John Adams’ “On the Transmigration of Souls,” After 9/11
How to memorialize a national tragedy in music?
What Did Manhattan Look Like in 1609?
The Welikia Project recreates a lost vision of Manhattan, one composed of marshes and forest surrounded by wide, meandering rivers.
Alfred Jarry and the Angsty Artist Archetype
French playwright Alfred Jarry and his famous play, "Ubu Roi" may have created the angsty artist archetype we know today.
Star Trek’s 50th Star Date Anniversary
September 8 marks the 50th anniversary of the first season of Star Trek, the NBC science-fiction series produced by Gene Roddenberry.
A Bag of Old Songs from Elsewhere
Sidney Robertson Cowell might be starting to get the attention her rich life, first-rate writing, and broad work as an ethnomusicologist deserve.
Is Writing a Technology or a Language? Let’s Ask Some Aliens
Are written and spoken language really two different things?
Watch Out for Lightning
How did 300 reindeer in Norway die from a single lightning strike?
A Labor Day Look at the Future of Work
If computers endanger the hard-won gains of the labor movement, do we need a new way of addressing tech-driven income inequality?
Suggested Readings: Hair Politics, Socialist Women, and Messages in the Stars
Extra Credit: Our pick of stories from around the web that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.
Thomas Edison and the War of the Currents
Thomas Edison had a big stake in the AC/DC war of the currents and would say anything to win.