Nurses react as community members applaud them on April 30, 2020 at NYU Langone Hospital in New York City.

Will Society Remember the Pandemic’s Heroes?

If history is any guide, probably not.
A young man and woman eating ice cream.

Who Invented Weird Hipster Ice Cream Flavors?

From asparagus to pâté de fois gras, early modern ice cream was decidedly different from plain chocolate and vanilla.
A Fourth of July picnic, possibly in South Carolina, 1874, by J. A. Palmer

How Black Americans Co-opted the Fourth of July

After the Civil War, white southerners saw the Fourth of July as a celebration of Confederate defeat. Black southerners saw opportunities.
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts

The Madness of John Roberts

The Supreme Court’s pro-choice decision in June Medical Services v. Russo illustrates the Chief Justice's embattled relationship with precedent.
Shirley Chisholm

Shirley Chisholm: Sisterhood Is Complicated

A 1974 interview on feminism and politics with the first Black major-party candidate for president.
Buster Keaton putting his ear to cannon in a scene from the film 'The General', 1926

What Drove Buster Keaton to Try a Civil War Comedy?

“Someone should have told Buster that it is difficult to derive laughter from the sight of men being killed in battle.”
Daguerre's diorama

Diorama, qu’est-ce que c’est?

Before his daguerreotype, the French inventor Louis Daguerre unveiled a new kind of “virtual reality” on a British stage.
The Dragon tree (left) and Dragon tree fruit (right)

Plant of the Month: The Dragon Tree

Dragon's blood is all the rage now, but where does the scarlet resin come from?
George Floyd's image is projected on the Robert E. Lee Monument as people gather around on June 18, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia.

The Sorry State of Apologies

"Sorry" can be more than a mere word when it has real-world consequences.
Palm trees in fog, Florida

Will the Saharan Dust Cloud Damage Our Lungs?

The airborne particles carry microbes and fungi, and can react with human lung tissue.