Gender and Caste at Holi
The Hindu festival of Holi celebrates love, colors, and the arrival of spring. How it's celebrated can vary significantly throughout India.
Cows Gone Wild: The Cattle of Heck
Returning large, wild herbivores to Europe could help maintain soil health and discourage invasive species, but these cows have some political baggage...
Terence McKenna’s Anarchic Psychedelic Religion
Terence McKenna was an evangelist for the use of psilocybin and other mind-altering drugs, as a way to transcend and escape “untrammeled rationalism.”
Filler Words and Floor Holders: The Sounds Our Thoughts Make
So, well, okay, um, like, you know, right?
The USDA Versus Black Farmers
Current attempts to correct historical discrimination by local and regional offices of the USDA have been met with charges of "reverse discrimination."
Forests as Fuel: Is Bioenergy Carbon Neutral?
Can using forest harvests for biofuel be carbon neutral? A case study of the Northern Forest appears to say "no."
Elizabeth Keckley’s Memoir Behind the Scenes, or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four in the White House
Keckley’s decision to write about her employers from the viewpoint of a household laborer—she was seamstress to Mary Todd Lincoln—enraged audiences.
Philanthropy and the Gilded Age
As the HBO series The Gilded Age suggests, charity allowed wealthy women to play a visible role in public life. It was also a site of inter-class animosity.
Sammy Davis Jr.’s Conversion Mishegoss
Sammy Davis Jr.'s conversion to Judaism in 1960 was met with skepticism, derision, and, yes, jokes by the members of the groups he claimed and embraced.
The Famous and Forgotten Women of STEM
The Editors have compiled their favorite pieces highlighting the many overlooked contributions of women in STEM.