from a year full of stunning photojournalism
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The Remarkable Rebirth of the Button Accordion
Gilbert Reyes saw the future for the instrument lay in the burgeoning Latino community
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