February 26, 2013 | 13 notes

Smithsonian Magazine Video Contest Now Open! Here at Smithsonian we’re committed to bringing you the most amazing stories about topics you may have never even thought about before. With In Motion we hope that you will share an amazing story with us through video. We’re looking for original videos that explore and document the world around us. Your video should fit into one of our five categories (nature, arts, travel, people and mobile) and be no longer than 10 minutes. What exactly are we looking for? Documentaries, time lapses, animation, split-screen and profiles are all acceptable. To get a better idea of the types of videos you should submit, check out the videos that inspire us. The deadline to submit your video is May 31, 2013, and there is no entry fee. Four esteemed judges will select the best of the best and on July 1, 2013, we will announce the finalists. We will also open up the voting for the Viewers’ Choice award. On July 15, 2013, the winners of the grand prize and Viewers’ Choice will be announced. The grand prize winner will walk away with $2,000 and their video will be shown on Smithsonian Channel on Demand. Our Viewers’ Choice award winner will receive $1,000 and may also be shown on Smithsonian Channel on Demand. The category winners will receive $200. All video submitted will receive feedback from our judges and throughout the process we will feature our editors’ picks in this space. Still have questions? Head over to our FAQ page or email us at inmotion@si.edu. Ed note: We’re accepting videos that have been created since January 1, 2012.

Smithsonian Magazine Video Contest Now Open!

Here at Smithsonian we’re committed to bringing you the most amazing stories about topics you may have never even thought about before. With In Motion we hope that you will share an amazing story with us through video.

We’re looking for original videos that explore and document the world around us. Your video should fit into one of our five categories (nature, arts, travel, people and mobile) and be no longer than 10 minutes. What exactly are we looking for? Documentaries, time lapses, animation, split-screen and profiles are all acceptable. To get a better idea of the types of videos you should submit, check out the videos that inspire us.

The deadline to submit your video is May 31, 2013, and there is no entry fee. Four esteemed judges will select the best of the best and on July 1, 2013, we will announce the finalists. We will also open up the voting for the Viewers’ Choice award. On July 15, 2013, the winners of the grand prize and Viewers’ Choice will be announced.

The grand prize winner will walk away with $2,000 and their video will be shown on Smithsonian Channel on Demand. Our Viewers’ Choice award winner will receive $1,000 and may also be shown on Smithsonian Channel on Demand. The category winners will receive $200. All video submitted will receive feedback from our judges and throughout the process we will feature our editors’ picks in this space.

Still have questions? Head over to our FAQ page or email us at inmotion@si.edu.

Ed note: We’re accepting videos that have been created since January 1, 2012.

February 26, 2013 | 340 notes

smithsonian: Through work on the Smithsonian’s Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP), our scientists are seeing species in their habitats for the first time, such as these hermit crabs affectionately called “The Three Amigos.” This is the first time the species (Pylopagurus discoidalis) has been photographed alive.   (via “Charro” and “Cowboy” Hermit Crabs - National Museum of Natural History Unearthed)

smithsonian:

Through work on the Smithsonian’s Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP), our scientists are seeing species in their habitats for the first time, such as these hermit crabs affectionately called “The Three Amigos.” This is the first time the species (Pylopagurus discoidalis) has been photographed alive.  

(via “Charro” and “Cowboy” Hermit Crabs - National Museum of Natural History Unearthed)

January 15, 2013 | 541 notes

Astronomer Uses Giant Telescope to View Mars George A. Van Biesbroeck (1880-1974), astronomer at Yerkes Observatory observing Mars when it approached close to the earth in 1926, and using the 40 inch refracting telescope, the largest of its kind in the world. Photo by: Acc. 90-105 - Science Service, Records, 1920s-1970s, Smithsonian Institution Archives Ed note: Getting ready for the world’s largest radio telescope.

Astronomer Uses Giant Telescope to View Mars

George A. Van Biesbroeck (1880-1974), astronomer at Yerkes Observatory observing Mars when it approached close to the earth in 1926, and using the 40 inch refracting telescope, the largest of its kind in the world.

