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Once the shining star of the British Empire, the Royal Navy can trace its routes back to the 16th century. Though it has lost some of its grandeur, it still exists as an important line of defense for the United Kingdom. Today's Pick examines the Royal Navy in the 20th century, giving readers the opportunity to experience the people and workings of the celebrated British fleet. With the opportunity to listen to an oral history from those who have lived and worked at sea their entire lives, the site offers a great deal of depth and detail. It tackles contemporary subjects such as women at sea and presents numerous photo galleries to illustrate the technology and themes these hard-working sailors encounter every day.

For the past several years, StoryCorps has created citizen historians out of everyday folks. Armed with simple microphones and tape recorders, people have captured over 8,000 stories of their lives, about traveling in the South during segregation, being identical twins, or surviving Hodgkin's disease. Excerpts are available on this site, and you can browse the short audio clips by topic. Family members often share quirky, moving stories about growing up or home and place. Questions about who you are lead to intriguing stories about businessmen, transsexuals, immigrants, and survivors. September 11 and Hurricane Katrina stories are both represented, too. Like what you've heard here? You can get involved and record your own. Everybody has a story to tell for the ages, and the StoryCorps Archive will be housed in the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

Much has been said of the horrifying photos and video of the World Trade Center on September 11. For five years now, The Sonic Memorial Project has been constructing a portrait of the towers and that day —one that leaves the pictures behind. As much a celebration of the twin towers' life as their dreadful demise, this audio project commemorates the buildings and the people who built them, worked in them, lived in their shadows, and gingerly walked a tightrope between them. Voice mail messages, Windows on the World piano, and the daily creak of the towers in the wind mingle with memories from victims' families, tour-guide operators, boat captains, landfill workers, and tourists. Dip into the open archive for the most recent recordings (and consider adding your own). But don't miss the audio installation for the diverse collection of sounds that comprise a more complex image of those buildings than any photograph could ever offer.