Who Made That Word and Why?
No matter how many words in a language, it seems that we always need just one more to explain ourselves.
The Chilean Wide Web?
Salvador Allende’s attempt to network the national economy mirrored his government’s struggle to balance centralization and decentralization.
The Exotic “Pornography” of the Arabian Nights
The heated debates over Burton’s explicit translation of the beloved tales exposed Victorian England’s preoccupation with sex.
The Pro-Democratic Fourteenth Amendment
At the heart of recent US Supreme Court decisions, the Fourteenth Amendment was framed to require free speech and free elections in the South.
The Reality Behind Kitchen Sink Realism
The gritty dramas of the 1950s and 1960s revealed the bitterness and disillusionment of Britain's working class youth.
History, Cosplay, and Comic-Con
Donning costumes in imitation and celebration of fictional characters has a long history that crosses genres, genders, and international boundaries.
Every Good Bird Does Fine
Is birdsong music, speech, or something else altogether? The question has raged for millennia, drawing in everyone from St. Augustine to Virginia Woolf.
Reforestation: It’s A Trade-Off
While reforestation may help address the climate crisis, implementation requires long-term flexibility, careful listening, and an ability to compromise.
Space Images, Reproductive Justice, and Bird Evolution
Well-researched stories from Vox, Public Books, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
Democide: An Inside Job?
The biggest enemy of democracy? It may be democracy itself.