Cindy Sherman: Before the Selfie
Before cell phones and selfies, American artist Cindy Sherman influenced the world with her monumental and ongoing series of self-portraiture.
A Brief History of Tobacco in America
Over the past 50 years, the portion of Americans who smoke dropped has dropped from 42 to 15 percent. The precipitous decline could mean the end of the fascination.
How Fashion Magazines Talked in the 1930s
The Splashy language of fashion magazines prompted one linguist to look closer at the over-the-top dialect in Vogue and Ladies’ Home Journal of the 30s
Game of Thrones and the Rebirth of Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is seeing a resurgence in tourism, due, ironically enough, to a TV show about political violence between kingdoms: Game of Thrones.
What If We Had All the Birds from Shakespeare in Central Park?
According to birding lore, two of America's most invasive bird species were introduced by a misguided Shakespeare fan named Eugene Schieffelin.
Five Things You Didn’t Know About the Ocean
June is National Oceans Month. Celebrate with some beach reads.
Students Don’t Just Need Grit, They Need Agency
Psychologist Angela Duckworth argues that students need "grit," or rugged individualism, to succeed. But scholar Anindya Kundu insists there's more to it.
Why Does the IMF Care if Britain Leaves the EU?
The IMF is warning against a "Brexit." But what's the history behind the organization that has such an influence in world financial affairs?
How Francis Crick Almost Didn’t Make His Huge DNA Discovery
British biologist Francis Crick co-published a paper on the helical structure of DNA some fifty years ago. He followed a convoluted route to this discovery.
The Utopian Roots of the Artists’ Retreat
The modern artist's retreat has roots in industrial-era utopian communes.