Innovation / Video

The Long Conversation 2018: Bruce Friedrich Interviews Laura Esserman

The co-founder of the Good Food Institute talks with the breast cancer oncology specialist about personalization in medicine

The Long Conversation 2018: Alfre Woodard Interviews Bruce Friedrich

The actress talks with the co-founder of the Good Food Institute about solving the problems of industrial animal agriculture by growing cells and developing plant-based meat

The Long Conversation 2018: Hawah Kasat Interviews Troy Carter

The co-founder of One Common Unity talks with the music manager about how technology can have a positive impact on artists

The Long Conversation 2018: Sasha Velour Interviews Malak Wazne

Before performing, the drag queen talks with the award-winning filmmaker about breaking down barriers between people

The Long Conversation 2018: Jon Grinspan Interviews Hawah Kasat

The Smithsonian curator of political history talks with the co-founder of One Common Unity about creativity, education and solving the world’s biggest problems

The Long Conversation 2018: Jean Bennett Interviews C. Brian Williams

The molecular geneticist talks with the founder of Step Afrika! about the art form of stepping, created by African American fraternities and sororities

The Long Conversation: Bei Yang interviews Naomi Wadler

Walt Disney Imagineering Technology Executive Bei Yang interviews Naomi Wadler, a sixth-grade activist from Alexandria, Virginia.

The Long Conversation 2018: Carla Hayden Interviews Cheech Marin

The Librarian of Congress talks with the actor and comedian about why he’s optimistic about the future

The Long Conversation 2018: Troy Carter Interviews Nick Pyenson

The music manager gets the Smithsonian paleontologist talking about how taking interest in our natural history can help us know where we are going as a species and a planet

The Long Conversation 2018: Jacqueline Suskin Interviews Mily Treviño-Sauceda

The performance poet talks with the co-director of Alianza Nacional de Campesinas about the changing culture of gender-based violence

The Long Conversation 2018: David Brooks Interviews Jon Grinspan

The New York Times columnist and the Smithsonian curator of political history talk about what we can learn from partisan struggles of the past

The Long Conversation 2018: Spike Gjerde Interviews Jean Bennett

The chef speaks with the molecular geneticist who, with her husband, developed a new treatment for blindness using gene therapy

The Long Conversation 2018: Roy Wood, Jr. Interviews Mercedes Lopez-Morales

The Smithsonian astrophysicist tells the comedian she’s hopeful about finding more Earth-size planets

The Long Conversation 2018: Laura Esserman Interviews Sasha Velour

The breast cancer oncology specialist talks with the drag queen about how the art of drag rethinks the possibilities of gender

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winners: John Krafcik and Dmitri Dolgov

The technology award honors the visionary engineers behind Waymo’s self-driving cars

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winner: Tracy K. Smith

The education award honors the United States poet laureate for her “American Conversations” tour

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winners: Jean Bennett and Albert Maguire

The life sciences award honors the scientists who used gene therapy to cure a form of heritable blindness

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winner: Janelle Monáe

The performing arts award honors the musician for her latest album, Dirty Computer.

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winner: Scott Bolton

The physical sciences award honors the visionary behind the NASA Juno mission to Jupiter

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winner: John Leguizamo

The history award honors the comedian, actor and playwright behind the Tony-nominated show Latino History for Morons

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winners: March for Our Lives Students

The youth award honors the founding members of the grassroots youth movement fighting to end gun violence in America

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winners: Mónica Ramírez and Mily Treviño-Sauceda

The social progress award honors the founders of the Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, the first national organization serving the interests of the country’s 700,000 farmworker women in their fight against …

Smithsonian Ingenuity Award Winner: John Krasinski

The visual arts award honors the director and co-writer of the 2018 surprise hit A Quiet Place.

Meet the 2018 Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award Winners

From the Parkland students who created the March for Our Lives to a couple curing a form of blindness, this year’s honorees are changing our world for the better

Smithsonian Curator Explains How Athletes Turn Social & Political Issues into National Conversations

Atlantic staff writer Frank Foer interviews Damion Thomas about athletes moving from a position of apathy to engagement

Jose Gomez-Marquez Wants to Turn Every Doctor and Nurse into a Maker

Kennedy Center president Deborah Rutter interviews the co-founder of MIT’s Little Devices Lab about democratizing health technology

Restaurateur José Andrés Dreams of Milking the Clouds

In a conversation with architect David Rockwell, the philanthropic chef urges an invested effort to create technology that could collect water from the clouds

Eno Umoh Is Getting Kids to Think About the Positive Powers of Drones

Latina American writer Gabby Rivera interviews the co-founder of Global Air Media about giving students access to the technology

Astrophysicist Michelle Thaller On Understanding Our Place in the Universe

Autodesk vice president Brian Mathews talks with the NASA science communicator about the search for life on other planets and why it’s important

The Future Is Bright If More Teens Think About High School the Way Kavya Kopparapu Does

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma talks with the founder of the Girls Computing League about the promise of her generation

AOL Co-Founder Probes Smithsonian Geologist John Grant About Finding Life on Mars

John Grant explains how in the near future we are going to know if life exists elsewhere in the universe

Could 3D Printing Save Music Education?

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.