https://www.si.edu/about/administration Dec 11, 2024 "The Smithsonian Institution was established by an act of Congress in 1846 as an independent federal trust instrumentality, a unique public-private partnership that has proven its value as a cultural and scientific resource for more than 175 years. The federal commitment provides the foundation for all we do, and is especially helpful in attracting private support. We leverage our federal funding to enrich the lives of the American people and advance our mission for “the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” Smithsonian
https://www.si.edu/support/frequently-asked-questions Dec 11, 2024 "The Smithsonian receives a portion of its funding from the federal government. Private philanthropy bridges the gap between the Federal resources the Smithsonian receives and what it needs to carry out innovative research, expand its national collections, build new facilities, open truly 21st-century exhibitions, and expand educational outreach." Smithsonian
https://www.britannica.com/story/18-food-crops-developed-in-the-americas in this Britannica article provides a short description about the origins of these crops native to the Americas.
https://www.history.com/news/the-birth-of-lincoln-logs Aug 29, 2018 "In 1918, John Lloyd Wright began to market his creation through his own firm, the Red Square Toy Company, and two years later he received a patent for his “toy-cabin construction.” He bestowed upon his creation an alliterative name that also evoked an American icon—Lincoln Logs. The toy came with instructions to build not only Abraham Lincoln’s Kentucky boyhood home, but a famous log structure from the pages of American literature, Uncle Tom’s Cabin." HISTORY
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-unnatural-history-of-the-dixie-cup-119828457 Jun 13, 2012 "The product was a life-saving technology that avoided the transmission of disease from communal “tin dippers” The Dixie Cup, the Kleenex of paper cups, the ubiquitous, single-serving, individual drinking vessel, was never meant to be shared. ....Soon they were the Individual Drinking Cup Company of New York and had renamed their sole product the Health Kup, a life-saving drinking technology that could help prevent the transmission of communicable disease and aid the campaign to do away with free water offered at communal cups, “tin dippers,” found in public buildings and railway stations." Smithsonian Arts & Culture
https://airandspace.si.edu Dec 12, 2024 This Museum "maintains the world's largest and most significant collection of aviation and space artifacts, encompassing all aspects of human flight, as well as related works of art and archival materials. It operates two landmark facilities that, together, welcome more than eight million visitors a year, making it the most visited museum in the country. It also is home to the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies." Smithsonian
https://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2023/08/revisiting-books-that-shaped-america-with-c-span Aug 12, 2023 "These titles (described below, all by American authors) have had a profound effect on American life, but they are by no means the only influential ones. And they are certainly not a list of the “best” American books, because that, again, is a matter of strong and diverse opinion. Curators and experts from throughout the Library of Congress contributed their choices and the final list was informed by a public survey.
Those books were: Stephen Daye, “The Bay Psalm Book” (1640). Benjamin Franklin, “Experiments and Observations on Electricity” (1751). Benjamin Franklin, “Poor Richard Improved” (1758) and “The Way to Wealth.” Thomas Paine, “Common Sense” (1776). Noah Webster, “A Grammatical Institute of the English Language” (1783). “The Federalist” (1787). “A Curious Hieroglyphick Bible” (1788). Christopher Colles, “A Survey of the Roads of the United States of America” (1789). Benjamin Franklin, “The Private Life of the Late Benjamin Franklin, LL.D.” (1793). Amelia Simmons, “American Cookery” (1796). “New England Primer” (1803). Meriwether Lewis, “History of the Expedition Under the Command of the Captains Lewis and Clark” (1814). Washington Irving, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (1820). “The Book of Mormon” (1830). William Holmes McGuffey, “McGuffey’s Newly Revised Eclectic Primer” (1836). Samuel Goodrich, “Peter Parley’s Universal History” (1837). Frederick Douglass, “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” (1845). Edgar Allan Poe, “Tales” (1845). Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Scarlet Letter” (1850). Herman Melville, “Moby-Dick,” or, “The Whale” (1851). Harriet Beecher Stowe, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” (1852). Henry David Thoreau, “Walden,” or, “Life in the Woods” (1854). Walt Whitman, “Leaves of Grass” (1855). Louisa May Alcott, “Little Women,” or, “Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy” (1868). Horatio Alger Jr., “Mark, the Match Boy” (1869). Catharine E. Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, “The American Woman’s Home” (1869). Oliver Wendell Holmes, “The Common Law” (1881). Mark Twain, “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” (1884). Emily Dickinson, “Poems” (1890). Jacob Riis, “How the Other Half Lives” (1890). Frederick Jackson Turner, “The Frontier in American History” (1893). Stephen Crane, “The Red Badge of Courage” (1895). L. Frank Baum, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” (1900). Sarah H. Bradford, “Harriet, the Moses of Her People” (1901). Jack London, “The Call of the Wild” (1903). W.E.B. Du Bois, “The Souls of Black Folk” (1903). Ida Tarbell, “The History of Standard Oil” (1904). Upton Sinclair, “The Jungle” (1906). Henry Adams, “The Education of Henry Adams” (1907). William James, “Pragmatism” (1907). Zane Grey, “Riders of the Purple Sage” (1912). Edgar Rice Burroughs, “Tarzan of the Apes” (1914). Margaret Sanger, “Family Limitation” (1914). Willa Cather, “My Antonia” (1918). William Carlos Williams, “Spring and All” (1923). Robert Frost, “New Hampshire” (1923). F. Scott Fitzgerald, “The Great Gatsby” (1925). Langston Hughes, “The Weary Blues” (1925). William Faulkner, “The Sound and the Fury” (1929). Dashiell Hammett, “Red Harvest” (1929). Irma Rombauer, “Joy of Cooking” (1931). Margaret Mitchell, “Gone With the Wind” (1936). Dale Carnegie, “How to Win Friends and Influence People” (1936). Zora Neale Hurston, “Their Eyes Were Watching God” (1937). Federal Writers’ Project, “Idaho: A Guide in Word and Pictures” (1937). Thornton Wilder, “Our Town: A Play” (1938). “Alcoholics Anonymous” (1939). John Steinbeck, “The Grapes of Wrath” (1939). Ernest Hemingway, “For Whom the Bell Tolls” (1940). Richard Wright, “Native Son” (1940). Betty Smith, “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” (1943). Benjamin A. Botkin, “A Treasury of American Folklore” (1944). Gwendolyn Brooks, “A Street in Bronzeville” (1945). Benjamin Spock, “The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care” (1946). Eugene O’Neill, “The Iceman Cometh” (1946). Margaret Wise Brown, “Goodnight Moon” (1947). Library of Congress Blogs
https://www.youtube.com/@AmericanEnglishatState/playlists Oct 12, 2012 American English is a resource for teaching and learning about American English language and culture. This YouTube channel provides a variety of engaging materials and resources for teachers' professional development and for students (aged 14 and older) in the classroom. Through our videos, both teachers and learners over age 14 will find new ways to practice English and learn more about the United States. Please visit americanenglish.state.gov or either of our Facebook pages, linked below, to access additional resources. American English is a program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. https://americanenglish.state.gov American English
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FpPpn086eI May 1, 2020 The early encounters between Europeans and Native Americans brings about a cultural exchange that benefits one group while bringing misery to the other. While Europeans are introduced to new crops, the Indians are plagued with Old World diseases. NBC News Learn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd7AWLKAuQU Jul 26, 2019 ‘Round these parts, Tuesdays only mean one thing. Tuesdays are for Tacos. Tacos are for Pace - America’s favorite salsa for Tacos.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plmktM3eeuU Aug 26, 2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VMyePEToYE Nov 17, 2022 Adam visits one of the holy grails of film and TV prop history: the original filming model of the USS Enterprise for Star Trek (TOS). This 11-foot long miniature has been under the care of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, where Adam and Astronaut Cady Coleman visit the conservation lab to get up close with this incredible model and learn from Dr. Margaret Weitekamp (Space History curator and department chair) how it has been restored and preserved for public display! See this model on display at the National Air and Space Museum in the Flight Hall: https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/model-starship-enterprise-television-show-star-trek/nasm_A19740668000 Shot and edited by Josh Self Music by Jinglepunks Adam Savage’s Tested
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqB96KNK9r8 May 12, 2020 For #DCTuesdays, discover the history of the iconic #Batmobile from the early comics to the animated series and everything in between. Notable Batman movie directors including Chris Nolan, Joel Schumacher and Tim Burton, as well as actors Christian Bale from “The Dark Knight” and Adam West from the 1960s Batman series discuss the evolution of the Dark Knight's eponymous automobile. Join Kevin Smith as he live tweets along! Spend over an hour with the Caped Crusader. Warner Bros. Entertainment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ga67hLKzQk Nov 13, 2024 January 23, 1990 Our Unknown Eater went to Lemon Grove to find out what all the excitement was about. The first In-N-Out Burger in San Diego County was opened and packed--as it has always been. It's hard to imagine San Diego without In-N-Out nowadays. CBS 8 San Diego
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhzQFIZuNFY Dec 2, 2012 The discovery of farming created the roots of modern civilization. #MankindTheStoryofAllofUs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxjOfbMMgPo Apr 3, 2020 Rick appraises a set of antique silver disinfectant boxes from 1836, and although they might be in great condition it’s all about the jeweler, in this clip from Season 8, "Comfortably Chum".