Photo by: Acc. 90-105 - Science Service, Records, 1920s-1970s, Smithsonian Institution Archives

Ed note: Getting ready for the world’s largest radio telescope.

July 11, 2012 | 18 notes

Smithsonian Gets Google Mapped Google and Smithsonian have been working for 7 months to map out step by step walking directions through every floor of 17 of the Smithsonian’s museums for visitors using Android smartphones. Starting today, museum-goers have access to interior maps totaling to 2.7 million square feet. Ed note: Looking for Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers? They’ve even gone so far as to confirm exact artifact locations. The product will be available through Google Maps for Android. Read more about the app at Smithsonianmag.com.

Smithsonian Gets Google Mapped

Google and Smithsonian have been working for 7 months to map out step by step walking directions through every floor of 17 of the Smithsonian’s museums for visitors using Android smartphones. Starting today, museum-goers have access to interior maps totaling to 2.7 million square feet.

Ed note: Looking for Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers? They’ve even gone so far as to confirm exact artifact locations. The product will be available through Google Maps for Android. Read more about the app at Smithsonianmag.com.

July 3, 2012 | 130 notes

smithsonian: Declaration of Independence Desk, 1776 This week’s Smithsonian Snapshot celebrates the July 4, 1776, U. S. independence from Great Britain. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence on this portable desk. It features a hinged writing board and a locking drawer for papers, pens and inkwell.  On July 4, 1776, Congress amended and adopted the declaration. Its words not only established the guiding principles for the new nation, they have served to inspire future generations in America and around the world. This desk continued to be Jefferson’s companion throughout his life as a revolutionary patriot, American diplomat and president of the United States. While the drafts of the Declaration of Independence were among the first documents Jefferson wrote on this desk, the note he attached under the writing board in 1825 was among the last: “Politics as well as Religion has its superstitions. These, gaining strength with time, may, one day, give imaginary value to this relic, for its great association with the birth of the Great Charter of our Independence.” On Nov. 14, 1825, Jefferson wrote to his recently married granddaughter Ellen Randolph Coolidge to inform her that he was sending his “writing box” as a present to her husband Joseph Coolidge. The desk remained in the Coolidge family until April 1880, when the family donated it to the U.S. government. It was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1921. To learn more about American history, visit the National Museum of American History’s “American Stories” exhibition website. This item is one of 137 million artifacts, works of art and specimens in the Smithsonian’s collection. It is currently on display in the National Museum of African American History and Culture Gallery in the National Museum of American History. To learn more about this item, visit the National Museum of American History website.

smithsonian:

Declaration of Independence Desk, 1776

This week’s Smithsonian Snapshot celebrates the July 4, 1776, U. S. independence from Great Britain.

In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence on this portable desk. It features a hinged writing board and a locking drawer for papers, pens and inkwell. 

On July 4, 1776, Congress amended and adopted the declaration. Its words not only established the guiding principles for the new nation, they have served to inspire future generations in America and around the world.

This desk continued to be Jefferson’s companion throughout his life as a revolutionary patriot, American diplomat and president of the United States. While the drafts of the Declaration of Independence were among the first documents Jefferson wrote on this desk, the note he attached under the writing board in 1825 was among the last: “Politics as well as Religion has its superstitions. These, gaining strength with time, may, one day, give imaginary value to this relic, for its great association with the birth of the Great Charter of our Independence.”

On Nov. 14, 1825, Jefferson wrote to his recently married granddaughter Ellen Randolph Coolidge to inform her that he was sending his “writing box” as a present to her husband Joseph Coolidge. The desk remained in the Coolidge family until April 1880, when the family donated it to the U.S. government. It was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1921.

To learn more about American history, visit the National Museum of American History’s “American Stories” exhibition website.

This item is one of 137 million artifacts, works of art and specimens in the Smithsonian’s collection. It is currently on display in the National Museum of African American History and Culture Gallery in the National Museum of American History. To learn more about this item, visit the National Museum of American History website.